Atlanta United ties Cincinnati 1-1, winless in 9 straight

CINCINNATI (AP) — Ronald Hernández scored his first MLS goal to help Atlanta play FC Cincinnati to a 1-1 draw Wednesday night in United interim coach Rob Valentino's first game.

Atlanta (2-4-8) has a franchise-record nine-game winless streak. It fired Gabriel Heinze on Sunday, a day after a 1-0 loss to New England.

United hasn't lost back-to-back games since losing three straight in October 2020.

The 23-year-old Hernández, a defender who played five minutes in his only other MLS appearance, put away a cross by Brooks Lennon — that appeared to have been redirected by Manchop Choi — with a

Luciano Acosta, on a breakaway, cut back to evade a defender near the penalty spot and the curled in a side-netter to give Cincinnati (3-6-4) a 1-0 lead in the 61st.

Kenneth Vermeer had a career-high eight saves for Cincinnati.

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