Chicago Fire FC 0-0 Atlanta United FC Apr 27, 2024 Game Analysis

Table Of Content

• Directors of player personnel
• Return to Soldier Field and rebrand (2020–present)
• Matchup History
• Sporting Kansas City sign Jake Davis to contract extension
• Know Before You Go: Charlotte FC vs. Chicago Fire 8/6 at 7PM
• Kacper Przybylko scores twice as Chicago Fire defeat Charlotte FC
• History! Columbus Crew topple Monterrey to reach Champions Cup final

Charlotte FC visited Chicago needing another win to continue to control their playoff destiny down the stretch. An Ashley Westwood volley and Karol Swiderski penalty kick did the job on the road, securing a 2-0 victory and three more points for The Crown. Names and numbers (if applicable) are prominently displayed inside SeatGeek Stadium. Chicago qualified for the league final while also capturing the Supporters' Shield and 2003 U.S. The team returned to Chicago and the renovated Soldier Field midway through the 2003 season. Chicago Fire Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Chicago, Illinois, United States.

Directors of player personnel

Wednesday's match is the fourth win in a row for Charlotte FC in all competitions. Charlotte has now downed Chicago, New York City FC, and Atlanta United in MLS competition and Orlando City SC in U.S. Kacper Przybylko capped a two-goal performance by scoring in the 52nd minute to lift visiting Chicago Fire FC to a 3-2 victory over Charlotte FC on Saturday night. From that point on, CLTFC went into protect mode to keep their lead. With that in mind, Patrick Agyemang entered for Copetti to see the game out, and the game got extremely feisty. Derrick Jones and Kamil Jozwiak both picked up yellow cards in stoppage time.

Return to Soldier Field and rebrand (2020–present)

There was time for one more opportunity deep in second-half stoppage time, but this time center back Efrain Morales headed Almada's service wide of the left post. Then he picked out Giakoumakis' replacement, Daniel Rios, on the back post in the 85th minute, but Brady reacted superbly to deny Rios' close-range header. Then in the 31st minute, Brady dived to clearly push Saba Lobjanidze's dangerous header wide of the far post, but the play wasn't officially ruled a save.

Matchup History

But triumph only lasted for a week, as they again missed the league final with their 2–1 Eastern Conference Final loss to eventual champion Columbus. After the Fire moved to the Eastern Conference, meetings with Dallas and LA became less frequent. United and New England Revolution were stoked following several thrilling playoff meetings.

Chicago's best chance came after eight minutes, when Giorgos Koutsias reached an outswinging cross from the right and hammered a first-time shot from close range off the crossbar. Despite a seemingly never-ending 11 minutes of stoppage time, their efforts ground out the result and the team secured a crucial three points in the playoff race. For its first years in the league the Fire played at Soldier Field, the 61,500-capacity home of the Chicago Bears of the NFL and one of the main venues of the 1994 FIFA World Cup. A loss or draw would mean Charlotte FC having to rely on other results to get themselves into the playoffs.

Kahlina did well to hang on to a strong Haile-Salassie shot and prevent the rebound. Soon after, Przybylko gave Charlotte FC a gift by skying a gilt-edged chance (which had looped over Adilson Malanda’s head from a deflection) and Rafael Czichos hit another opportunity right at Kahlina from close range. CLTFC then broke the deadlock in the 24th minute through a quality Ashley Westwood strike. Kerwin Vargas whipped in an in-swinging cross that was headed clear to the top of the box, where Westwood attacked it with a clean volley straight out of the air. A deflection took the strike past Chicago goalkeeper Chris Brady for the opening goal of the match.

Kacper Przybylko scores twice as Chicago Fire defeat Charlotte FC

After sending Kerwin Vargas through in the channel, the Argentine burst forward into the box to get across the near post. He was being tracked by Miguel Navarro, who tried to take him down on top of the box off the ball. After he rode that initial challenge, Navarro intentionally swiped out his legs as Uronen played the ball to him. A VAR review led referee Natalie Simon to point to the spot for a clear penalty. Chicago Fire FC Head Coach Frank Klopas made two changes at halftime to spark his team, bringing on Polish forward Kacper Przybylko and midfielder Maren Haile-Selassie, scorer of two goals off the bench against Inter Miami last time out.

