Robert Beric scored in his 4th straight match, and Fabian Herbers added a goal of his own, as Chicago Fire FC defeated Atlanta United 2-0 at Soldier Field on Sunday evening.
Chicago opened the scoring in the 7th minute through Herbers as they found themselves on the front foot in the early going. Once again playing in the central attacking midfield role, his run in behind the defense created the opportunity, which he expertly finished past Atlanta goalkeeper Brad Guzan.
Atlanta had a chance to equalize in the 19th minute, but Fire 'keeper Bobby Shuttleworth erased Adam Jahn's off-balance shot to keep the match at 1-0.
Play slowly began to shift toward Atlanta, but their defense was caught flat-footed just before the half as Beric walked in unmarked to score his 6th of the season, extending the Fire's lead to 2-0.
A pair of big saves by Guzan to open the second half preceded a wide-open chance in the 56th minute that Atlanta's Jake Mulraney was unable to strike home. Two minutes later a finger-tip diving save by Shuttleworth foiled another Jahn attempt. That was the last real threat from the Five Stripes as the Fire were able to see this one out for a second straight home win, vaulting back into the playoff picture.
Goals
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: Are the Fire catching, well, fire? After a stretch of five winless results, Raphael Wicky's side have won back-to-back matches, putting themselves just inside the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, for Atlanta, still missing Ezequiel Barco—along with Miles Robinson and Matheus Rossetto—it was a regressive showing after a much-needed 1-0 victory at home against FC Dallas on Wednesday. And their road woes continue, with its last win away from Mercedes-Benz Stadium coming in the season opener against Nashville SC back on February 29.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Shuttleworth came up big at a few key moments in the match, but his diving save against Jahn in the 58th minute denied Atlanta an opportunity to get back into the match.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: Chicago looked the better side throughout the evening, and Shuttleworth's five saves to keep a clean sheet was a major catalyst in this one.
Next Up
- ATL: Saturday, October 3 at D.C. United (7 pm ET, MLS LIVE on ESPN+; DAZN in Canada)
- CHI: Saturday, October 3 at Montreal Impact (7 pm ET, MLS LIVE on ESPN+; TVA in Canada)
