Business as Usual: Chicago Fire 4, Detroit City 0
BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. — The Chicago Fire hosted second-tier Detroit City at Bridgeview this Wednesday, hoping for a routine win to advance to the U.S. Open Cup's last 16. They did just that, cruising to a comfortable 4-0 win.
As anticipated, Berhalter fielded a close to full-strength team, with the most prominent changes coming in the form of a fully-rotated midfield trio of Kellyn Acosta, Djé D'Avilla, and Rominigue Kouamé. It was a first start for D'Avilla, who is still finding his feet in American soccer since joining the Fire a few weeks ago.
The front three was largely familiar, with star Designated Player Jonathan Bamba playing off of the left and MLS Golden Boot leader Hugo Cuypers leading the line up front. Philip Zinckernagel got a reserved rest, so Maren Haile-Selassie slotted in on the right wing for his first start of 2025.
Just three minutes had elapsed when the home team opened the scoring. Detroit were sloppy on defense, trying to play out of the back, enabling Haile-Selassie and Cuypers to combine for a simple goal. It was Cuypers' eighth of the year in all competitions, the most among all players in Major League Soccer.
The Fire's control continued, and both Haile-Selassie and Cuypers were involved again as the Fire doubled the lead before halftime. A Haile-Selassie corner was ultimately redirected into the goal by Detroit's Darren Smith, and it was officially registered as an own goal.
Coming out of the break, the Fire remained relentless, and shortly after halftime, Omari Glasgow scored his first goal for the Fire first team. The 21-year-old Guyanese international, who has reinvented himself as a full-time right back this season, burst forward and got on the end of a Jonathan Bamba pass to find the back of the net. It was a familiar setting for Glasgow to score his first goal, as he's scored at SeatGeek Stadium many times previous with Chicago Fire II in MLS Next Pro.
Finally, as the game wound down and Gregg Berhalter took off several of his top players, Haile-Selassie finally got a reward for his man of the match performance. Substitute Brian Gutiérrez, appearing as a winger for the first time this season, laid a simple tap-in on a player for Haile-Selassie, who took one extra security touch before scoring his first goal of 2025.
With the 4-0 win, the Fire advance to the Open Cup round of 16. They'll face the New England Revolution on the road in two weeks after their late win over Rhode Island FC earlier today.
Player Ratings
Starting XI (4-3-3) — Brady (7); Gutman (7), Elliott (7.5), Rogers (7), Glasgow (8.5); D'Avilla (8), Acosta (7), Kouamé (7.5); Bamba (6.5), Haile-Selassie (9), Cuypers (7.5)
Substitutes — Dean (6.5), Barlow (6), González (7), Gutiérrez (8), Oregel (NR)
