Bridgeview, Ill. (March 20, 2024) – Chicago Fire FC II defeated Chicago City SC 6-0 in the First Round of the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at SeatGeek Stadium on Wednesday night. Following an own goal by the Chicago City defense in the seventh minute, five different players tallied a goal for Chicago Fire II to help the team advance to the next round of the Open Cup.
The opponent, date and time for the Second Round of the Open Cup will be announced by U.S. Soccer in the coming days.
Defender Giovanni Granda and midfielder Vitaliy Hlyut each made their professional debut and scored their first professional goal against Chicago City SC, with Hlyut becoming one of the youngest goal scorers in Open Cup history. The Fire also saw goals from midfielders David Poreba, Michael Nesci and Harold Osorio to seal advancement to the second round of the historic tournament.
Five current Chicago Fire Academy players featured for Chicago Fire II against City: Granda, Hlyut, Nesci, Dylan Borso and Patrick Los. Additionally, Homegrown player Javier Casas Jr. played the first 45 minutes and former Academy product Poreba played the full 90. Along with Casas Jr., first-team players Spencer Richey and Wyatt Omsberg also registered 45 minutes in the match.
The score opened in the seventh minute in favor of the home team, when midfielder Harold Osorio sent a ball up the right side for Granda. Granda sent the ball across the box, hoping to connect with a teammate but instead connecting with Chicago City defender Aleksandar Labovic, who miscleared the ball and hit it past his own goalkeeper for the goal.
Chicago made it 2-0 just before the halftime whistle when Nesci and Granda connected in the box. Nesci won a ball on the right side of the box, sending a shot that bounced off a defender. The rebound fell right back to his feet and he laid it back to the top of the box for Granda, who hit a one-time shot into the left side of the goal past the outstretched hands of a diving Carlos Demeneghi.
Poreba extended the lead in the 65th minute after Nesci ran down a ball on the right side and sent in a shot. The attempt was cut off by defender Matthew McNamara, but Poreba pounced on the rebound. He settled the ball before sending a tight shot across the goalmouth that crossed the line just inside the left post.
After setting up the previous two goals, Nesci scored one of his own in the 70th minute. Poreba sent Nesci the ball at the top right corner of the 18-yard box. The young midfielder took a touch inside before firing a shot past Demeneghi.
Osorio made it five on the night with a free kick in the 84th minute. The Salvadoran lined up for a free kick, sending the ball through the wall toward goal. The ball bounced just in front of Demeneghi, then over his hands and into the goal.
Goal number six for the Fire came by the way of 15-year-old Hlyut. Lamonth Rochester won the ball back from an opposing defender and played it forward into a quick counter that saw Jason Shokalook offer a shot on goal. After the shot was blocked in the box, Hlyut collected the spill, evaded a sliding tackler and slipped the ball home to wrap up the match for the Fire.
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Box Score: Chicago Fire FC II 6:0 Chicago City SC
Goals:
CHI - Labovic (Own Goal) (WATCH) 7’
CHI - Granda (Nesci) (WATCH) 45+1’
CHI - Poreba (WATCH) 65’
CHI - Nesci (Poreba) (WATCH) 70’
CHI - Osorio (WATCH) 84’
CHI - Hlyut (Shokalook) (WATCH) 86’
Discipline:
CCSC - Mendoza (Yellow Card) 10’
CHI - Casas Jr. (Yellow Card) 20’
CCSC - Angeles (Yellow Card) 21’
CHI - Konincks (Yellow Card) 47’
Chicago Fire FC II: GK Richey (Los, 45’), D Borso (Rochester, 75’), D Omsberg (capt.) (Shannon, 45’), D Konincks, D Granda (Hency, 45’), M Casas, Jr. (Blake, 45’), M Poreba, M Osorio, F Hlyut, F Nesci, F Shokalook
Subs not used: F Soudan
Chicago City SC: GK Demeneghi, D Butler (Zarate, 82’), D Labovic, D McNamara, D Sutton (capt.), M Angeles, M Lara, M Lopez (Dizdarevic, 71’), M Mendoza (Cozma, 87’), M Shkidchenko (Pacheco, 87’), F Marquez (Voica, 71’)
Subs not used: GK Krawczyk
Stats Summary: CHI / CCSC
Shots: 31 / 5
Shots on Goal: 15 / 2
Passing Accuracy: 84.8% / 56.3%
Saves: 2 / 8
Corners: 4 / 0
Fouls: 7 / 14
Offsides: 4 / 3
Possession: 74.3% / 25.7%
Attendance: 810
Referee: Alex Beehler
Assistant Ref 1: Fermin Sanchez
Assistant Ref 2: Leo Mora
4th Official: Mario Martinez Cabrera
