IRVINE, CA. - Chicago Fire FC were victorious in the penultimate friendly match of their 2020 preseason camp, earning a 2-0 win against Eastern Conference counterparts Toronto FC at the University of California-Irvine.
Rookie Homegrown defender Nick Slonina got the scoring started in the 15th minute. With the team up the field for a corner kick, the 18-year-old pounced on a deflected shot attempt from midfielder Przemysław Frankowski and chipped a close-range finish over Toronto goalkeeper Alex Bono.
In the 31st minute, forward Elliot Collier kept his preseason scoring streak alive. After being played through the Toronto defense on a pass from midfielder Djordje Mihailovic, Collier unleashed a left-footed shot that was too strong for Bono to parry off-target. The goal was Collier's fourth in the last four Fire FC preseason matches, after resigning with the Club on Feb. 6.
A full wave of Fire FC substitutes took the field early in the second half and helped preserve the clean sheet over the contest's final 45 minutes.
Fire FC will wrap their 2020 preseason camp on Saturday afternoon at Dignity Health Sports Park with a 5 p.m. CT friendly meeting with the LA Galaxy. Major League Soccer will provide a live stream of the match, available to watch at ChicagoFireFC.com for fans in the Los Angeles and Chicagoland areas.
Chicago Fire FC Starting XI: Kenneth Kronholm; Brandt Bronico, Nick Slonina, Francisco Calvo, Jeremiah Gutjahr; Mauricio Pineda, Djordje Mihailović, Fabian Herbers; Elliot Collier, Przemysław Frankowski, Robert Berić.
Substitutes: Cristian Díaz+ (45'), Johan Kappelhof (45'), Wyatt Omsberg (45'), Micheal Azira (45'), Alváro Medrán (45'), Javier Casas* (45'); Allan Rodríguez* (45'), Jonathan Jiménez^ (45'), Brian Gutierrez* (45'), Bobby Shuttleworth (60'), Jonathan Bornstein (60').
*Chicago Fire Academy Player
^Unsigned 2020 MLS SuperDraft Pick
+Trialist
