Groundhog Day: Chicago Fire 1, Columbus Crew 3
CHICAGO, Ill. — The Fire's nightmare start to 2024 continued with yet another home loss, this time to the Columbus Crew, 3-1.
Entering the match, one thing was certain: change was needed. Klopas’ team were winless in six and had failed to score in four straight at home. The under-pressure head coach made one big swap to his starting eleven, sitting expensive Designated Player and captain Xherdan Shaqiri. Vice-captain Fabian Herbers took his place in the team after he had previously been benched against Charlotte on Wednesday.
Facing the best team and best coach in MLS was always going to be a challenge. Even without star man Cucho Hernández, who missed out with a back issue, the Crew provided a frightening test for a Fire team struggling to find a rhythm or identity. Klopas answered with his usual defensive shape from the get-go, lining up in the standard 4-2-3-1.
Though the game didn’t get off to a roaring start, it was clear who the better team was. Columbus dominated possession, as well as every other metric. They went ahead on the scoresheet when Diego Rossi capitalized on a miscommunication between Andrew Gutman and Rafa Czichos, striking the ball past Chris Brady, who had no chance.
Totally outplayed in the first 45, the Fire needed a second half reaction. Kellyn Acosta replaced Gastón Giménez in an attacking move, but it did little to inject life into the Fire’s spine. They started the second half just as slowly as they had finished the first, and Christian Ramírez doubled Columbus’ lead in the 55th minute.
Desperate attacking changes, to their credit, did alleviate some of the damage for the Fire. Maren Haile-Selassie’s return from injury at wing back injected life into the right side, and forward Georgios Koutsias brought energy at forward. Their efforts were rewarded with a nice headed goal from Carlos Terán five minutes from the end of regulation to cut the deficit to one.
Unfortunately, it would mean very little. Canadian international Jacen Russell-Rowe added a dagger late, making the score 3-1. Many fans were not there to see it, as some began making their way to the exits before the 70th minute.
Where are the Fire now? Seven points below the playoff line before the season’s midpoint, it would require a miracle to sneak into even the wild card places. The Fire have played eight at home and won just twice, both under extremely fortunate circumstances. Now, the postseason seems as far out of reach as it ever has.
