Chicago started their home campaign against Philadelphia Union on Saturday night in front of 18,000+ Fire faithful. They would not be disappointed, as Chicago would control much of the match and impose their will against an already struggling Union side. The team was solid throughout, and showed what they are capable of when firing on all cylinders, in spite of letting off the gas a bit in the second half.
The Fire held possession early, with pressing chances against Philadelphia’s questionable 3-5-2 formation early and often. Marco Pappa drew a foul 30 yards out in the 6th minute that resulted in a Pavel Pardo free kick that missed just wide of goal, and the Fire continued with the early offensive pressure in the 13th and 14th minutes, creating quality scoring chances by Marco Pappa and Sebastian Grazzini. Their early pressure would pay off, when in the 28th minute Marco Pappa would shake two Philly defenders before sending his cross to the center of the box, where Dominic Oduro would snap a header to the back of the net for the 1-0 lead, and eventual game winner.
When asked if Philadelphia’s defensive struggles to start the season played into Klopas’ strategy for the game, he acknowledged it was a factor. “We talked about that, we worked on both scenarios. At home they played 3-5-2 but they had Williams, who was missing. I think he has more of the ability now to push forward a lot and recover. But also with Gomez, he’s the deep guy that drops in the middle and becomes the fourth player for them. We talked about the opportunities to play more direct to the forwards, but also we did a good job with Gomez. The team worked extremely hard to play forward, but also defensively.”
Chicago did not let up after going up up a goal, as they continued to exploit the Union’s weak defense with numerous counterattacks. Chicago nearly doubled their lead in the 40th minute as Patrick Nyarko used a piece of fancy footwork to get around the Philadelphia midfield and feed Oduro, who again beat MacMath and the Union defense, only to be cleared out in front of goal by defender Chris Albright.
Philadelphia tried to shift the momentum at the start of the second half by capitalizing on a slow Chicago start, but within minutes the Fire were back in control of the match, flowing as they did in the first half, although without quite the same pop as the first 45.
No matter what tactic they employed, it seemed Philadelphia was completely unable to maintain possession, as the Fire continued to press by winning 50/50 balls and forcing turnovers. Peter Nowak, already in a state of uneasiness after two losses to open the Union’s season, seemed lethargic and disconnected on the Union bench through most of the game. The Union would give one last push during the final 10 minutes of the match. Chicago perhaps tried to shut down a bit too early in the defensive end, which gave Philadelphia more room to press forward. Two free kicks in the final ten minutes tested newcomer Paolo Tornaghi, who again showed composure and decisiveness in the box, proving himself equal to the task on each attempt. In the end, Chicago would hold off the final Union attack, while nearly doubling their lead in stoppage time through the play of Dominic Oduro and Federico Puppo. All that proved unnecessary, however, as Chicago walked away with the 1-0 win, extending Philadelphia’s season-opening run to 3 straight losses.
After the game, Klopas spoke about his team’s energy and desire to control the game from the start in front of their home fans. “(It was) great to set the tone early with the energy we brought on the field. From the start, I thought we pressed very high, we had a very good forty-five minutes. I thought the second half we started a little bit slow, we were slow moving the ball through the midfield. In the end, I give a lot of credit to my players.”
Game Notes
- Chicago’s distribution and movement were on point throughout the match. They moved the ball well, and passed effortlessly.
- Paolo Tornaghi is the real deal. Through the first two games of the season, he has proven to be the most solid offseason addition to the club thusfar, and could realistically steal the #1 keeper spot from Sean Johnson. If Tornaghi performs at this level against Colorado next weekend, it may be hard to justify replacing him in the lineup, at least in the short term.
- Marco Pappa had a good match on both sides of the ball. Hustled defensively, created quality chances offensively, including dishing out the assist on Oduro’s goal. As he tired, he began to exhibit some of his overcompensating tendencies. Chicago with the Marco Pappa who played the first 60 minutes is a solid asset to this club.
- Throughout the game, Chicago’s movement both on and off the ball was stellar, showing a team that possessed a level of cohesiveness and composure not always exhibited in 2011.
- Dominic Oduro scored his second goal in two games, continuing his form from 2011. Like the class act he has proven to be during his career, he commended the whole team for a well played match. “Our confidence is really high. I’m very proud of the team; I thought we stuck to our guns throughout the game and fought really hard. The most important thing is that at the end of the day we got three points. I thought we played really well and I’m looking forward to the next game.”
Chicago will next face Colorado Rapids in Denver next Sunday.
RECAP:
Chicago Fire 1 – 0 Philadelphia Union
Chicago Fire: Paolo Tornaghi; Dan Gargan, Jalil Anibaba, Cory Gibbs, Gonzalo Segares; Logan Pause ©, Pavel Pardo (Daniel Paladini 70’), Marco Pappa (Federico Puppo 89’); Sebastian Grazzini (Rafael Robayo 85’); Dominic Oduro, Patrick Nyarko
Substitutes not used: Jay Nolly, Austin Berry, Hunter Jumper, Orr Barouch
Philadelphia Union: Zac MacMath; Chris Albright (Jack McInerny 80’), Michael Farfan, Carlos Valdes, Porfirio Lopez; Gabriel Gomez, Keon Daniel, Roger Torres (Gabriel Farfan 46’), Brian Carroll; Danny Mwanga (Josue Martinez 65’), Lionard Pajoy
Substitutes not used: Chase Harrison, Raymon Gaddis, Cristhian Hernandez, Krystian Witkowski
Scoring Summary
CHI – Dominic Oduro (Marco Pappa) 28’
Misconduct Summary
PHI – Gabriel Farfan (caution) 59’
CHI – Sebastian Grazzini (caution) 75’
CHI – Cory Gibbs (caution) 81’
Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Assistants: Craig Lowry, Claudio Badea
Fourth Official: Armando Villarreal
Attendance: 18,075
Image courtesy of Brian Kersey/Chicago Fire
