Squaring off for the very first time, the Colorado Rapids Soccer Club fell to Atlanta United FC, 1-0, on Saturday night in front of 44,938 fans at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
Rapids head coach Pablo Mastroeni opted for a starting eleven that featured six roster changes from Wednesday night’s defeat to the LA Galaxy, and his selection was initially rewarded as the Rapids looked lively out of the gate, playing with confidence and getting forward with regularity.
The tides began to turn midway through the first half, however, the home side settled in to a sustained spell of possession, only to be caught out on a 29th-minute counter-attack when Rapids winger Joshua Gatt made a tremendous 50-yard end-to-end run and nearly connected with forward Caleb Calvert on the back post.