Convincing victory in second leg the goal for Atlanta United in Concacaf Champions League match at Kennesaw

The second leg of Atlanta United’s Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League Round of 16 matchup against CS Herediano will be contested Thursday night at Kennesaw State’s Fifth Third Bank Stadium.

CS Herediano leads 3-1 on aggregate scoring after winning the first leg on Feb. 21 in Costa Rica. The match is scheduled to kick off at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast in the U.S. on Yahoo Sports (English) and Univision (Spanish).

Atlanta must win convincingly to advance to the quarterfinals against the winner of CF Monterrey and Alianza FC. Because it scored a crucial away goal, it clinches the leg with a 2-0 victory Thursday. If Herediano scores at least one goal, United must score three more to force a penalty-kick shootout or four to advance to the next round.

“3-1 is a good result for Herediano, but I have confidence also that we can score two goals at home,” first-year United 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 past 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.

United open their 2019 Major League Soccer season March 3 at D.C. United. The home opener is March 10 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.