Have A Magical Day: Orlando City 1, Chicago Fire 3
ORLANDO, Fla. — The Chicago Fire just seem to like playing on the road more than they like playing at home.
Under the lights in Orlando, they just secured their fifth MLS win away from Chicago, stunning their hosts 3-1 behind a first half explosion.
The Fire were forced into two major lineup changes from last weekend’s 3-1 loss at New York City FC. Specifically, a red card suspension to Brian Gutiérrez and a Thursday training injury to Sam Rogers necessitated that Rominigue Kouamé and Christopher Cupps return to the lineup for their second MLS starts. Chris Brady and Sergio Oregel also both started in likely their last games before leaving for international duty.
And even though Orlando has looked like one of the Eastern Conference’s most dangerous teams this season, the Fire started the game in a way that they probably couldn’t have imagined. Philip Zinckernagel took a hopeful shot from outside the penalty box in the fifth minute, and even though it went straight at goalkeeper Pedro Gallese, Peru’s number one disastrously let the ball slip right through his fingers.
Orlando, playing without their manager Oscar Pareja on the sidelines after he was sent off last week, were seemingly shaken by the early blunder and didn’t know how to respond. Even in the thick, humid heat of Central Florida, Berhalter’s team were playing fluid soccer and building out from the back with precision.
Just after the half hour mark, things got even sweeter. A smooth sequence up the field ended with Zinckernagel supplying DP striker Hugo Cuypers with a perfect ball across the penalty box, supplying the Belgian with his 9th goal of the MLS season.
Cuypers didn’t have to wait long to extend his league tally to double digits. Within a minute, he combined with Zinckernagel once again and slotted the ball past Gallese to make it a 3-0 game. For Cuypers, it was his team-leading 12th goal in all competitions, while Zinckernagel solidified himself as the Fire’s top assister with his fourth in MLS play.
The third goal seemed to wake up Orlando somewhat, as the tide shifted for the remainder of the first period. Recent USMNT call-up Alex Freeman scored from a deflected header, cutting the lead to 3-1 and ending another shutout pursuit for follow camp-invitee Chris Brady in goal.
The home team maintained the momentum into the second half. Croatian international Marco Pašalić came close to scoring after a nice sequence in the 55th minute, slicing a shot just wide of the net. The Fire responded with a chance of their own two minutes later and Andrew Gutman found himself in behind the back line, but his shot rattled the post from a difficult angle and Jonathan Bamba skied the follow-up attempt.
In the 62nd minute, Brady provided the best save of the game. Orlando substitute Ramiro Enrique was one-on-one with the goalkeeper inside the penalty box, but the 21-year-old made a world-class save from point-blank range, further bolstering his highlight reel before the start of USMNT camp this week. Luis Muriel rattled the crossbar, before Brady made another impressive save on Enrique in the 74th minute.
The first half goals were ultimately enough to carry the Fire through to the end, and the second half reinforcements helped close out the win. The newly-17 Cupps was excellent in his first road start, and played a key role on the back line even as the midfield was overrun in the second half.
After this key win on the road in a place where the Fire haven’t won since 2019, things are about to get a lot tougher. They’ll lose multiple players for next week’s trip to D.C. United, and could miss Brady for up to five games based on Gold Cup roster selection in the coming days.
Player Ratings
Starting XI (4-3-3) — Brady (8.5); Gutman (8), Elliott (8), Cupps (7.5), Dean (7.5); Pineda (7.5), Oregel Jr. (8), Kouamé (8.5); Bamba (7.5), Zinckernagel (9), Cuypers (8.5)
Substitutes — Barroso (7), Acosta (7), Barlow (6.5), González (NR), Haile-Selassie (NR)
