Atlanta United had their chances to eke out a victory over FC Cincinnati but couldn’t quite breakthrough. While the match may have ended in a 0-0 draw, Atlanta United suffered yet another costly loss on the injury front.
The club’s string of bad luck continued in the second half of today’s match as goalkeeper Brad Guzan when down with what appeared to be a significant non-contact Achilles injury. The Five Stripes are already without Josef Martinez for the next 6-8 weeks after the star striker had surgery on his right knee. Osvaldo Alonso suffered a torn ACL earlier this month and Matheus Rossetto remains out with a hamstring injury—all three injuries occurred in the win over D.C. United.
Since then, Atlanta United dropped a contest to Charlotte FC, and now, they tie FC Cincinnati who came into today’s match in the 11th spot in the East.
Bobby Shuttleworth was thrust into action following Guzan’s injury. With 13 years of experience in MLS, Shuttleworth is a more-than-capable backup. Since 2010, he ranks 4th in saves with 691 and has made 231 total appearances with the New England Revolution, Minnesota United FC and Chicago Fire FC.
Atlanta United outshot FC Cincinnati 21 to 9 in today’s match but goalkeeper Alex Kann kept his net clean. This included a penalty shot save on an attempt by Marcelino Moreno in the 62’. Atlanta United also had an 11-10 man advantage from the 76' on.
Andrew Gutman had a few good looks in stoppage time but neither could find the back of the net.
Atlanta United does pick up one point with the draw, but with injuries continuing to pile up, the next few weeks will be a tough test for the club. Next up is a matchup with Chattanooga as part of the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday.
