After switching to Group B in the MLS is Back Tournament, the Fire now lead the group with three points. The 2-1 victory for the Fire also counts toward the 2020 MLS regular season standings. To view the MLS is Back Tournament standings, click here.
Next on the schedule: Chicago will play its second MLS is Back group stage match against the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday, July 19 at 7:00 p.m. CT (FS1, TUDN, TUDN 1200AM). The Fire’s “Drive-In Matchday, presented by Continental Tire” will be held that night. The event will take place on the Waldron Parking Deck at Soldier Field. Parking lots will open at 5:30 p.m. CT. For more information, click here.
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Notes:
- Forward Robert Berić scored his second goal of the season against Sounders FC on Tuesday. Berić previously scored in a 2-1 loss against Seattle in the season opener at CenturyLink Field on March 1.
- The Fire are now 1-1-0 versus Seattle this season.
- Today’s match marked the Fire’s first competitive game since March 7 when the team tied the New England Revolution 1-1 at Gillette Stadium.
- Defender Francisco Calvo captained the Fire and wore a captain’s armband that represents the Black Lives Matter movement. The armband was designed by Chicago-based artist and former Northwestern student-athlete Dwight White. For more information on the design, click here.
- Today’s result counts towards Group B in the MLS is Back tournament and the 2020 regular season standings. The Fire lead Group B with three points, in front of Seattle and San Jose (both with one point apiece) and Vancouver (who play their first game tomorrow versus San Jose | 8:00 p.m. CT, TUDN/Twitter).
- Midfielder Gastón Giménez made his first start for the Fire in today’s match. Giménez, who was signed by Chicago on Feb. 24, previously came on as a substitute in the team’s 1-1 draw with New England on March 7.
- Forward CJ Sapong made his first appearance in 2020 after missing the first two games of the season due to a chest injury.
- Defender Boris Sekulić made his MLS debut and earned his first start for the Fire. Sekulić was signed by the Club on Feb. 15, joining the Fire days before the league stopped play due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Defender Wyatt Omsberg and midfielder Luka Stojanović made their first appearances for the Fire, entering the game in the second half.
- The Fire led the match in shots (10-7) and shots on target (5-1).
- For their first match in the tournament, Fire players had a MLS Unites patch applied to the back of their jerseys. The patch provided an opportunity for players to write the name of a person they would like to honor directly onto the jersey.
- Defender Andre Reynolds II chose to recognize Laquan McDonald on the back of his jersey. McDonald was tragically shot and killed in 2014 in Chicago. Reynolds was attending high school in Chicago at the time of McDonald’s death.
- Goalkeeper Connor Sparrow highlighted frontline workers for all of their sacrifices to help save lives during the pandemic. Sparrow is a registered nurse and comes from a family of healthcare professionals. His sister, Zoey, is a nurse working at a hospital in St. Louis, and he also has cousins who are frontline workers.
- Wyatt Omsberg chose to spotlight “8:46” to recognize George Floyd and his tragic death. Eight minutes and 46 seconds is the length of time that a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on George Floyd’s neck. Omsberg began his professional career in Minnesota, spending two seasons with Minnesota United FC before joining the Fire on Feb. 11.
Goals:
CHI – Robert Berić 52nd minute (WATCH): The Fire first found the back of the net in the 52nd minute when Berić scored his second goal in as many games against Sounders FC this season. The striker was able to finish an incredible solo effort after dispossessing defender Xavier Arreaga near the halfway line. Running at full speed, Beric beat defender Yeimar Gomez with a Cruyff cut just outside the 18-yard box and perfectly slotted a left-footed shot past a diving Stefan Frei.
SEA - Handwalla Bwana 77th minute (WATCH): Jordan Morris found Handwalla Bwana making a run towards the near post who found the back of the net with a left-footed shot.
CHI - Mauricio Pineda 84th minute (WATCH): A corner kick by Gastón Giménez curled in off a bounce to the back post that fell to an open Mauricio Pineda. Pineda makes a textbook run to the falling ball and scores on a half-volley to regain the lead for the Fire.
Key attacking plays:
CHI – Robert Berić 10th minute: Forward CJ Sapong floated a cross into the box for forward Robert Berić. Controlling the ball just inside the 18-yard box, Berić turned and fired a shot that went just high of the far corner.
