The Kansas City Wizards held on to win the first game of the home-and-home series with the Chicago Fire, storming back with three second-half goals before escaping with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday night at Arrowhead Stadium.
Cuauhtemoc Blanco played a part in both Fire goals, by Chad Barrett and Dasan Robinson, but goals from Sasha Victorine, Scott Sealy and Jose Burciaga Jr. gave the Wizards the victory. Blanco also saw a penalty kick saved in the first half, and the Fire finished the game a man down after Gonzalo Segares was sent off.
A partisan crowd of 19,552 inside Arrowhead Stadium apparently came to see Blanco, and it didn't take long to get a quick glimpse into his playmaking skills. Blanco found streaking midfielder Justin Mapp along the near sideline in the fifth minute. Mapp fired from about eight yards out and Wizards goalkeeper Kevin Hartman made the save, but not a clean one. Mapp scrambled for the rebound, but Hartman made a more secure stop the second time around.
The Fire were awarded a penalty kick in the 12th minute when Mapp became entangled with Burciaga in the right corner of the penalty area. But Blanco hit a penalty kick that was almost down the center of the goal, and Hartman easily deflected it away with both hands.
The Fire threatened again in the 22nd minute, when Robinson headed high from a corner kick from Blanco. Blanco was in the middle of things offensively, sparking chances and taking them himself.
Chicago was let off the hook in the 34th minute. Wizards midfielder Davy Arnaud sent a screaming free kick from 27 yards out off the right post, and the rebound fell into the middle of the goalmouth. Scott Sealy was there for the rebound, but he whiffed on the shot. Sealy fell into the goal, and the Fire cleared the ball.
Hartman made repeated save after save. He scampered wide and high out of the goal to break up Fire scoring chances. But in first half stoppage time, Blanco continued his enchanted evening, supremely cutting a pass to Barrett in the penalty area. The Fire striker allowed the ball to run away from him to create a better angle before firing it past a vulnerable Hartman for a 1-0 lead before intermission.
The Wizards had made a habit of falling behind all season, and coming back. It didn't change Wednesday. From the left flank, Burciaga hit a rapid rolling cross to midfielder Sasha Victorine, who tapped it in to the goal in the 54th minute to level the score.
The goal seemed to mark a sense of urgency for the Wizards. The Wizards had been shut out in their last two matches, both against the New England Revolution. They had not scored a goal since the 89th minute against Chivas USA in a 3-2 victory on July 29.
Then in the 66th minute, Segares picked up a yellow card for a hard foul along the sideline, his second in a 12-minute span, and could only watch as referee Baldomero Toledo pulled the red card out of his pocket.
The red card seemed to awaken the Wizards. A ball appeared out along the touchline, but Burciaga played it and marched down the field. He pulled back a low cross from the corner to Sealy, who was at about the penalty spot. Sealy first touch lifted the ball over Logan Pause, then after leaping over the fallen Fire defender, Sealy managed to get off a brisk shot which found the left corner of the net for a 2-1 lead.
The Wizards appeared to seal the victory eight minutes from the end. Ryan Raybould lifted the ball into the box from midfield, and with his back to the goal, Eddie Johnson flicked it with his heel, finding Burciaga at the left post. Burciaga chipped the ball high from about five yards out beating Fire goalkeeper Jon Busch, and the Wizards led 3-1.
Less than a minute later, though, the Fire got a goal back. Blanco put in a free kick that Hartman could only punch out, but Robinson was first to the rebound and turned it home, hoping to kick-start a rally to tie the match.
But even after four minutes of added time, after a night of suspense just when it seemed the match was safely tucked away, this time the final whistle came and the Fire could only look forward to the return match Saturday at Toyota Park.
Thomas Foote is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
