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We had a full crew on the road in Chattanooga last night, SDH Network and 92.9 The Game together, watching Atlanta United do exactly what they needed to do. Stopped at Buc-ee's on the way back and ran into friends of the Network. Nights like that are why we do this.

Atlanta United got the result they needed Wednesday night in Chattanooga, defeating Chattanooga FC 3-1 at Finley Stadium to advance to the Round of 16 of the US Open Cup. The Five Stripes will travel to face Charlotte FC on April 28 or 29, but not before navigating some early adversity against a Chattanooga side that came out with something to prove.

The night started with a scare. Yves Tcheuyap got behind Juan Berrocal in the sixth minute and fired into the upper right corner to give Chattanooga the early lead. Atlanta settled in quickly, though, and Cayman Togashi leveled things in the 21st minute, sliding home a Jay Fortune cross at the back post for his first goal of the season. The Five Stripes controlled the half from there, finishing with 11 shots and 70 percent of possession, though the score remained 1-1 at the break.

Miguel Almirón and Cooper Sanchez came on at halftime, and Atlanta took the lead in the 64th minute on a goal that showed exactly the kind of soccer Tata Martino has been building toward. Juan Berrocal played a line-breaking ball through the center to find Almirón running behind the defense. Almirón cut inside, laid it off for Togashi, and when the shot was blocked, Fafa Picault was there to slot the rebound inside the left post for the first goal of his Atlanta career. Pedro Amador put the match away in the 75th minute, finishing a Matt Edwards long ball sequence that Luke Brennan rescued from the endline.

The story of the night, though, was Jay Fortune. Playing his first full 90 minutes since returning from injury, Fortune was central to nearly everything Atlanta created, picking up the assist on Togashi's equalizer and finishing with 18 of 20 passing, a key chance created, and two successful long ball connections. After the match, Fortune told me the 90 minutes felt like a turning point. "Today was, like, the kick start of the confidence being back," he said, adding that the past week or two in training had him feeling more and more like himself.

Saturday brings a different kind of test. Nashville SC comes to Mercedes-Benz Stadium riding a signature CONCACAF result, and Atlanta will need to carry the momentum from Chattanooga into a more demanding environment. The early departure of Almirón with knee discomfort will be worth monitoring as the week progresses, but for now, the Five Stripes are through and building.

Wednesday night in the Champions League delivered one of the great European knockout matches in recent memory, and a considerably more functional result in North London. Bayern Munich beat Real Madrid 4-3 at Allianz Arena to advance 6-4 on aggregate, setting up a semi-final with Paris Saint-Germain. Arsenal drew 0-0 with Sporting CP to advance 1-0 on aggregate, and will face Atletico Madrid in the other semi. The first legs go April 28 and 29.

The Bayern-Real match was the kind of game the Champions League exists to produce. The two sides traded blows from the first whistle, with Kylian Mbappe putting Madrid ahead before Bayern fought back repeatedly. Eduardo Camavinga's red card in the 86th minute proved decisive, with Luis Diaz and Michael Olise scoring in the final minutes to seal the result. Harry Kane, who reached 50 goals across all competitions this season, called it "a crazy game" afterward and noted that the swings in momentum were "pretty unique" even for a match of this scale. Bayern are now on a 16-game unbeaten run and could clinch the Bundesliga title this weekend.

The losing locker room was a different atmosphere entirely. Real Madrid president Florentino Perez went down to speak with his players after the final whistle and did not mince words, telling them that one season without a title is a failure, and two is intolerable. The Camavinga red card drew fury from Madrid's camp, but the broader story is that Bayern outscored Real Madrid 6-4 across the two legs, and that stands regardless of the officiating controversy.

Arsenal's night was harder to watch but no less impressive in its own way. Playing without Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka, and with Declan Rice fighting illness right up until kickoff, the Gunners ground out a 0-0 against Sporting to advance on a single first-leg goal. They registered just one shot on target, but so did Sporting. Arsenal's defensive record in this Champions League campaign, eight clean sheets in 12 games and only five goals conceded, is the best in the competition by a significant margin.