CHI – Álvaro Medrán 42nd minute: After the Fire earned a set piece deep in the final third, midfielder Álvaro Medrán curled a dangerous free kick on target, forcing goalkeeper Stefan Frei to make a difficult save.
CHI – Djordje Mihailović 69th minute: Moments after entering the game, midfielder Djordje Mihailović pounced on a loose ball on the edge of the six-yard box, firing a shot from close range that was blocked by a sliding challenge from defender Nouhou Tolo.
Stops and key defensive plays:
CHI - Kenneth Kronholm 29th minute: Goalkeeper Kenneth Kronholm was called upon to make his first save of the game when he charged off his line to deny Sounders FC forward Raúl Ruidíaz from close range.
Box score:
Chicago Fire FC 2:1 Seattle Sounders FC
Scoring Summary:
CHI - Berić (2) (Pineda 1) 52’
SEA - Bwana (1) (Morris 1) 77’
CHI - Pineda (1) (Giménez 1) 84’
Misconduct Summary:
CHI – Herbers (Caution) 22’
SEA – Hopeau (Caution) 41’
SEA – Gomez (Caution) 60’
SEA – Ruidiaz (Caution) 90’
Chicago Fire FC: GK Kronholm, D Frankowski, D Sekulić, D Pineda, D Calvo © (D Omsberg 75’), D Bornstein (D Navarro HT), M Giménez, M Medrán (M Stojanović 75’), M Herbers (M Mihailović 68’), F Berić (F Collier 90’+1’), F Sapong
Subs not used: GK Sparrow, GK G. Slonina, D N. Slonina, D Reynolds II, M Bronico, M Casas, F Aliseda
Shots: 10 Shots on goal: 5 Fouls: 9 Offsides: 0 Corners: 5 Possession: 39.4%
Seattle Sounders FC: GK Frei, D Leerdam (M A. Roldan 85’), D Gomez (D O’Neill 62’), D Arreaga (D Delem 85’), D Tolo, M Svensson, M Roldan, M Hopeau (M Morris HT), M Lodeiro, M Ibarra (M Bwana 59’), F Ruidiaz
Subs not used: GK Muse, GK Cleveland, M Atencio, M Dobbelaere, M Leyva, F Dhillon
Shots: 7 Shots on goal: 1 Fouls: 12 Offsides: 4 Corners: 1 Possession: 60.6%
Referee: Rosendo Mendoza
Assistant Referees: Kathryn Nesbitt, Jeremy Kieso
Fourth Official: Amando Villareal
VAR: Allen Chapman
AVAR: Cory Richardson
Chicago Fire FC Quotes
Chicago Fire FC Head Coach Raphael Wicky
On the team’s performance today…
“I'm obviously very, very happy with the team spirit, with the fighting spirit the team put on the field. It's tough for everyone. It's our first game since four months, and so I wanted to see a team who works together, fights together. We saw that. I think we, in the first half, actually had three, four, five quite good chances, half-chances, where we were a threat going forward, even (though) we didn't have the ball as much as Seattle, we were well-organized, and in the second half it became more and more difficult. We dropped -I think a little bit too deep. We couldn't really keep the ball anymore and we couldn't really then create stuff and make them run. But (at) the end of the day, it's the first game. It's a big win for us against a champion and I'm really proud of the performance the team has put on the field.”
On the team’s mindset going into the game…
“Well, the plan was to be well-organized defensively, which for a long time I think we were. We wanted to pressure a little bit higher I think in the beginning, but it was tough to put them really under pressure. But we were very well-organized in our own half. Made it hard to play against. We wanted to be good with the ball because we know in these conditions, if you have the ball a lot and you move the opponent, at one point you will find gaps. We could have been better at times there. But, like I said before, we were a threat going forward, especially (in the) first half with CJ and Robert who are always very dangerous and that was the plan, and yeah, I'm very happy with what I saw.”
On what he knew about Mauricio Pineda coming into the season…
“To be honest I didn't know much about Mauricio. I obviously saw some video clips, but I knew he was a player that came up through the academy and then left for college. Then as soon as we started, I saw the tension; I saw the talent he has, and I saw the work ethic he puts on the field. He has I think surprised a lot of people in the preseason. We are very happy about that. He came back the same way after the pandemic, so he's doing the same thing as before. We are very happy to have him in our team. That gives us a big option. Obviously now he starts scoring goals which is helpful as well. He just needs to keep working and keep improving. There is a good future in front of him, but the most important thing is to keep (the) right mentality.”
