Bruno Damiani’s 10th-minute penalty kick held up as the only goal in the Philadelphia Union’s 1-0 away win over the Chicago Fire on Wednesday.
The victory extended Philadelphia’s club-record unbeaten streak to 11 matches (8-0-3). The outstanding run of play has elevated the Union (12-3-4, 40 points) to the top of the overall MLS table.
Chicago (7-7-4, 25 points) is on a two-match losing streak. The Fire are one of the league’s higher-scoring teams, yet they have now gone scoreless in consecutive matches.
In the eighth minute, Chicago defender Andrew Gutman made an uncharacteristic mistake that ultimately decided the match. Chris Donovan’s shot in the box struck Gutman’s outstretched arm, resulting in a handball call and a penalty kick for the Union.
Damiani clinically buried the shot for the go-ahead tally. It was the Uruguayan’s third goal in 18 regular-season matches since coming to Philadelphia in a transfer deal last February.
The one-goal lead was all the Union required in another strong outing from the team’s defense. Philadelphia has allowed only 19 goals this season, tied for the second-lowest total in MLS.
Philadelphia goalkeeper Andrew Rick made one save for his fourth clean sheet of the season. The 19-year-old backup has started eight of the Union’s last nine regular-season matches, as veteran starter Andre Blake has missed time due to injuries and international duty.
The Fire held 55 percent of the possession but had trouble translating that pressure into quality opportunities. Chicago outshot Philadelphia 15-11 overall, but the Union held a 3-2 edge in shots on goal.
Philip Zinckernagel almost had the equalizer on a long-range blast in the 39th minute, but the forward’s shot glanced off the crossbar and went over the net. Fire scoring leader Hugo Cuypers also had a pair of decent chances sail beyond the net in the first half.
The Union’s defense dominated the second half until Brian Gutierrez almost snuck a late equalizer past Rick during stoppage time. Defender Jakob Glesnes made a canny move to stop the ball and clear away Gutierrez’s shot to preserve the lead.
–Field Level Media