Manager Mikel Arteta pushed back hard on critics after the match, pointing to the injury list and the demands of the Premier League schedule as context. Arsenal are in back-to-back Champions League semi-finals for the first time in club history while sitting top of the Premier League, and Arteta's message was direct: enjoy where we are. Noni Madueke's knee injury, suffered Wednesday, adds another name to the concern list heading into Sunday's Premier League showdown with Manchester City.

The Concacaf Champions Cup quarter-finals wrapped up Wednesday night with two Mexican clubs moving on, and two MLS sides heading home. Tigres UANL advanced past Seattle Sounders on away goals despite a 3-1 loss at Lumen Field, and Toluca dismantled LA Galaxy 3-0 to cruise through 7-2 on aggregate. The semi-final matchups are set: Tigres face Nashville SC, and Toluca face LAFC.

Seattle gave everything they had. Albert Rusnak scored twice and Danny Musovski added another as the Sounders dominated possession and put 20 shots on goal, but the night was decided in the 31st minute when Joaquim headed home a corner to give Tigres the away goal they needed. From that point, Seattle needed four goals to advance and couldn't get there. Rusnak's second late in the match leveled the aggregate, but the away goal rule ended the Sounders' run. It was a heartbreaking exit for a side that outplayed their opponents for long stretches.

The Galaxy's night was considerably less competitive. Toluca had already won the first leg 4-2, and they came to Carson and confirmed it emphatically. Jesus Gallardo opened the scoring in the 10th minute and Portuguese striker Paulinho added two more in a six-minute burst in the second half to finish with five goals across the series. Greg Vanney burned through substitutions looking for answers and never found them. Toluca weren't even operating at full speed by the end.

Nashville SC now faces Tigres in one semi-final, riding the momentum of their win over Club America earlier in the week. The other side of the bracket sets up a Los Angeles derby, with Toluca taking on LAFC. Both semi-final first legs are set for the last week of April.

The US Open Cup Round of 32 produced its biggest upset Wednesday night as One Knoxville SC, the defending USL League One champion, eliminated DC United 6-5 on penalties after a 3-3 draw. It is only the second time in history that a third-tier USL side has beaten an MLS team in the tournament, and One Knox made the most of every minute to earn it.

The match had everything. DC United dominated early and still couldn't finish, putting six of eight first-half shots wide of the frame. Matti Peltola finally broke the deadlock in the 61st minute with a 25-yard laser into the left corner, but One Knox responded with two goals in three minutes to flip the match. DC United equalized in the 83rd minute through Nikola Markovic's overhead finish, and then Joao Peglow scored in extra time to put the home side ahead 3-2. It still wasn't enough. Denis Krioutchenkov, already on the scoresheet, chipped Alex Bono in the 113th minute to level at 3-3 and force penalties.

In the shootout, both teams converted their first five kicks before Gabriel Pirani's effort was stopped by One Knox goalkeeper Jonathan Burke. Kyle Linhares then stepped up and slotted the winner to send the League One side through. DC United head coach Rene Weiler was blunt afterward, saying his team lacked the mentality to close out the match and that their passivity after Peglow's goal was "unbelievable." Several players echoed the same sentiment, with Peltola noting that mentality "shouldn't be something that is our main focus in the game, because that should already be there."

Charlotte FC hammered Charlotte Independence 6-0, Columbus Crew beat Richmond Kickers 3-0, and Houston Dynamo dispatched El Paso Locomotive 4-1. The Round of 16 will feature 13 MLS sides, two from the USL Championship, and One Knoxville SC holding the League One banner.

Pochettino On Real Madrid's Radar: Real Madrid's Champions League exit Wednesday night has intensified the managerial search at the Bernabeu, and USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino is on the shortlist according to RMC Sport. Florentino Perez has already made inquiries about the Argentine's profile and his ability to handle the pressure of the job. Pochettino's contract with the USMNT expires at the conclusion of the World Cup this summer.

