We said prior to the game that Philadelphia struggled when it came to defending set pieces and it was a set-piece header from Adailton that pushed Chicago to a 1-0 victory in front of 12,815 fans at Toyota Park on Sunday.
A grueling physical match between two teams who were desperately looking for their first win of the season ended as many expected. Low scoring, highly one sided and reasonably unconvincing.
Chicago were in control for much of the first half and dominated possession, leaving a Union side missing five starters to tighten up at the back and try and send the ball forward through the air. Philadelphia failed to find a rhythm through the first half. The Union’s best chance came in the 30th minute, when Andrew Wenger who had once again been shut down until that point, was able to find a way past the Chicago back four to lay the ball off to Aristeguieta. The MLS rookie cut back in the opposite direction however as some poor communication washed away the hopes of what should have been his third goal of the campaign.
The Union had to do something different in the second half, and they did. The team came out more composed and organized but had to fend off more Chicago attacks as they seemed to up the tempo whenever the Union were getting ready to settle down or step off the gas. Mbolhi made his mark for the squad, providing a vital save from Kennedy Igboananike, whose piledriver was parried out of play.
The game would seemingly be buried six feet under in the 72nd minute when the Union received their second red card in as many games. Substitute Fred let his frustration show and lashed out at Shipp. This resulted in a huge dent in the squads already diminishing morale and left the Union with a huge task.
However, they did continue to press despite being shorthanded but it wasn’t enough to find that fateful goal as the Union now endure their worst ever start to an MLS season. The Fire were able to climb out of their hole and may have just thrown the Union down the same one!
Philadelphia host Sebastian Giovinco and Toronto FC who have a habit of scoring despite a disappointing 2-1 loss to Salt Lake on Sunday. They will be looking to bounce back and profit from a wasteful Union side if Curtin does not implement some drastic changes prior to the game.
