BRIDGEVIEW, Ill.—Slowly but surely, Veljko Paunovic’s plan for the Chicago Fire is coming together.
Not for the first time since his arrival in Chicago, the Fire’s Serbian first-year head coach presided over a performance that oozed with purpose and clarity, his players carrying out their well-drilled orders to a tee in an attempt to become the cohesive, adaptive and winning unit that Paunovic has envisioned for them.
However, for the first time in four outings, his plan brought a vital three points to the Fire, who improved to 1-2-1 with a 1-0 victory over the Philadelphia Union on Saturday at Toyota Park.
Paunovic regrouped and re-armed his charges following a 4-3 home defeat to New York City FC on the year's opening Soccer Sunday, and a more defensive setup has them unbeaten since, with two ties on top of Saturday's win.
WATCH: Match Highlights
“It means a lot for me and for this locker room who works very hard so far,” Paunovic said. “Winning this game gives us more confidence now and the belief that we are on a good path, which we always knew that we were. But it’s always very important that you can have the proof and that proof is results, winning games.”
Despite the Fire winning the possession battle, the Union hit the woodwork three times and outshot their hosts, 17-10, in a game that Paunovic admitted was his most difficult since taking the reins at Toyota Park. Crucially, Kennedy Igboananike converted one of the Fire’s two shots on target and the defense held firm to close out the game for their first three points of the year.
“That was for sure the most difficult game for me coaching in MLS for Chicago,” Paunovic said. “But I would say that I was very confident every time the team read the game well, which means to control the game and possession. And I was confident that we would at least have more opportunities to score, and that was our goal when [substitute John] Goossens came in, when [Nick] LaBrocca came in.”
Postmatch Reaction: Pauno | Igboananike | Kappelhof | Cocis
With a trip to Yankee Stadium on the horizon next Sunday, followed by two home games against the Montreal Impact and D.C. United, Paunovic knows his players can build after earning that first victory.
“This win helps us to grow, to go to the next level of confidence, the next level of believing in what we are doing,” he said. “But still we have a long path in order to become the team that we all want to be.”
Shane Murray covers the Chicago Fire for MLSsoccer.com.
