KENNESAW, Ga. (July 13, 2025) - Atlanta United 2 won 3-2 in a thrilling match against Columbus Crew 2 on a humid Sunday night at Fifth Third Stadium. Rodrigo Neri extended his goal tally to five on the season, and Patrick Weah added his first two goals for the 5-Stripes as they earned their third win of the season.
The opening half was filled with action with Atlanta dominating play. In the 10th minute, Javier Armas chased a Columbus attacker on a breakaway and brought him down 40 yards from goal. Armas received a straight red card but after discussion from the officials, the referee overturned the decision and gave the captain a yellow card.
Moises Tablante tried his luck in the 14th minute. From 25 yards out, the Venezuelan trapped the ball from a Columbus clearance and sent a rocket destined for the top-right corner, but Luke Pruter acrobatically palmed the ball out for a corner.
Armas delivered a corner nearing halftime and Sal Mazzaferro met the header at the top of the six-yard box, tipping it to a wide open Neri at the back post. The 20-year-old tried to slot the ball in, but his attempt was saved off the line as both sides entered the half scoreless. Atlanta outshot the Crew 10-2 in the first half.
In 56th minute, the 5-Stripes capitalized on their attacking dominance. Pruter attempted to pass out of the back, but Armas deflected his pass into the path of Neri. From the top of the box, Neri chipped Pruter with a one-time curler to open the scoring.
Six minutes later, Columbus equalized. Quinton Elliot combined with Nico Rincon on a corner kick, before Elliot chipped the ball toward the back post, bypassing everyone and landing into the bottom corner of the goal.
One minute after the restart, Dylan Randazzo held Tablante from 25 yards out to receive his second yellow card and be dismissed from the game. Tablante took the free kick and forced Pruter to make yet another acrobatic save.
In 76th minute, substitute Patrick Weah was fouled from behind inside the box to earn a penalty kick. The Liberian stepped up and sent Pruter the wrong way, finishing to the right and scoring his first goal of the season.
The 5-Stripes tripled their tally in the 82nd minute. Cooper Sanchez dribbled inside the box before feeding Ryan Carmichael to the right with space. The Northern Irishman slotted a ball across the face of goal for Weah to tap in his second. In stoppage time, Columbus added another through Brent Adu Gyamfi, but Atlanta held on to earn its third win of the season.
Atlanta United 2 (3-5-7, 18 points) returns to action Saturday, July 19 when it travels to Carolina Core FC at Truist Point (7:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass). Some ATL UTD 2 matches are available with an MLS Season Pass subscription, located on the Apple TV app while the remainder of matches are streamed live on MLSNEXTPro.com.
