Nick Firmino's performance caught the eyes of anyone watching Atlanta United 2's dominant 5-0 win over Inter Miami II Sunday night at Fifth Third Bank Stadium.
Firmino, who has been named Player of the Matchday for Matchday 11, scored two goals in two minutes. He also added an assist late in the match. The 22-year-old has been ever-present for ATL UTD 2 this season, scoring seven goals and providing three assists.
Firmino now ranks second among MLS NEXT Pro top goalscorers, one goal behind Rapids 2's Yosuke Hanya, who has scored eight.
ATL UTD 2 earned a man advantage after a 34th-minute red card on Sunday. In the 66th minute, Firmino made the advantage count. He played a quick one-two pass with Toni Tiente, which created enough space for him to score and make it 2-1.
Firmino turned around less than two minutes later and ran into space on the left side of the field. His clinical finish allowed ATL UTD 2 to go up 3-1 with two goals in three minutes.
ATL UTD 2 weren't finished yet. David Mejia scored his first professional goal in the 79th minute, with an assist from Firmino.
Firmino, born in Mantena, Brazil, is a Brazilian-American who is in his second season with ATL UTD 2. He previously played with Union Omaha, and got his career started as part of the New England Revolution academy.
Following a standout 2017-18 season with the Revs academy, Firmino was named to the Best XI of the East Conference by the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. In March, Firmino earned a call-up to the Atlanta United first team, in a first-team match against the Columbus Crew on March 25.
