Atlanta United vs. CS Herediano
Atlanta hosts second leg of Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League Round of 16 Thursday
Atlanta United returns to action Thursday in the second leg of its Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League Round of 16 matchup against CS Herediano at Fifth Third Bank Stadium. CS Herediano leads 3-1 on aggregate after the first leg on Feb. 21 in Costa Rica. The match is scheduled to kick-off at 8 p.m. EST and will be broadcast in the U.S. on Yahoo Sports (English) and Univision (Spanish). For more match information, please view game notes here.
“3-1 is a good result for Herediano, but I have confidence also that we can score two goals at home,” head coach Frank de Boer said. “It’s more difficult now, but we know we can play back at our stadium, and if we play well we can still move on to the next round. We’re going to try to improve every day and hopefully by Thursday we have time to get our revenge and show everyone that we’ve learned from this experience and are better for it.”
In the first leg, Jose Guillermo Ortiz gave Herediano an early lead in the eighth minute, intercepting a back pass and chipping goalkeeper Brad Guzan. Randall Azofeifa added the second goal in the 34th minute, beating Guzan one-on-one after a Herediano counterattack put him in behind Atlanta’s backline. Atlanta cut the lead to 2-1 in the 41st minute when Julian Gressel cut in from the right wing and fired a left-footed shot that redirected off a Herediano defender and into the goal. Herediano scored the third goal in the 50th minute from a set piece, as Azofeifa played a ball towards the back post where Esteban Granados beat his marker and redirected the ball into the net.
CS Herediano, the reigning Liga FDP champion, is making its seventh consecutive appearance in Concacaf Champions League play and ninth overall. The club currently sits in 10th place of 12 teams (3-4-3) during 2018-2019 Clausura play in Costa Rica’s top division after losing 3-2 to San Carlos on Feb. 24.
The winner of this series will face either CF Monterrey or Alianza FC in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League.
MATCH INFORMATION
Thursday, Feb. 28 | Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, Georgia |8 p.m. (EST)
Atlanta United (U.S.) vs. CS Herediano (Costa Rica)
BROADCAST SCHEDULE
TV: Yahoo Sports app and Yahoo.sports.com (English) & Univision Deportes (Spanish)
Local Radio: 92.9 The Game
Talent: Mike Conti (play-by-play) and Jason Longshore (analyst)