Atlanta United and NYCFC battle to draw

Atlanta United and NYCFC battled to a 2-2 draw on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in a game filled with controversy, chippiness and dazzling plays fitting the top two teams in the MLS Eastern Conference.

Goals from Atlanta United’s Greg Garza and Chris McCann were offset by goals from NYCFC’s David Villa and Alexander Ring. Atlanta United’s Darlington Nagbe had a goal in the first half taken away after referee Allen Chapman used replay to determine that Josef Martinez committed an offside infraction.

The draw results in Atlanta United (4-1-1) remaining unbeaten in its past five games. It will fly to Los Angeles to play the Galaxy Saturday.

Ezequiel Barco made his long-awaited debut for Atlanta United when he came on in the 69th minute. Barco, the most expensive transfer in MLS history, had yet to play after suffering a quad injury during training for the season-opening game at Houston.

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Credit: Mitch Martin/Atlanta United

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