Chicago Fire 0-1 Vancouver Whitecaps: A damn shame

The Chicago Fire’s losing run continued on Wednesday night as they were beaten by the Vancouver Whitecaps 1-0 at Soldier Field.

The away side dominated the early stages, and they made the most of their spell in front when Brian White poked home from a few yards out.

Chicago changed things up at half and were somewhat better in the second half, but it wasn’t enough. They were held at bay, which meant that Vancouver ended the night as the winners, to the surprise of some.

What happened

Vancouver were the much better team to start, and they created a few half-chances as a result.

The first real chance went to Chicago, though. Hitting on the break, Brian Gutiérrez played a superb ball in behind to put Kei Kamara through on goal. He couldn’t convert, hitting a central shot that was tipped over the crossbar.

After a bit of a lul, the Whitecaps opened the scoring. Ryan Gauld snuck past the backline, and from that point it was too simple as he set up Brian White for a simple tap-in from close range.

Gauld had two openings of his own to double the advantage, but both times he hit his shot right at Chris Brady, which was a let-off for the hosts. He had a third moments later, shockingly enough, and this time he dribbled around the goalkeeper, but this time he was denied by the post.

The away side really should have made it 2-0 at some point. In an identical move to their first goal, Gault laid the ball off to White for a seemingly simple finish, but his redirect was saved by the keeper.

Chicago changed their shape at the break, and it led to a solid opening to the second half. A deflected effort from Ousmane Doumbia looked like it had eyes for the top corner, but instead it bounced off the crossbar before the danger was cleared.

The pace of play really grinded to a half following that moment. The Fire had most of the ball, but they couldn’t do much with it, and Vancouver lacked any sort of danger on the break.

The next close call didn’t come until the 88th minute. A long throw-in was flicked on by Kamara, but Yohei Takaoka came out quickly to bring in the ball and stop anyone else from getting to it.

That proved to be the last call, and the Whitecaps held on to secure the surprising victory.

What it means

The loss drags Chicago even deeper into the fight for an Eastern Conference playoff spot. They’re still in 9th, but barely, and the chasing pack is starting to catch up. It might be time for the Fire to start panicking.

Vancouver, meanwhile, climbed up to 6th in the West. They’re still near the start of their lengthy road trip, but grabbing three points here has really helped solidify their spot in the postseason picture. Can they pull off some more gutsy performances like this before returning home? Only time will tell.

Notes and observations

I’ve said this before but I’m ok with football lines on the field because it reminds me of the good ol’ days of MLS.

I know it was a Wednesday but it was still disappointing to see how empty Soldier Field was. People will only continuously show up once the club wins on a continuous basis.

MLS not having goal line technology is inexcusable.

That first-half showing from Chicago was pathetic. They had no energy, no drive, and no desire to go out there and perform. It didn’t even look like they wanted to play. Things were a bit better in the second half, but that wasn’t great either. Ultimately they deserved to lose.

This might have been Jairo Torres’ last chance to save his Fire career. Coming on with plenty of time in an attacking position, he failed to make any impact. The winger was practically invisible, and it led to some ugly play in the final third. He’s not a bad person, but this move simply hasn’t worked.

The Vancouver Whitecaps are a team that exists.

On a more serious note, they deserve praise for their first-half showing. The only thing that prevented them from being up three or four was some wastefulness in front of goal, particularly from Ryan Gauld. They still managed to do enough to pick up three potentially massive points, although they’ll need to be sharper next time around if they want another result.

Pour one out for Mauricio Pineda, who was hauled off at half-time of his 100th appearance despite not even playing too poorly. His teammates and the system let him down, but he was still the sacrificial lamb when the formation was changed at the break.

How can the city of Chicago get cold while it’s still August, man.

Man of the match – Brian White

In all honesty Brian White didn’t really do much of anything, but he still ended the night as the matchwinner, and that’s what matters here.

A classic #9’s goal, his run into the box was smart, and he was just about able to get the ball over the line with his first-time effort from a few yards out. Was it pretty? No, but it was a goal nonetheless.

Yeah that’s good enough for me to give White the honors.