A pair of second half goals in three minutes saw Philadelphia Union fight back for a 2-2 road draw against Chicago Fire FC on Saturday night.
After an own goal early in the final half saw the Union trail by two but rallied back with a goals from Daniel Gazdag and Julian Carranza to complete an important road trip with a result.
Philly returned to league play with only one adjustment to the starting XI from the squad that secured the club’s second Concacaf Champions League Semifinal berth in team history with Nathan Harriel getting the start after Kai Wagner left the match with hamstring tightness. The Fire went after the Union homegrown early in the match, testing his pace against Maren Haile-Selassie on the left side in the first few minutes.  Chicago’s winger earned the first corner of the match, playing a ball off the Union defender and shouted for the early handball but had to settle for the corner.
Withstanding the early pressure by the home side, the Union launched their first attack off in the sixth minute going direct. Team captain Alejandro Bedoya collected possession just past Solider Field’s center stripe and quickly put the ball at the feet of Daniel Gazdag. The playmaking No. 10 for the Boys in Blue one timed a flick out wide that saw Mikael Uhre run into the box. With a defender pressuring from behind, the Union forward opted for the near post shot on the ground but saw it rattle the side netting instead.
The two Eastern Conference foes traded heart-dropping chances seconds later with Chicago’s Arnaud Souquet going for a remarkable long-distance goal from his side of the center line that floated over the crossbar into the top netting. On the ensuing offensive possession by the Union, the Boys in Blue got into a rhythm with Bedoya out on the right side of the pitch getting a pass to the feet of Carranza for a give and go. The tip pass was just out of reach for the Union captain but went to Gazdag and the two again with for the 1-2 combo. Carranza flicked a pass intended for the Hungarian midfielder who had his progress held and instead Uhre gained possession. With a floated ball at the top of the 18, the forward knocked it down for Jack McGlynn to fire a blast off the volley but the homegrown’s shot went right Chicago’s keeper.
Chicago went right back to Haile-Selassie on the left side of the Union defense sending a warning shot in the 16th minute. With Harriel pushed up field in the attack, the Fire floated a ball out to the winger that forced Jack Elliott to cover the left side. Seeing the space vacated by the Union center back, Haile-Selassie sent a hard cross into the box toward an open Kei Kamara that opted for the dummy run to allow a shot at the back post but Olivier Mbaizo got a boot on the ball to clear it away. In the next wave from the Fire, Haile-Selassie cut centrally to attack the Union defense that again was cleared out but directly to Kamara who fired a shot off the bounce for the near post but wide of Andre Blake. Third time was the charm for Chicago as they opened the scoring in the 19th minute. Chris Mueller gained possession on the right side of the Union’s shape and patiently waited for support which came in an overlapping run from Miguel Navarro. The Fire’s outside back crossed it across the Union goal for to the backpost run of Haile-Selassie who tapped it in.
The Union and Chicago settled into the contest following the opener, with both sides putting numbers centrally to force any offensive chances to be created out wide.
In the 38th minute the Union pushed forward as Glesnes stepped forward to drive a pass to Gazdag as he dropped deeper to collect possession. With Chicago’s defense stepping to keep in sync against the Hungarian, Gazdag flicked a pass over the top for Uhre to run into the box. Chicago captain Rafael Czichos stayed in step with the Danish forward, timing his tackle just as Uhre went for the left-footed blast.
Just before the break, the Union looked to tie things up with Carranza making a run down the heart of the pitch trying to connect with Uhre in the box. Dribbling closer and closer to the edge of the box, the Fire defense remained compact to prevent the pass or allow a shot to make its way through.
Philly’s climb back into the contest got steeper inside the opening minutes of the second half as Chicago doubled its lead via an own goal. A quick combination on the left side of the Union’s defense between Fabian Herbers and Souquet forced a quick clearance by Glesnes. However as the center back looked to blast the ball forward, it crashed off Harriel and inside the post to make it a 2-0 deficit in the 47th minute.
10 minutes later with his team still training by two goals, Blake shouted to his teammates we just need one and we’re right back in this. That words provided a spark for the Boys in Blue with a strong defensive clearance quickly seeing the Union go right into the attack. The emphasis in the final half hour was get Gazdag on the ball and the midfielder did just that as he helped set up the opening goal. Dropping off get involved and on the ball, the Union’s No. 10 created chaos in the box that the Fire defense was forced to somehow clear. Jose Martinez quickly sprinted for a quick throw in to Uhre inside the box where the big forward was chopped down from by Navarro. The referee pointed to the penalty spot where Gazdag unleashed some anger as he blasted a right-footed shot past the keeper.
Curtin turned to his subs following the goal with some offensive changes as Matt Real and Quinn Sullivan took to the pitch. Three minutes later it was a tied game with defense becoming offense on the left side of the pitch. Once more a quick thrown in had the Fire defense unsettled as Carranza headed a pass to the sideline for Sullivan. The homegrown barely kept the ball in play but did to break open the attack. Peeling back to allow for teammates into the attack, Sullivan turned on the jets to create space on the wing and float in a perfect cross to the back post. The cross connected with Gazdag perfectly who headed it across goal to Carranza for the tap in equalizer.
With the match wide open and three points on the line, both sides exchanged chances to get a winner. Quinn Sullivan had the first go of it, taking a pass from Gazdag and unleashing a right-footed shot that was wide. Chicago countered moments later with Mauricio Pineda, missing at the near post.
In the 79th minute Jose Martinez went for his patented Brujo blast, taking a pass from Sullivan and unleashing a shot that crashed so hard off the post at Solider Field it might still be shaking.
With the tension of a second and final Eastern Conference clash between the two, tensions heated up near the end of regulation with neither side going to end up exchanging holiday cards anytime soon.
Philadelphia Union returns to Subaru Park next weekend with a contest against Toronto FC on Saturday, April 22. Kick off from Chester, Pa., is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and it will see the club celebration Greener Goals Night presented by Subaru. Don't miss out on the action with only limited tickets for the match still available.