On the team’s ability to deal with the hot and humid conditions…
“I know that we will struggle physically. We saw all these games. We saw a lot of teams cramping. For me, it was always clear that the morning games are more difficult than the evening games. Even the evening games are tough, as well, because in the morning, you're actually really in the full sunshine, and you have 90 minutes the sun shining down to you. It's very hot. It's brutal. And so we knew we had to suffer. It's our first game since four months. The guys worked hard in those last three and a half weeks but as usual you go into your game without real preseason games. You don't really know where you stand. I expected it to be like that. And I'm happy that we have a roster with good depth where we can bring in substitutes who help, who did a great job coming in today and that will also be the case in the next game. We will need everyone and physically we will get better and better with more games. That's for sure.”
On the team’s mentality…
“The mentality and the right mental awareness is very, very important. We spoke about that with the team (for) a long time. We didn't complain about having been delayed or having changed the group. We didn't complain about that. That's a loss of energy. We always said, guys, there are tactics, but the most important will be the mentality and (to) be strong; be strong in your head and keep working, keep fighting. We knew we would have to suffer. Football is a game, when you want to win big games, you have to suffer. It's not going to go easy, and we were ready and I think we will be ready in the future, as well but we are not going to lose energy for things which we can't control.”
On changing the formation for this game…
“It was my objective already in January when I took over the team to be flexible and to play multiple systems, a back four and a back five. I have played with both in Champions League, a back five in 5-4-1, 3-4-3, and I wanted to have this option here as well. It often depends on what players do you have in your roster, but I knew once we have the full roster complete, that we can play both of these systems. So we started working a little bit on a back five and a 5-3-2 after -- well, when the full team training started, and the team has adapted very well to that. And we will continue working on this, but also be ready to go into a back four which the team has played for a long time.”
On getting three points in the team’s first game…
“I'm actually very, very happy about that. I mean, those are three big points against a champion, and it counts for the league which is very, very important for us. After two good games against Seattle and New England, where the results didn't really go to our favor, I'm very happy with the three points. For the tournament, it's always important or good to have a positive start, but it's just a first step. So it's good to start with a win. We still have two more games. It's going to be hard games against two good opponents, and we will have to keep working hard to make more points. That is very, very important that everyone knows that this was just the first step. If we now start relaxing then we risk not continuing like we started.”
Chicago Fire Forward Robert Berić
On scoring two goals in two games against Seattle Sounders FC…
“I'm glad. Of course I'm happy that I scored, but I'm more happy that we won this game. We got our revenge back. We lost last time in the last minutes, so we were quite sad after the game, but today we got our revenge. We won this game. And this is what makes me happy when I see my team winning and yeah, hopefully we are going to continue like that.”
On playing in a new system up top with CJ Sapong...
“Yeah, we played in a new system with two on the top, and for sure it's easier when you have somebody beside you helping you in all the drills and all the jumps, chasing the defenders. I think we did pretty much what worked since it's so hot outside, and these morning games are quite hard. I mean, for me, I felt it was good.”
Chicago Fire FC Defender Mauricio Pineda
On if he was injured during the celebration of his goal….
“I'm okay. I think after the celebration, it was just a little too hard. I probably should have taken it a little easier. I just felt a cramp in my calf. Nothing major. I think everyone was going through the same thing.”
On how he feels about his performance and scoring the game-winning goal…
“I felt good. I think everyone was looking forward to this game. We were all really anxious to start playing games again and I think everyone worked really hard today. We all really wanted a good result today to start the tournament off and just for the league points, and I think we are all happy to do that and just happy for all the guys that they all worked so hard and you could see that on the feed. I think it all paid off and we came away with three points.”
On all of the hard work he’s put in to get to this point…
“I guess I haven't really reflected too much. I think right now all my energy is going towards this team. I'm just really happy that we got the three points. I think everything has been directed towards this game, all the hard work that we have had in the past three to four months, so I'm just putting all my energy on that and I'm glad we got the result and I'm happy with that and I'm ready to move on to the next game.”