Atlanta United Ends Home Schedule With 3-1 Win Over Toronto FC

Starting Lineup

Atlanta United returned to Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday for its final home match of the disappointing 2026 season. Already eliminated from playoff contention, Atlanta had little left to play for beyond pride and giving its supporters something to celebrate. Toronto FC still had slim playoff hopes alive, although the visitors needed a victory and help elsewhere to keep their season going.

With Atlanta’s season effectively over, Tata Martino had an opportunity to give more playing time to his younger players and reserves. Instead, he retained most of his established starting lineup, with players such as Giuliano Galoppo, Júnior Alonso, and Lucas Hoyos getting another opportunity to impress.

Atlanta ultimately gave the 41,197 supporters at Mercedes-Benz Stadium something they had seen far too little of this season. Not only goals, not just a win, but a commanding performance to go with it. Goals from Miguel Almirón, Cooper Sanchez, and Alexey Miranchuk earned the Five Stripes a 3-1 victory, although the game became uncomfortable once the subs entered the pitch.

1st Half

Atlanta opened with a high defensive line, spreading its players wide and attempting to force Toronto into playing long balls over the top. Toronto was happy to oblige, and the visitors were in complete control for the first 8 minutes. It appeared as though Atlanta was merely going through the motions.

I will note here that Atlanta didn’t start warm-ups until 10 min of warm-up time had elapsed. They also left with a few min remaining. Toronto stayed late. So the slow start came of no surprise.

It could have gone badly in the 6th when Paulo Díaz hit a hospital pass to Mauricio Amaro. Toronto recovered the ball and worked it across the field to Theo Corbeanu, who found room inside the box. He hit a powerful shot which forced Lucas Hoyos into a difficult save, standing firm and knocking the ball away. The crowd responded with a burst of applause.

Atlanta was struggling to get anywhere near Toronto’s goal. Its defenders and midfielders could move the ball around, but the front line was barely involved. Atlanta’s first ball into Toronto’s box came from a long pass by Díaz that sailed beyond everyone.

Atlanta woke up after 10 minutes when Giuliano Galoppo sent a pass through Toronto’s defense up to Breel Embolo. Embolo timed his burst to get behind the back line and found himself alone against Luka Gavran. He waited for the goalkeeper to commit, then chipped the ball over him and into the net. His celebration was cut short when the assistant referee raised his flag for offside. It was a late, but correct, call.

Atlanta gradually started taking control of midfield. Júnior Alonso carried possession into Toronto’s half, while Díaz continued handling much of the distribution from the back. Amaro was cutting off any attempted pass into the center. The passing between Atlanta’s defenders and midfielders was beginning to look considerably better. Players were combining in triangles, making supporting runs, and finding one another in space.

Getting the ball to the front line remained a problem. Passes were overhit, crosses missed their targets, and promising runs ended without a pass. It actually looked as though the midfield and front line were given different instructions.

Almirón made the difference in the 22nd minute. He dribbled up the right wing then cuts back around his mark. He passes to Sanches who deflected it towards Miranchuk as Almirón continued his run between defenders. Miranchuk recognized the opening and slipped the ball forward. Gavran rushed off his line as a defender chased Almirón towards goal. Almirón slid forward, stretched his leg towards the ball, and managed to poke it between the goalkeeper’s legs. The ball rolled into the net, giving Atlanta a 1-0 lead. Almirón raced towards the corner and celebrated by boxing the flag.

The goal gave a jolt to the Five Stripes. They greatly increased the pace of play, with both runs and passing noticeably faster. Even Embolo was getting involved defensively, chasing a Toronto attack all the way back to Atlanta’s penalty box to help win the ball.

In the 30th minute, Miranchuk spun away from his defender and spotted Jacob running forward. Jacob took the ball and carried it about 30 yards into Toronto’s half before Dániel Sallói knocked him down from behind. The professional foul earned Sallói a yellow card.

In the 40th minute, Atlanta sent a long ball over Toronto’s back line towards Almirón. The ball looked certain to go out near the left sideline, and Toronto’s defenders let it go. Almirón recognized a chance, and chased it down. He surprisingly managed to keep it in play. Toronto was caught off guard. Almirón dribbled towards the box with Embolo making a run. At the same time, Sanchez came charging forward from midfield, calling for the ball. Almirón spotted him and hit a direct ball to the top of the box. Sanchez met it with a first-time shot into the bottom right corner for his first MLS goal, giving Atlanta a 2-0 lead.

Atlanta went into halftime leading 2-0, having recovered from a difficult opening to take control of the match.

2nd Half

Toronto returned from halftime knowing its playoff hopes were slipping away. Results elsewhere were going against the visitors, and they came out pressing aggressively in an attempt to get back into the game.

Embolo broke into Toronto’s box and fired a powerful shot over the crossbar and into the crowd.

Toronto made brief in-rounds into Atlanta’s box. But it felt toothless. Atlanta soon recovered possession and began attacking again.

