Sweet Revenge: D.C. United 1, Chicago Fire 7
The Chicago Fire headed to D.C. United as favorites to win, but none could have foreseen team’s eventual 7-1 victory at Audi Field.
Both teams fielded makeshift lineups due to injuries and international call ups, with the league choosing to play through the June international window and CONCACAF Gold Cup. The Fire were without star striker Hugo Cuypers, giving Tom Barlow his first game of the season. Gregg Berhalter’s side fielded an entirely rotated midfield trio in Philip Zinckernagel, playing deeper than normal, alongside Kellyn Acosta and Rominigue Kouamé. Playing Zinckernagel deeper created a starting spot for Maren-Haile Selassie for the first time this season. The most glaring change, however, was moving Brian Gutiérrez to the bench at the start of the match, despite being short several mainstays in the midfield.
D.C. United were without key players of their own, headlined by star striker Christian Benteke, who despite missing several matches to injury, had been involved with almost half of D.C.’s offense going into the night. They were also with Aaron Herrera to international duty, the heartbeat of the team’s midfield, alongside eight other absences.
From the opening minute, the game looked like it belonged to the Fire. Haile-Selassie opened the scoring in the 8th minute, receiving the ball from Jonathan Dean and slotting it on the near post past Luis Barraza. The goal was costly, however: in a sprint to get to the ball and play it to Dean, Kouamé injured himself and was unable to continue, being relieved by Sam Williams.
Despite the early change, the Fire continued on their role, adding three more goals in the first half. Jonathan Bamba scored from a tight angle to put the team up 2-0 in the 24th minute. Six minutes later, Andrew Gutman played a long distance pass from well inside the Fire’s half to Tom Barlow, making a run behind D.C.'s backline. Barlow took one touch to put his team up by a third goal.
The move was to game plan, according to Berhalter. “Tom's main instruction was run behind the back line, and he did that extremely well,” the Fire head coach said after the game, later adding “I think it was a really good execution.”
Barlow soon added a second to his personal tally, but this goal was off of build up. Starting from deep in their own end, Gutman played the ball to Zinckernagel on to Bamba who did well to hold his run to stay onside. The Franco-Ivorian quickly plaid t to Haile-Selassie who cut the ball across to Barlow, slotting it into the D.C. net for a 4-0 lead late in the first half.
Although the team looked set to cruise to a comfortable victory, they weren’t done for the night. In the 56th minute, Zinckernagel recovered the ball back deep in D.C.’s half and soon buried a strike from distance to put the team up 5-0. Leonardo Barroso, one of two subs at half alongside Brian Gutiérrez, helped set up the play with a great cross. Moments later, D.C. United’s Dominique Badji pulled one back for the hosts, making it 5-1 but that was as close as the hosts would get.
In the 65th minute, Barroso sent a shot on target that forced Barraza to make a parrying save. Barlow was quick to pounce on the rebound, however, with another first-touch effort that put the Fire up 6-1.
The goal completed the hat trick for Barlow, the first of his career on just the second multi-goal night of his MLS career, after he scored a brace for the New York Red Bulls in 2020. The hat trick was the first for the Chicago Fire since Nemanja Nikolić scored three against the Philadelphia Union on October 15, 2017.
Moments later, Barlow’s night was over, however, as he gave way to Jason Shokalook on the 22-year-old’s MLS debut. The substitute made an impact, however. In stoppage time, he carried the ball up field and into D.C.’s box. With a decent look on net, he elected to play the selfless pass, settling for an assist and setting up Gutiérrez’s sixth goal of the season.
This win moves Chicago into 9th place in MLS’s Eastern Conference, just behind Charlotte who have a game in hand but one more win on the year. This victory is the team’s sixth win in seven games across all competitions. “I think they [D.C. United] really outplayed us in the first game at home, and we wanted revenge from that game. And I think the guys did a great job,” Berhalter said of the team’s victory over an opponent that cost them an opportunity at their first win of the season back in March.
The Fire return home next week to face Nashville SC, a team that also managed to score seven goals – at the Fire’s expense – in late April, setting up a difficult test for the team, who return home confident after tonight’s offensive outburst.
Player Ratings
Starting XI (4-3-3) — Gal (6.5); Gutman (9), Elliott (7.5), González (7.5), Dean (7.5); Acosta (7), Kouamé (6), Bamba (8), Zinckernagel (9.5), Haile-Selassie (9.5); Barlow (10)
Substitutes — Williams (6.5), Barroso (6), Gutiérrez (7), Rogers (6), Shokalook (7.5)
