Atlanta found themselves under duress as early as the fourth minute when Jesus Medina got on the other end of a nice through ball, but was denied a finish by Brad Guzan.
A possible turning point came early in the second half as Keaton Parks entered Atlanta’s scoring area with little resistance and appeared to have been taken down in the box.
However, Video Review did come into play in the 56th minute as a dangerous challenge by Lopez on Andres Jasson resulted in a yellow card.
NYCFC looked as if they’d finally find the net with 30 minutes remaining, but back-to-back chances by Maxi Moralez and Valentin Castellanos went begging thanks to a key save by Guzan and an Atlanta defensive clearance.