Player Ratings: Chicago Fire 0, Philadelphia Union 3

The Chicago Fire's 2025 season came to an abrupt end in Bridgeview on Saturday night after a 3-0 loss to the Philadelphia Union. Chris Brady missed the game through a last-minute injury, meaning Jeff Gal started his first career playoff game, and he was at the center of both pre-game and post-game discussion.

For most of the team, Game 2 was certainly not the worst outing of 2025. Very few outfield players had outwardly horrible games, but that means absolutely nothing when the game was essentially gone in the 35th minute.

Here's how each of the Fire's individuals performed in their final match of the season.

Starting XI (4-3-3) — Jeff Gal; Andrew Gutman, Jack Elliott, Joel Waterman, Jonathan Dean (Maren Haile-Selassie, 46'); Djé D'Avilla (Tom Barlow, 65'), Rominigue Kouamé (Mauricio Pineda, 26'), Brian Gutiérrez; Jonathan Bamba, Philip Zinckernagel, Hugo Cuypers

Goalkeeper: Jeff Gal (1)

Everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong. Gal only found out he was going to start Saturday's game on Friday night, and the Fire's biggest game in nearly two decades was his first appearance since July 5th. He was directly responsible for both the first and third goals (both careless giveaways), and largely responsible for the second goal (failed to collect a cross toward an unmarked Tai Baribo). Things got so bad that by the end of the first half, even the home Fire supporters were booing his every touch, and mockingly cheered for a routine collected cross early in the second half. Not the night Gal dreamed of in any way, shape, or form, but also not entirely his fault, considering there's no scenario in which he really should have started a game of this magnitude.

Left back: Andrew Gutman (6.5)

Gutman was not bad at all, despite the lopsided scoreline, and wasn't involved in any of the defensive calamities. He was also a threat going forward, looking like the same player he has all season.

Left center back: Jack Elliott (7.5)

Despite the 3-0 scoreline, Elliott had a pretty solid game for the second successive game. The numbers back it up, as he won an astonishing 17 aerial duels and made 16 clearances. He was responsible for the Fire's biggest chance of the game, winning a first half penalty that Brian Gutiérrez ultimately missed. Certainly the Fire's player of the series, despite the outcome.

Right center back: Joel Waterman (6.5)

Waterman didn't have the same aerial dominance that Elliott did, but still managed to get involved in the buildup, completing a grand total of 79 passes. He lacked any significant errors and chipped in with nine defensive contributions.

Right back: Jonathan Dean (5)

Not a good night for Dean, who, for the second successive game, showed he's a solid MLS-level backup, but expecting him to consistently be anything more is unrealistic at the moment. The 28-year-old was substituted at halftime.

Defensive midfield: Djé D'Avilla (6)

Fairly forgettable night for D'Avilla, who had an impressive second half of the season and is absolutely one of the future. The Ivorian was substituted in the 65th minute after receiving a careless yellow card.

Central midfield: Rominigue Kouamé (3.5)

Kouamé's more-than-likely last game in the Chicago Fire shirt only lasted 26 minutes. The Malian started in place of a suspended Sergio Oregel, who would have been set to start this game, but was pulled off after less than half an hour with the Fire already down two goals. The midfielder on loan from Cádiz had just 17 touches and was totally ineffective – he is set to return to Spain soon.

Central midfield: Brian Gutiérrez (5)

Saturday was a huge opportunity for Gutiérrez to showcase himself after coming off the bench in Game 1. He didn't take it and was invisible in the first half, missing a pretty abysmal penalty in the 32nd minute that could have gotten the Fire back into the game. If this was indeed his last game for the club, it is an unfortunate way for this chapter with his hometown club to end.

Left winger: Jonathan Bamba (5.5)

Bamba couldn't build on an excellent performance in Philadelphia last week, but to be fair, it's a big ask for the front three to carry the team when the midfield was so anonymous and the goalkeeper dug the team into a quick 3-0 hole. The Union's fullbacks also had a great night, making things even more difficult.

Right winger: Philip Zinckernagel (6.5)

It was a shock that Zinckernagel started the game after not training fully for most of the week, and even more of a surprise that he went the full 90 minutes. Relative to the outcome, he played pretty well and was the Fire's most dangerous player going forward. But with a lack of support, it didn't result in anything.

Center forward: Hugo Cuypers (5)

36 touches for Cuypers, but just one was inside the penalty box. That tells the whole story. The Belgian found himself dropping much deeper looking to get involved, but there's only so much he could have done.

Substitute: Mauricio Pineda (6)

Calmed things down after Kouamé's poor start and added some more stability to the midfield. Reliable, but didn't really give anything going forward either.

Substitute: Maren Haile-Selassie (6)

Came on as a right back for the second half, so it's also difficult to evaluate. Played fine, but only so much he could have done in that position.

Substitute: Tom Barlow (5)

Probably Barlow's last game for the Fire, as the club would have to pay the New York Red Bulls $50,000 if he is still on the roster next season. Only managed five touches in more than a half-hour of action.

Head Coach: Gregg Berhalter (6)

This one can't be pinned on Berhalter; the last-minute goalkeeping swap is impossible to get around. The former USMNT manager has been excellent this postseason, crafting a perfect game plan to beat Orlando in the Wildcard and nearly upsetting the Union on the road last week. Unfortunately, injury factors outside of his control ended the Fire's postseason hopes.