It looked like D.C. United would walk away from Toyota Park empty-handed, but a stoppage-time equalizer by Bobby Boswell left the visitors with a share of the points in a 2-2 draw against the Chicago Fire on Friday.
Chicago came back from a 1-0 deficit to hold a 2-1 lead for a full hour, but Boswell's 92nd minute header, following a series of shots and blocks in the box, gave United a point that could prove valuable in the MLS Cup Playoffs race.
The game's opening goal came off a Chicago mistake, as Johan Kappelhof sent a back pass under pressure to Sean Johnson, who pushed the ball aside with his hand. An indirect free kick in the box was called, and Luciano Acosta sent a short pass on the ensuring kick back to Rob Vincent, who shot it above the wall of Chicago players on the goal line.
But the Fire recovered quickly, as Razvan Cocis scored the equalizer on a near post header off a corner kick three minutes after Vincent's tally.
And Chicago turned the tables 29 minutes in, as David Accam's attempt from distance fooled Bill Hamid in goal, putting the hosts ahead 2-1.
While D.C. pushed throughout the second half for a tying goal, they had to wait until the dying minutes for the equalizer, but Boswell pounced on a floated ball in the box to earn the draw.
Box Score
- 19' – DC – Rob Vincent (Luciano Acosta)
- 22' – CHI – Razvan Cocis (Arturo Alvarez)
- 29' – CHI – David Accam (Razvan Cocis)
- 92' – DC – Bobby Boswell
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Three Things
- EVERY POINT COUNTS? Given their druthers, both teams would likely have preferred the win to a draw. But given their status around the red line in the Eastern Conference, D.C. will be understandably happy to get even a point on the night. Ahead of the rest of the weekend action, it places them above the red line and they will look to get three points the next time out to really solidify their status as a playoff team.
- MIXED BAG FOR CHICAGO: All in all, the Fire had a solid performance. They weren't discouraged by going down, their defense was generally stout, and they scored two good goals. But two mistakes cost them dearly, with the back pass putting them in the hole early and Boswell's goal giving them too little time to find another goal. It will likely be a bitter pill, but two lapses proved very costly in a winnable game.
- VINCENT OPENS ACCOUNT: Perhaps lost in the shuffle a bit is the first goal, Vincent's first in MLS. The former Pittsburgh Riverhounds marksman scored pretty regularly in USL, but a position switch and move up to MLS have meant a different role for Vincent in D.C. Still, the goal was well-taken and shows the Englishman could be an auxiliary goal option down the stretch.
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