Beckham Urges Patience In Inter Miami Coaching Search: With Javier Mascherano's departure still fresh, co-owner David Beckham said the club will not rush into finding a permanent replacement. "We have to let things settle down," Beckham told CBS Sports, adding that owning a team always comes with challenges. Sporting director Guillermo Hoyos remains in charge on an interim basis while the club works through the process.

NWSL Working Through Footwear Sponsorship Policy: The NWSL is developing a league-wide policy that would require players with non-partner sponsorship deals to cover up brand logos on cleats and goalkeeper gloves during matches, with fines reaching up to $32,000 per violation. Nike and Adidas have signed on as the two approved brands so far, though the policy has not yet gone into effect despite a March 11 target date. The NWSLPA says it supports the concept but is still negotiating protections for players who already have deals with brands outside the program.

SDH AM is live right now on our YouTube and Twitch channels, with Power Hour coming up next featuring Nino Torres of Fubo TV and Niko Moreno of Pulso Sports. It is a loaded morning of conversation to go along with everything that happened on the pitch Wednesday night.

Tonight the SDH Network goes local in a big way. Drew Dickinson heads to Fayette County as Starr's Mill hosts McIntosh, and Madison Crews and I will be in Gainesville as the Red Elephants host the Johnson Knights to close out the high school regular season. Kickoff is at 5:30, and you can listen at soccerdownhere.net/listen. Then later tonight, join Noel White, Miles Williams, and me on The Intersection on 92.9 The Game starting at 10pm.

Bernardo Silva Leaving Manchester City: The Portuguese midfielder confirmed he will depart City at the end of the season as a free agent after nine years and 451 appearances. Silva won 19 major trophies at the club, including six Premier League titles and one Champions League. He is one of the defining players of the City dynasty.

Premier League Ball-In-Play Time Drops Again: New data shows the average Premier League match this season features just 55 minutes and 31 seconds of actual playing time, more than a minute fewer than last season and nearly three minutes fewer than 2023-24. Arsenal take the longest on corners at over 44 seconds on average, while Liverpool lead the league in time spent on direct free kicks.

Shunsuke Nakamura Joins Japan's World Cup Staff: The Japanese Football Association has appointed the former Celtic and Espanyol midfielder as an assistant coach for the 2026 World Cup. Nakamura joins head coach Hajime Moriyasu's staff following Japan's wins over England and Scotland in March. Japan are in Group with the Netherlands, Sweden, and Tunisia.

Ranieri And Gasperini In Public Standoff At Roma: The relationship between Roma special adviser Claudio Ranieri and head coach Gian Piero Gasperini has deteriorated into a public dispute over squad construction, with both men trading pointed comments to the media. Gasperini has expressed dissatisfaction with the players signed in the offseason, while Ranieri defended the recruitment process and suggested he could step away from his role entirely. Roma sit sixth in Serie A, at risk of missing the Champions League for a seventh straight season.

Al-Hilal Sale Agreed: Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund has confirmed that Prince Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud's Kingdom Holding Company signed an agreement to acquire 70 percent of Al-Hilal. PIF had always intended the club ownership as a medium-term arrangement, with sales of Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli also planned in the coming years.

It was a big night for soccer across the board, from Finley Stadium to the Allianz Arena. Atlanta United got a result they needed badly, Bayern and Arsenal punched their tickets to the Champions League semis, and One Knoxville reminded everyone why the Open Cup matters. There is a lot to feel good about heading into the weekend.

Tonight we are back on the field for high school soccer starting at 5:30 at soccerdownhere.net/listen, and then The Intersection goes live at 10pm on 92.9 The Game with Noel White and Miles Williams. Saturday night, Nashville SC comes to Mercedes-Benz Stadium and Atlanta United gets their first real test of whether Chattanooga was the start of something. I'll see you there.