For one night, last beats first
Federico Navarro’s goal in 68th minute gives Fire win at Soldier Field
The last thing the Fire needed was a potentially season-ending injury to one of their most important players. But defender Wyatt Omsberg tearing ligaments in his left foot is only the latest hurdle the team has faced.
To make something of their season, the Fire will have to overcome that adversity. And that’s just one of the places in which they’ve struggled.
Before their 1-0 victory Wednesday against the Union at Soldier Field, the Fire were last in Major League Soccer at 0.88 points per match and tied for last with 14 points. They made some progress against the Eastern Conference-leading Union, breaking a scoreless tie on a goal by Federico Navarro in the 68th minute after clever work from attacker Chris Mueller.
The uphill climb, however, is just beginning for the Fire. And the loss of Omsberg is only the newest obstacle.
‘‘As a part of the defense, as my teammate next to me, he’s really important for me and for the whole defense,’’ captain Rafael Czichos said last week. ‘‘I think he’s been [having] a really good season so far. Yeah, that he’s injured now obviously is bad for us. But I think we will find a good solution to replace him.’’
The Fire do have some options to make up for Omsberg’s absence in Carlos Teran, Mauricio Pineda and Jonathan Bornstein. Figuring out how to get by without Omsberg, however, is one of many issues they face as the season reaches the halfway point.
According to American Soccer Analysis, the Fire’s expected point total entering play Wednesday was 21, a number that would have put them within two points of the Eastern Conference playoff line. Though that statistic isn’t ironclad, it shows the Fire are capable of controlling play and creating chances.
One of the problems is converting those opportunities into goals. Perhaps the best example of the Fire’s deficiency in that area came May 28, when they outshot Toronto FC 33-5 but still managed to lose 3-2.
‘‘I think the best game we’ve played so far was the game in Toronto,’’ Czichos said. ‘‘We had a lot of possession. We were really aggressive. We had a lot of chances, I think the most chances in the season so far. But the problem was the result.’’
The Fire’s defense, which was strong to begin the season, has turned error-prone. In their first game after Omsberg’s surgery, the Fire trailed 1-0 late in the first half at Houston when four players couldn’t deal with an innocent-looking cross before allowing the Dynamo’s Darwin Quintero to double the lead.
Nothing like that happened Wednesday, though the Union might have had a legitimate argument for a stoppage-time penalty after a challenge by Bornstein.
Facing one of the best teams in the league, the Fire generally had the upper hand but couldn’t convert until Navarro scored his first goal of the season. Before that, the Union had a chance to take the lead in the 47th minute, but Fire goalie Gabriel Slonina repelled a close-range header from Cory Burke. The Union, who had one day of rest less than the Fire, went down to 10 men when Jose Martinez received his second yellow card in the 73rd minute.
The Fire then killed off the remainder of the match, winning for the second time in their last three outings after a 10-game MLS winless streak.
NOTE: Andre Reynolds II made his first career MLS start, replacing Miguel Navarro (health-and-safety protocol). Mauricio Pineda is in the protocol, too. Jairo Torres (left hip) was absent, as well.