Fresh off a victory in the U.S. Open Cup on Monday night, the Chicago Fire continued their home dominance over the Kansas City Wizards, rolling to a 3-0 victory in MLS league play on Wednesday night at Toyota Park.
Nate Jaqua gave the Fire the lead midway through the first half, then Chad Barrett and Justin Mapp scored six minutes apart midway through the second half after the Wizards were reduced to 10 men to put the game away.
The victory ended a five-game winless streak in league play for the Fire, while the Wizards weren't able to build on their victory last weekend that ended a nine-game winless streak. The Wizards have still won only once in 13 Chicago home games in MLS history.
While both teams put out significantly changed lineups from the Open Cup match two nights earlier, the Fire came out trying to build on that win early on. Just six minutes into the game, the Fire had a golden opportunity to strike first. From the left flank, Mapp put in a good cross that just a bit too far in front of Jaqua.
But the big striker was still able to reach the ball and head down a centering pass for Chris Rolfe. After looking for an open shot, he instead slipped a pass to an open Diego Gutierrez on the edge of the area. Gutierrez ran onto the ball and ripped a shot that sailed just over the crossbar.
Three minutes later, the Fire struck a blow that literally knocked the wind out of Kansas City goalkeeper Bo Oshoniyi. A pass from Rolfe was cut out by the Wizards backline, but bounced toward the center of the area. As Oshoniyi came off his line to grab the ball hanging in the area, Jaqua's attempt at a volley instead caught the MLS veteran in the chest.
The Fire continued to put pressure on the Wizards. Chad Barrett ran down the ball in the right side of the area and sent in a low cross to a sliding Chris Rolfe, who just missed connecting. The ball ended up with Mapp, who sent in a lovely cross for Jaqua, only for Oshoniyi to save his shot. Barrett latched onto the rebound, but the flag went up for offside.
The Wizards were able to get into the Chicago end through the speed of Eddie Johnson. In the 14th minute, Johnson raced to reach the rebound of a shot saved by Fire 'keeper Zach Thornton, but defender Tony Sanneh knocked aside the near-certain goal. Then eight minutes later Johnson got on the end of a cross, but sent his header right into Thornton's hands.
In the 25th minute the Fire broke through. Through a free kick that was closer to a corner kick, Mapp sent in a beautiful in-swinger that found the head of Jaqua, who buried it in the back of the net.
Just before the half, Sanneh and Johnson collided into each other, and referee Terry Vaughn waved play on. But Wizards defender Ryan Raybould tugged on a jersey in frustration and received a yellow card, a call that would have deep ramifications shortly after the half.
Two minutes into the second half, the mental lapse by Raybould came back to haunt him and the entire Kansas City team. With a streaking Mapp heading toward goal, Raybould once again grabbed a handful of the jersey, slowing Mapp enough to cause him to protest instead of keeping with the attack. Referee Vaughn immediately pulled out the yellow card, then subsequently the red, and Kansas City was left a man down for the remainder of the game.
After a few close calls, the Fire got their second in the 61st minute. Mapp was again the instigator -- moving his way into the right flank of the box, he then sent in a low pass that Jaqua dummied and allowed to roll on to Barrett, who easily touched the ball into the net to double the Chicago lead.
Six minutes later, Mapp again made the difference. After a perfectly timed through ball from Ivan Guerrero into the left side of the box, substitute Andy Herron ran the ball toward the goal. Receiving a pass through the six-yard box, Mapp deftly tapped the ball into the goal for his first goal on the season and a part in all three Fire goals on the night.
Oshoniyi kept the margin at 3-0 in the 75th minute when he smothered the ball on Herron's feet as he raced into the area. Then in the 85th minute, Ryan Johnson hit a well-placed shot toward the far right corner, only to again be denied by the big Wizards 'keeper.
But the Wizards were never able to greatly threaten the Fire at the other end, and with the victory, Chicago created a tie for third place in the Eastern Conference with the Wizards and the New York Red Bulls, all three teams with 25 points.
Jack Daniel Chavez is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