History! Columbus Crew topple Monterrey to reach Champions Cup final

To make your matchday as smooth as possible, we encourage all ticket holders to access their tickets prior to matchday to avoid confusion and issues at the gate.Fans are also encouraged to arrive early to avoid long lines. All three gates will be open and you can use any of the main gates, regardless of the gate noted on your ticket. A cross into the box from a Charlotte player was headed away by Chicago defenders and fell right in the lap of Cambridge, who finished the job and fooled the Chicago goalkeeper. The Fire claimed the lead in the 24th minute after Jairo Torres' feed was headed down by Shaqiri, allowing Navarro to unleash a left-footed shot. The ball skidded along the turf and past a diving Kahlina for Navarro's second goal of the season and first since June 29. Przybylko secured his brace after he settled a pass from Xherdan Shaqiri and deked Charlotte FC's Christian Fuchs to create some breathing room.

Match Preview: Charlotte FC vs. LAFC - Charlotte FC

Match Preview: Charlotte FC vs. LAFC.

Posted: Fri, 25 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

The Fire and Revolution are MLS' most frequent playoff matchup, meeting in the MLS Cup Playoffs 8 different times in 10 seasons from 2000 to 2009, splitting those encounters 4–4, with the Fire winning in 2000, 2003, 2008, and 2009. New England ended the Fire's playoff runs in 2002, 2005, 2006, and 2007. Newer rivals include Columbus Crew, who up until the introduction of FC Cincinnati were the closest MLS team geographically to the Fire, and Atlanta United FC following quarrels between the two sets of fans.

The Fire are now unbeaten in three and riding a two-match winning streak up the table, putting together key results at exactly the right time in the playoff race. Overall, this matchup has never disappointed, giving the fans late fireworks each and every time. With a massive three points on the line yet again, Saturday will be sure to deliver another classic at the tail end of the season. CLTFC got their first goal back in the 68th minute through Karol Swiderski before Charlotte FC equalized matters in the 76th minute.

Atlanta (3-3-3, 12 points) welcomed leading scorer Giorgos Giakoumakis back for his first start since a 3-0 home win over the Fire on March 31, after missing two games to a knee injury. The Atrium Health Fit Zone is an outdoor area located on the 100 level concourse by section 138 and features a miniature artificial turf pitch, where kids can play. Our youngest fans can practice their kicking and passing skills, and other fun interactive activities. Tensions burned throughout the match to the tune of nine yellow cards in total for both teams. Cambridge tapped in a goal to the left side of the net in the 81st minute to give Charlotte the crucial advantage.

All three of those meetings have been come-from-behind wins, with Charlotte FC overturning the deficit twice and Chicago doing so once. Charlotte FC entered their final stretch of four games with an opportunity to control their own destiny. Four wins from four – against Toronto, Chicago, and Miami twice – would guarantee CLTFC 8th place in the standings and hosting privileges for the first-round playoff game.

Villa, who before joining New York City FC helped lead Spain to the 2010 FIFA World Cup title, had an immediate and lasting impact on the club. He led the team in scoring in each of his four seasons and won the 2016 Landon Donovan MLS MVP Award before leaving to play in Japan for Vissel Kobe after the 2018 MLS season. Chicago failed to properly clear the ball late in the first half and Swiderski made it pay, scoring from close range to forge a 2-2 tie. The goal was his team-leading seventh of the season, with all seven being scored in Charlotte. Match atmosphere is known for organized displays of stadium-wide support, particularly for matches of prime competitive importance. The matchup between Charlotte and Chicago features some all-time matches, despite the series only being three games so far.

Przybylko then sent a left-footed shot past a diving Kristijan Kahlina (five saves) for his team-leading fifth goal of the season. Przybylko and Federico Navarro scored three minutes apart in the first half and Gabriel "Gaga" Slonina made three saves for the Fire (8-10-6, 30 points), who improved to in their last five matches. On the other end, Kamil Jozwiak drove inside the box and set up Derrick Jones, freshly in the game, but he also struck his good chance straight at Brady. Justin Meram and Scott Arfield also entered for Head Coach Christian Lattanzio’s team with 15 minutes remaining. Chicago Fire FC welcomed a packed house at Soldier Field for their victory over Inter Miami on Wednesday behind two goals each from Designated Player Xherdan Shaqiri and Swiss winger Maren Haile-Selassie.