Galoppo carried the ball into Toronto’s half but couldn’t pass to Embolo, who was offside. Galoppo then continued forward and was forced out wide. A Toronto defender knocked the ball away, but Embolo reacted first and recovered it along the side line. Embolo circled wide around his defender before passing centrally to Almirón. He took a touch and fired a powerful shot that beat Gavran but struck the right post. The rebound came back directly to Miranchuk, who controlled the ball, turned to his left, and shoots past the keeper’s left for Atlanta’s third goal.

Toronto brought on Lewis Morgan and Alonso Coello in the 54th minute. The visitors began sending more players down their right wing, overloading Báez on Atlanta’s left. Báez struggled to handle the additional attackers on his own.

Miranchuk played a beautiful long ball towards Jacob, who raced Gavran to reach it. The goalkeeper got there first, but Jacob slid in and nearly knocked the ball away.

Toronto continued attacking down its right. Báez went to ground trying to tackle Corbeanu, who jumped over him and sent a cross into the box. Alonso was there and headed it clear for a throw.

In the 70th minute, Amaro went down for the second time after a play in the box. It initially didn’t look bad, but he wouldn’t be able to continue. Martino replaced him with Adrian Gill, and Jay Fortune entered for Almirón.

Toronto attacked down its right again. Báez went to ground attempting another sliding tackle, but the attacker got around him and sent the ball into the box. Toronto got a shot off, forcing Hoyos to make a save.

Embolo broke towards goal at full speed and fired a shot to Gavran’s left. The goalkeeper blocked it, sending the ball high into the air. Embolo got his head to the rebound, but the ball struck the left post. A frustrated Embolo threw himself over the advertising boards and stayed there, clearly upset at another missed opportunity. He then slowly, very slowly, walked back into position. The coaching staff urging him to get back on sides more quickly.

In the 79th minute, Hoyos hit a goal kick up the middle. Toronto recovered first and sent the ball towards Josh Sargent outside Atlanta’s 18. Sargent and Alonso both attempted to hit the ball simultaneously. Sargent was able to tap it forward to an open Morgan. Morgan fired into the bottom-left corner, cutting Atlanta’s lead to 3-1.

Looking for more defensive control, Martino brought on Tristan Muyumba and Luke Brennan for Sanchez and Embolo.

Díaz found himself with plenty of open space in Toronto’s half and brought the ball all the way to the box. He passed right to Muyumba, who dribbled towards goal. Despite having passing options available, Muyumba elected to shoot, and Gavran easily blocked it.

Atlanta was becoming a bit careless, giving Toronto opportunities to attack. This was most evident through the middle, where Gill was struggling to provide the same defensive coverage as Amaro.

Toronto kept pushing in stoppage. A chaotic scramble developed inside Atlanta’s box, with Toronto desperately fighting for another goal. Atlanta eventually managed to clear the danger. Toronto sent another cross into the box. Under pressure, Díaz headed the ball back towards his own goal, but Hoyos was there and able to jump for it, much to the relief of the crowd.

Dujic blew the final whistle, confirming Atlanta’s 3-1 victory in its last home appearance of the season. The Five Stripes played spoiler, ending Toronto’s playoff hopes in the process.

Closing Thoughts

Atlanta United finished with 19 shots, eight on target, and 3.40 xG. Toronto managed 12 shots, three on target, and 1.66 xG. Atlanta created plenty of opportunities and could have scored more, particularly with Embolo hitting the post and missing several chances.

Atlanta’s individual performances are covered here.

Player Impressions: ATLUTD 3-1 Toronto

Atlanta’s win featured standout performances from Sanchez, Amaro, and Almirón. But Toronto’s late pressure exposed concerns about Atlanta’s depth.

Read More ›

Atlanta’s midfield was particularly effective for much of the match. Sanchez and Amaro controlled the middle, allowing the team to build from the back and move the ball forward. Atlanta still struggled to connect with its front line at times, but created more chances than in recent matches.

Toronto had difficulty attacking through the middle and eventually began concentrating its efforts down Atlanta’s left. The visitors repeatedly overloaded Báez, who struggled to defend against the additional players. Atlanta had trouble adjusting, allowing Toronto to send several dangerous balls into the box.

The substitutions exposed further problems with Atlanta’s depth. Once Amaro departed, Toronto created far more opportunities through midfield. Gill didn’t provide the same defensive presence, and Atlanta’s passing became increasingly careless. Despite holding a comfortable lead, the Five Stripes found themselves defending desperately during the closing minutes.

Martino used only four of his five available substitutions despite Atlanta already being eliminated from playoff contention. With only one match remaining, he passed up another opportunity to give younger players and reserves meaningful minutes.

The victory was a welcome result in Atlanta’s final home match, but it does little to change the disappointment of the season. There were encouraging performances and signs of what this team is capable of when its midfield is functioning well. There were also familiar defensive mistakes and problems maintaining control once changes were made.

Atlanta has one match remaining before another offseason of difficult roster decisions. The Five Stripes travel to face Red Bull New York on November 7, with the focus already turning towards what needs to change for 2027.