KENNESAW, Ga. (October 9, 2019) – It was a wild one in Georgia for Bethlehem Steel FC tonight. In a match that included three penalties, eight yellow cards and seven goals, Bethlehem Steel FC fell 5-2 on the road to Atlanta United 2. By the time the final whistle had blown, 17 fouls had been committed by each side, showing that neither Steel FC nor Atlanta wanted to give up the physical edge in this one. Faris opened the scoring for Steel with his team-leading ninth goal of the season and Selmir Miscic opened his professional account in the 77th minute to become the club’s all-time youngest goalscorer.
The first half was the lighter of the two but Atlanta United 2 were able to snag a pair of goals late before the halftime break. The second 45 brought all the action, with three penalty kicks, two to Atlanta and one to the Steel and five cautions. Faris converted the Steel’s lone penalty kick three minutes out of halftime, but Atlanta fired two unnanswered to increase their lead to 4-1. Miscic got one back in the 77th minute off an Axel Picazo slashing run and cut-back pass. Atlanta United 2 converted one more penalty kick before the end of the match seal the win.
Despite the disappointing scoreline, it was a strong game for development by Steel FC. Notably Selmir Miscic’s goal was the first of his young professional career and wrote the midfielder into the Steel FC record books as the youngest player to score a goal for the club. The Royersford, Pa. native scored his first goal at 16 years, eight months and 17 days, beating out teammate Ben Ofeimu (17 years, eight months, three days) who set the record in 2018. The Steel also saw Axel Picazo notch his first helper for the club and Danny Flores make his first Steel start.
The Steel next continue their road swing with a showdown against Ottawa Fury FC this Saturday, October 12 (2:00 p.m. ET | TD Place Stadium | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | ESPN +).
RECAP:
Bethlehem Steel FC (2) – Atlanta United 2 (5)
Fifth Third Bank Stadium (Kennesaw, Ga.)
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
TODAY’S MATCH INFO:
Venue: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, Ga.
Referee: Malik Badawi
Assistant Referees: Austin Holt; Kyle Johnston
Fourth Official: Chris Copeland
Weather: 69 degrees and clear
Attendance: 1,702
GOALS/ASSISTS
ATL – George Campbell (Mikey Ambrose) 38’
ATL – Mikey Ambrose (Unassisted) 43’
BST – Faris (Penalty Kick) 48’
ATL – Patrick Okonkwo (Kevin Barajas) 57’
ATL – George Bello (Penalty Kick) 61’
BST – Selmir Miscic (Axel Picazo) 77’
ATL – Bienvenue Kanakimana (Penalty Kick) 87’
DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY
ATL – Wesley Decas (caution) 14’
ATL – George Campbell (caution) 29’
BST – Ben Ofeimu (caution) 36’
ATL – Dylan Castanheira (caution) 47’
ATL – Mohammed Adams (caution) 58’
BST – Todd Morton (caution) 87’
BST – Cole Turner (caution) 89’
ATL – Luiz Fernando (caution) 90+2’
LINEUP
Bethlehem Steel FC: Todd Morton; Walter Cortés, Steve Kingue, Ben Ofeimu, Nathan Harriel; Cole Turner, James Chambers ©; Danny Flores (Selmir Miscic 65’), Zach Zandi (Axel Picazo 65’); Faris, Saed Díaz (Shanyder Borgelin 62’)
Substitutes not used: Ben Martino; Dante Huckaby
Atlanta United 2: Dylan Castanheira; Mikey Ambrose, Wesley Decas, George Campbell, Jack Metcalf ©; George Bello, Kevin Barajas (William Reilly 66’), Mohammed Adams, Amir Bashti (Guillermo Benítez 46’); Patrick Okonkwo (Bienvenue Kanakimana 84’), Luiz Fernando
Substitutes not used: Paul Christensen; Laurent Kissiedou
TEAM NOTES
Bethlehem Steel FC midfielder Selmir Miscic scored his first professional goal for Steel FC in the match against Atlanta United 2. He made his return for the Steel, coming on as a second-half substitute. This was Miscic’s third appearance of 2019 for the Pennsylvania club.
Miscic also became the youngest player to score a goal for the club. The Royersford, Pa. native scored his first goal at 16 years, eight months and 17 days, beating out teammate Ben Ofeimu (17 years, eight months, three days) who set the record in 2018.
Forward Faris scored his ninth goal of the 2019 regular season in tonight’s match and his 12th all-time for the club. Faris has now been involved in 10 goals this season, with three of his nine tallies coming from the penalty spot.
Philadelphia Union Academy midfielder Danny Flores made his first start for Steel FC in tonight’s match against Atlanta United 2. Flores played 65 minutes, took one shot, created one chance and made one tackle in his first start.
Steel FC forward Saed Díaz returned to the starting lineup for the first time since the match against Indy Eleven (April 20).
Philadelphia Union Academy midfielder Axel Picazo notched his first Steel FC assist in tonight’s match, assisting on Selmir Miscic’s 77th-minute goal.
The Steel next continue their road swing with a showdown against Ottawa Fury FC this Saturday, October 12 (2:00 p.m. ET | TD Place Stadium | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | ESPN +).
