Chicago made their presence felt early, capitalizing on poor set-piece defending in the 10th minute. Djé D’Avilla rose mid-air from a corner and powered a header past Oscar Ustari for the opener. Lionel Messi nearly equalized 11 minutes later with a perfectly struck free kick, but U.S. international goalkeeper Chris Brady was there to stop it.
Moments after, the Fire doubled their lead as Jonathan Dean latched onto an expertly weighted through ball to finish. Miami responded in the 39th minute when Tomas Aviles connected with a backheel from Gonzalo Lujan off a Messi corner to cut the deficit to 2-1.
Just as momentum seemed to swing, Rominigue Kouamé finished a counterattack off a Rodrigo De Paul mistake to restore Chicago’s two-goal advantage at halftime.
The second half was just as frenetic. Messi had a 1v1 with Brady, his shot rattling the crossbar, followed by Tadeo Allende’s blocked rebound attempt. Suarez breathed life into Miami’s comeback.
Alba found Baltasar Rodríguez charging toward the box, who fed Suarez for Miami’s second goal. Later, Suarez scored again from a low Alba cross to level the match at 3-3.
Chicago held firm, though, exploiting counters in the final 10 minutes. Justin Reynolds restored their lead at 4-3, and U.S. international hopeful Brian Gutierrez sealed the 5-3 win with a stunning 20-yard strike.
With the result, Miami now shift focus from the Supporters’ Shield race to securing a home playoff spot. Manager Javier Mascherano’s side sit fourth in the Eastern Conference with 56 points and a game in hand.
Chicago made their presence felt early, capitalizing on poor set-piece defending in the 10th minute. Djé D’Avilla rose mid-air from a corner and powered a header past Oscar Ustari for the opener. Lionel Messi nearly equalized 11 minutes later with a perfectly struck free kick, but U.S. international goalkeeper Chris Brady was there to stop it.
Moments after, the Fire doubled their lead as Jonathan Dean latched onto an expertly weighted through ball to finish. Miami responded in the 39th minute when Tomas Aviles connected with a backheel from Gonzalo Lujan off a Messi corner to cut the deficit to 2-1.
Just as momentum seemed to swing, Rominigue Kouamé finished a counterattack off a Rodrigo De Paul mistake to restore Chicago’s two-goal advantage at halftime.
The second half was just as frenetic. Messi had a 1v1 with Brady, his shot rattling the crossbar, followed by Tadeo Allende’s blocked rebound attempt. Suarez breathed life into Miami’s comeback.
Alba found Baltasar Rodríguez charging toward the box, who fed Suarez for Miami’s second goal. Later, Suarez scored again from a low Alba cross to level the match at 3-3.
Chicago held firm, though, exploiting counters in the final 10 minutes. Justin Reynolds restored their lead at 4-3, and U.S. international hopeful Brian Gutierrez sealed the 5-3 win with a stunning 20-yard strike.
With the result, Miami now shift focus from the Supporters’ Shield race to securing a home playoff spot. Manager Javier Mascherano’s side sit fourth in the Eastern Conference with 56 points and a game in hand.
Oscar Ustari (4/10):
Should have read Chicago’s opening set-piece goal better and could have done more with Dean’s goal. Not at fault for Chicago’s final three goals, though.
Marcelo Weigandt (3/10):
Woeful defending on Chicago’s opener on a set piece. He wasn’t positioned right, and D’Avilla pounced with a textbook header. Offered little going forward, outside of two key passes, and was subbed off at half-time.
Tomas Aviles (4/10):
Was a defensive calamity on all three conceded goals in the first half. Rightly pulled at halftime, but neither he nor Weigandt were the only players at fault for Miami’s first-half issues.
Gonzalo Lujan (5/10):
Was poor defensively in the first half, but teed up a perfect assist after getting Messi’s corner to Aviles. Was slightly better in the second half, but that isn’t saying much.
Jordi Alba (6/10):
Was defensively culpable as well, but was effective in attack as he helped set up Rodríguez’s assist to Suarez. He also directly assisted the veteran striker on the game’s equalizer.
Telasco Segovia (5/10):
Offered little in attack, despite completing 95.2 percent of his passes. Segovia has shown flashes this season, but he lacks the consistency and work rate that Diego Gómez – the man he replaced – delivered on a night-to-night basis last season. Pulled at halftime.
Yannick Bright (4/10):
An unusually poor outing from the Italian, typically the team’s unsung hero. He lacked his usual intensity and was caught ball-watching on Chicago’s third goal, failing to track back and stop the counterattack.
Sergio Busquets (5/10):
Also caught ball-watching on the goal, but helped Miami control possession for much of the match. Completed 92.1 percent of his passes and was reliable on long balls. An uneven performance from the retiring Spaniard.
Rodrigo De Paul (4/10):
Miami’s newest Designated Player looked out of sorts, turning in arguably his worst outing since joining MLS. He was again caught static on Chicago’s fourth goal, compounded by being played out wide by Mascherano. When deployed centrally – the role that earned him a spot on La Liga’s Team of the Season and is favored by World Cup-winning Argentina – De Paul looks world-class. Out wide, he appears lost. Miami need to find a solution here.
Luis Suarez (9/10):
Maybe the rest from a three-game suspension did him good? He’s been almost unstoppable since his return, scoring three goals in three matches. He’s one of the few Miami players who could hold their head up high on Tuesday night.
Lionel Messi (7/10):
Did his best, but looked absolutely exhausted considering Miami’s run of matches. Hit a shot at the crossbar that 99 percent of the time he’d convert. A rare off-night by the Argentine.
Tadeo Allende (6/10):
Provided a spark, but will rue his rebound that rattled the post.
Ian Fray (5/10):
Started strong defensively but was unable to contain Chicago’s late second-half surge.
Baltasar Rodríguez (6/10):
Set up Suárez’s first goal, but otherwise had a quiet outing.
Noah Allen (5/10):
Largely ran cardio without making a decisive impact.
Fafá Picault (N/A):
Came on with six minutes remaining and didn’t have enough time to influence the game.
Javier Mascherano (5/10):
Miami’s fatigue showed, but Mascherano will need to justify using De Paul out wide, despite his proven effectiveness centrally. The pairing of Lujan and Aviles also backfired. If the manager deserves any credit, it is that Miami mounted a spirited second-half comeback.
