It was a game full of talking points on Saturday night under the open roof of the Mercedes Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta as the Philadelphia Union made the trip south. Atlanta United won the game 3-1 on the strength of an MLS-record-tying hat-trick from Josef Martinez as the Five Stripes played just 72 hours after their disappointing draw at New England.
Martinez is now the fastest player in league history to net five hat tricks and has accomplished this feat in just 34 league games over his brief MLS career. With the hat-trick, Matinez rocketed back to the top of the MLS Golden Boot charts, while Atlanta kept their seat atop the league standings for the Supporter’s Shield.