Chicago Fire FC rode a pair of first-half goals by Ignacio Aliseda to a 3-0 victory over Atlanta United at Soldier Field on Saturday night.
A depleted Atlanta side were put to the sword by the Fire, who won just their second game of the campaign and ran Atlanta's winless run to six matches (0-4-2).
Aliseda delivered his first goal in the 34th, as his attempt from just outside the box took an unlucky deflection off the foot of a sliding Atlanta player, caromed off the bottom of the crossbar and past the line to open the scoring. Chicago nearly doubled it in first-half stoppage time as Przemyslaw Frankowski found himself in space on a run toward goal but had his shot denied by Brad Guzan.
The Fire ultimately did end up with a 2nd goal just before the halftime whistle, as a poor Atlanta giveaway saw Aliseda make it a brace for himself with a blast into the net that Guzan could do nothing about. And Chicago punished Atlanta once more for poor defending and midfield play in the 58th as Frankowski bagged his first goal of the season to make it a 3-0 scoreline.
That was more than enough for the hosts, who were barely threatened throughout the evening.
Goals
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: It was a humbling loss for a shorthanded Atlanta side missing a host of players to injury and fitness concerns, but despite potentially having Josef Martinez back for Thursday night's match against Nashville SC, they'll see Guzan, Ezequiel Barco, George Bello and Miles Robinson leave for international play with the health of various others possibly in question. With the transfer window opening on Wednesday, acquisitions certainly aren't out of the question for the struggling Five Stripes. For the Fire, it's now four points from two games and the chance to carry some new-found momentum to a Wednesday evening home showdown against Orlando City SC.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: One goal was good, but how about two for Aliseda? After opening his account in the 34th minute, the 21-year-old Argentinian doubled his pleasure in the dying seconds of the first half.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: The honors easily go to Aliseda, delivering his best performance in a Chicago uniform in his fourth straight start of the year.
Next Up
- CHI: Wednesday, July 7 vs. Orlando City SC | 7:30 pm ET | UniMás, TUDN, Twitter (English audio)
- ATL: Thursday, July 8 at Nashville SC | 8:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE on ESPN+
