Jamaica, New York (State) (23 August 2024) – Chicago Fire FC II (8-7-7-5, 36 points) came back from behind to draw 2-2 with New York City FC II (9-5-6-3, 36 points) on Friday night at Belson Stadium, but lost 6-5 in the subsequent penalty shootout.
MLS NEXT Pro’s leading scorer David Poreba increased his tally to 17 with a 72nd-minute goal assisted by Christian Koffi and a 90th-minute penalty goal. The Fire currently sits fifth in the Eastern Conference, tied with fourth-place NYCFC and behind Columbus (39 points), Philadelphia (41 points) and conference leader Cincinnati (43 points).
The home team struck early when Ronald Arévalo scored in the fifth minute. Play began on the left flank when Chris Tiao sent a ball across the right side of the 16-yard box. New York played the ball towards goal, but the Chicago defense was able to stop the attempt. However, the ball was not cleared and Ronald Arévalo pounced on it and fired into the roof of the net from close range. New York City’s second goal was an own goal when a cross was redirected into the bottom left corner of the net.
Poreba cut the lead in half when Omari Glasgow and Christian Koffi set him up. Glasgow controlled the ball in the middle of the pitch and sent a pass to Koffi on the right. The Frenchman played a sharp pass into the middle of the box where Poreba charged in. The Lake Zurich native put the ball in the net with a single touch, spurring Chicago’s comeback.
Chicago’s second goal came on a penalty kick after Harold Osorio was brought down just inside the 16-yard box. The Chicago captain lined up and calmly fired into the bottom right side of the net in the 90th minute.
Social:X – @ChicagoFireFCII (Hashtags: #ChicagoFireII) | Instagram – @chicagofirefcii | Facebook
Result:New York City FC 2 (6):2 (5) Chicago Fire FC II
Chicago: Poreba (scored), Osorio (scored), Koffi (scored), Diouf (scored), Glasgow (scored), Nagle (scored), Cupps (missed)
New York: Elias (scored), Tiao (scored), Owusu (scored), Azzam Ruiz (scored), Carrizo (scored), Rozhansky (scored), Baiera (scored)
Goals:
NYC – Arévalo (5) (SEE) 5′
NYC – Own goal (Jaylen Shannon) 36′
CHI – Poreba (16) (Koffi 4) (SEE) 72′
CHI – Poreba (17) (SEE) 90′
Discipline:
CHI – Glasgow (yellow card) 61′
CHI – Osorio (yellow card) 69′
NYC – Arévalos (Yellow Card) 76′
CHI – Dimov (yellow card) 77′
NYC – Elias (yellow card) 82′
Chicago Fire FC II: GK Gal; D Richards (Hency, 62′), D Cupps, D Shannon, D Nagle, M Hlyut, M Oregel Jr. (Diouf, 75′), M Calle (Osorio, 62′), M Soudan (M Koffi, 46′) ; F Glasgow, F Poreba (captain)
Unused substitutes: GK Los, GK Stechnij, D Pfrommer, D Held
New York City FC II: GK Romero; D Tiao, D Owusu, D R Hope-Gund, D Baiera; M Elias, M Bednarsky (Rozhansky, 74′), M Carrizo; F Shore, F Jiménez (Azzam Ruiz, 74′), F Arévalo (Lopez, 89′)
Unused substitutes: GK Meyer, GK K. Hope-Gund, D Haxhari, D Leong, F Lacher
Statistics overview: NYC / CHI
Shots: 18 / 12
Shots on goal: 2 / 4
Accuracy of fit: 80.9% / 81.2%
Saves: 2 / 1
Corners: 8 / 5
Fouls: 19 / 13
Offside: 5 / 1
Ball possession: 51.6% / 48.4%
Referee: Marie Duerr
Assistant Referee 1: Joseph Knoff
Assistant Referee 2: Albert Escovar
4. Official: Ricardo Montero
