Road Warriors: Vancouver Whitecaps 1, Chicago Fire 3
Three road games, three wins.
The Chicago Fire are flying right now and secured a massive win at Vancouver by a 3-1 margin for their second successive trip to British Columbia.
Absences caused by MLS' decision to play through the international break impacted both elevens, and the Fire were forced to find a last-minute alternative for Brian Gutiérrez, who was called up mid-week as a USMNT injury replacement for Johnny Cardoso. New signing Sam Williams came in for his second start of the season, having signed a first team deal with the club nine days ago. Vancouver also fielded a heavily rotated, with Brian White also away with the national team and being replaced by Daniel Ríos.
Gregg Berhalter didn't have to wait long for his team to get on the scoresheet. Right back Leonardo Barroso – making his first MLS start after two impactful performances in the last two games – picked out Philip Zinckernagel on the right wing, who drilled a routine cross into the penalty box. DP center forward Hugo Cuypers continued his red-hot form, tapping the ball in from close range. It makes his fourth straight game with a goal, and awarded him sole possession of 2nd place in the MLS Golden Boot race.
Playing freely and with confidence, the Fire looked in control of the game. Zinckernagel nearly added a second goal in the 11th minute when he skipped past several defenders, but he misjudged the goalkeeper's position and could not beat him.
Then, against the run of play, the home team found their response. In-form Jayden Nelson notched his fourth assist of the season and enabled backup forward Ríos to level the scoring. The goal brought the Whitecaps back into the game, with Berhalter's son Sebastian proving a constant threat in central midfield, but he was mostly contained by the Fire's own homegrown trio.
Sergio Oregel, in particular, stood out once again. In his fifth professional start, the 19-year-old held his own and was dominant in the middle of the park, in total completing 95% of his passes throughout the 90 minutes. He was also a creative presence, providing three passes into the final third.
The hard work of the midfield was ultimately rewarded by the offense when Zinckernagel once again got on the scoresheet, despite his fairly anonymous second half performance. In the 62nd minute, he pounced on a loose opportunity created by Jonathan Bamba and blasted the ball into the roof of the net to restore the Fire's advantage.
From there, the Fire never looked back. Vancouver did have chances, but goalkeeper Chris Brady was there to stop them. The Whitecaps' best chance of the second half came in the 75th minute when Edier Ocampo blasted a shot from inside the 18-year-box, but it was instinctively saved by the 21-year-old shot-stopper in the net.
Berhalter's final subs in the last 20 minutes then paid dividends. Maren Haile-Selassie entered for his second appearance of the season, before Carlos Terán and Rominigue Kouamé both returned from injury in the 87th minute in a bid to close out the win. It was an MLS debut for Kouamé, who had picked up an injury in the days leading up to the season opener in February.
With the final action of the game, Haile-Selassie and Kouamé combined for what would prove to be a walk-off third goal. An energetic Kouamé ventured freely into the final third, and cleanly struck the ball into the back of the net to double the advantage. Haile-Selassie got his first goal involvement of the season, and Kouamé introduced himself to MLS in the best way possible.
"He was excited," Berhalter said of Kouamé. "He's waited a long time to make his debut. You could see how much the team was pulling for him in the locker room just now, celebrating with him and really excited for him. He's had a long road to get to this point, and he certainly made an impact in the game today."
The Fire finally return to Soldier Field this Saturday to face CF Montréal.
Player Ratings
Starting XI (4-3-3): Chris Brady (8); Andrew Gutman (6.5), Jack Elliott (7), Sam Rogers (7), Leonardo Barroso (8); Sam Williams (6.5), Mauricio Pineda (6), Sergio Oregel Jr. (8.5); Jonathan Bamba (7), Hugo Cuypers (7.5), Philip Zinckernagel (8)
Substitutes: Justin Reynolds (7.5), Maren Haile-Selassie (7), Tom Barlow (N/R), Carlos Terán (N/R), Rominigue Kouamé (8)
