MONTRÉAL (Sept. 13, 2022) – Chicago Fire FC (9-14-8, 35 points) fell 3-2 to CF Montréal (17-9-5, 56 points) at Stade Saputo on Tuesday night, snapping the Club’s three-game unbeaten run. Designated player Xherdan Shaqiri converted two penalty kicks on the night, but the Fire were unable to recover from conceding back-to-back goals in a nine-minute stretch in the first half.
The Fire sit seven points below the Eastern Conference playoff line with three games remaining against teams that are also competing for the seventh and final playoff berth in the East. Two of those matches will take place at home - Sept. 17 vs Charlotte and Oct. 9 vs. New England. The Club will travel to Cincinnati for its final away match of the campaign on Oct. 1.
Montréal opened the scoring in the 21st minute, while the Fire were a man down during an injury evaluation period for Andre Reynolds II, who would later return to the pitch. The scoring play began when Montréal midfielder Ismaël Koné sent a service into a crowded 18-yard-box, where Kei Kamara deflected the ball off his foot and into the back of the net. Eight minutes later, the home side doubled their lead when Kamara received a pass from Koné at the top of the box, turned and finished his attempt to give Montréal the 2-0 advantage.
With just over seven minutes remaining in the half, the Fire earned a penalty as a result of a foul on forward Jhon Durán by Montréal goalkeeper Sebastian Breza. Shaqiri stepped up to the spot, ripping a low finish in the bottom right hand corner of the net to split Montréal’s lead in half.
However, with less than a minute remaining in the half, Montreal would extend their lead with a goal from Zachary Brault-Guillard, off an assist from Kamara to push the score to 3-1 going into halftime.
Eight minutes into the second half, the Fire earned another penalty following video review of a foul on Durán inside the box by Montréal defender Joel Waterman. Shaqiri converted his second PK of the night, sending Breza the wrong way to bring the scoreline to 3-2 in the 57th minute.
NEXT MATCH: Chicago will return home to host Charlotte FC on Saturday, Sept. 17 at 7:00 p.m. CT at Soldier Field where the Club will celebrate its Hispanic Heritage Night match, presented by motorola edge. Tickets to the match can be purchased here and the contest will also be televised live on WGN-TV and CF97 Live, and transmitted locally in Spanish on TUDN 1200 AM.
Notes:.
- Xherdan Shaqiri scored his team-leading seventh goal of the season.
- Homegrown defender Andre Reynolds II has started in three of the team’s last four matches.
- Tonight’s match was the team’s fourth contest in the last 14 days.
- The Fire will play two of their final three matches at home, with their final away fixture scheduled for Oct. 1 in Cincinnati.
- Tonight’s 3-2 away result snapped a three-game unbeaten run (1-0-2, 5 points) for the Fire.
- Defensive midfielder Federico Navarro missed tonight’s match due to yellow card accumulation.
- The Fire have lost twice in their last five matches (1-2-2, 5 points), with both losses occurring against Montréal.
Box Score:
CF Montréal 3:2 Chicago Fire FC
Goals:
MTL - Kamara (7) (Kone 4) 21’
MTL - Kamara (8) (Kone 5) 29’
CHI - Shaqiri (6) 39’
MTL - Brault-Guillard (4) (Kamara 7) 44’
CHI - Shaqiri (7) 57’
Discipline:
CHI - Reynolds II (Yellow Card) 19’
MTL - Waterman (Yellow Card) 57’
MTL - Camacho (Yellow Card) 62’
MTL - Wanyama (Yellow Card) 69’
CHI - Terán (Yellow Card) 85’
CHI - Czichos (Yellow Card) 88’
Chicago Fire FC: GK Slonina, D Sekulić (Bezerra, 87’), D Czichos ©, D Terán, D M. Navarro, M Gutiérrez, M Pineda, M Bornstein (M Casas Jr., 80’), M Shaqiri, M Reynolds II (D Espinoza, 80’), F Durán
Subs not used: GK Richey, D Burks, F Rodríguez, M Oregel Jr., M Monis
CF Montréal: GK Breza, D Camacho, D Corbo, D Brault-Guillard, D Waterman, M Piette © (Wanyama, 62’), M Mihailović (Miljevic, 46’), M Kwizera (Choiniere, 72’), M Kone, F Toye (Torres, 72’), F Kamara (Quioto, 62’)
Subs not used: GK Pantemis, D Miller, M Johnston, D Thorkelsson
Stats Summary: MTL / CHI
Shots: 11 / 6
Shots on Goal: 5 / 3
Saves: 1 / 2
Passing Accuracy: 86.5% / 81%
Corners: 5 / 1
Fouls: 16 / 14
Offsides: 2 / 2
Possession: 54.2% / 45.8%
Attendance: 11,535
Referee: Ted Unkel
Assistant Referees: Lyes Arfa, Brian Dunn
Fourth Official: Guido Gonzales Jr.
VAR: Jorge Gonzalez, Cory Richardson
