BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. (April 2, 2016) – The Chicago Fire picked up their first win of the season with a 1-0 shutout against the Philadelphia Union on Saturday at Toyota Park. The three-point effort also marked head coach Veljko Paunovic’s first win as a member of the Fire.
Playing in blustery and, at times, blizzard-like conditions, the Fire earned their second clean sheet in a row. The last time Chicago accomplished that feat was 2014 when they drew 0-0 against Vancouver Whitecaps FC on July 30 and followed up with a 1-0 win against the New York Red Bulls on Aug. 10.
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The sides entered halftime with a scoreless draw, but the match changed quickly in the second half. Philadelphia midfielder Warren Creavalle was sent off in the 47th minute after a hard tackle on Razvan Cocis, giving the Fire a man advantage.
The Men in Red capitalized five minutes later. After a lengthy build-up, Michael Harrington zipped a pass to Kennedy Igboananike in the box. The Nigerian held off his defender, trapped the pass, turned and tucked his shot inside the far post for his second goal of the season. The assist was Harrington’s first with Chicago.
Igboananike nearly doubled his haul in the 66th minute, but the offside flag went up as his shot hit the net. John Goossens slid a pass between a pair of Union defenders to spring Igboananike. A step-over and left-footed shot later, Igboananike thought he had scored, but he was deemed to be offside.
Goalkeeper Matt Lampson earned his first win with Chicago, as well as his second shutout.
The Fire are now unbeaten in their last seven matches (3-0-4) against Philadelphia.
The Men in Red return to action against New York City FC at Yankee Stadium on Sunday, April 10. Kickoff is 6 p.m. CT on FOX Sports 1 and 97.5 FM Poder.
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MLS Regular Season
Chicago Fire (1-1-2, 5 points) 1:0 Philadelphia Union (2-2-0, 7 points)
April 2, 2016 – Toyota Park
Attendance: 12,073
Scoring Summary:
CHI – Kennedy Igboananike (Michael Harrington) 51
Misconduct Summary:
PHI – Warren Creavalle (caution) 13
CHI – Rodrigo Ramos (caution) 37
PHI – Warren Creavalle (ejection) 47
CHI – Matt Polster (caution) 71
Chicago Fire: Matt Lampson, Rodrigo Ramos, Johan Kappelhof, Jonathan Campbell, Michael Harrington, Arturo Alvarez (John Goossens 62), Matt Polster, Michael Stephens, Kennedy Igboananike, Razvan Cocis © (Nick LaBrocca 87), Gilberto.
Shots: 10; Shots On-Goal: 2; Saves: 3; Fouls: 16; Corners: 2
Philadelphia Union: Andre Blake, Fabinho (Fabian Herbers 78), Richie Marquez, Ken Tribbett, Keegan Rosenberry, Chris Pontius (Sebastien Le Toux 66), Brian Carroll ©, Roland Alberg (Tranquillo Barnetta 66), Warren Creavalle, Ilsonho, C.J. Sapong.
Shots: 17; Shots On-Goal: 3; Saves: 1; Fouls: 7; Corners: 5
