WASHINGTON — Atlanta United played D.C. United to a 1-1 draw Wednesday night at Audi Field.
Saba Lobjanidze scored his third goal of the season and Tyler Wolff recorded his first assist of the year.
Atlanta was on the front foot from the opening whistle and nearly scored in the third minute. Tristan Muyumba worked the ball to the right wing to Lobjanidze where the Georgian winger sent a cross towards the penalty spot. Giorgos Giakoumakis met the ball with a spinning volley, however his attempt bounced off the left post. A couple of minutes later, Lobjanidze found space down the right flank and cut inside on his left foot but his shot went straight at Alex Bono.
In the 14th minute, Atlanta earned its reward for the good start. The play started when Homegrown Tyler Wolff forced a turnover deep in D.C. United's defensive third on the left flank. The winger looked up and crossed immediately to an open Lobjanidze in the box and the Georgian poked the ball beyond Bono into the bottom left corner for the lead.
Both sides had opportunities to score in the remainder of the half with the best chances falling to D.C. United's Jose Fajardo, however the striker was unable to find the target from close range on back-to-back attacks and Atlanta took a 1-0 lead into halftime.
D.C. United was given a penalty in the 63rd minute after a shot from the top of the box struck Luis Abram's arm. After VAR review, the penalty was waved off due to an offside decision on the initial free kick. In the 80th minute, D.C. United's Gabriel Pirani scored the equalizer. Pirani won the ball in the attacking third and was played into the box by Mateusz Klich. Pirani slotted the ball from 12 yards out into the bottom left corner.
Atlanta United (12-8-10, 46 points) returns home to host CF Montreal on Saturday.
