Match Recap: Chicago Fire beat the Philadelphia Union 1-0 in windy Florida friendly

The Chicago Fire brought the wind with them and swept away the Union with a 1-0 victory in Florida. The lone goal came in the 56th minute when a cross by Nemanja Nikolic found the head of Michael de Leeuw. John McCarthy was able to swat away the close range attempt but de Leeuw followed up with an easy goal. The Union had more attempts at the target on the day but failed to challenge the keeper as Chicago locked down the defense late and came up with the win.

The Union starting lineup was a mix of expected starters and top backups, in their usual 4-2-3-1 formation:

Both teams tested out high pressure in the opening minutes and due to the wind teams were reticent to avert the pressure with long passes, resulting in a battle in the middle third. Things opened up around the 15th minute. A poor dummy by Alejandro Bedoya resulted in a breakaway for the Fire, but an easy goal by Nikolic was called offside. The Union might have had the better of the play the rest of the half, but neither side really threatened.

The story of the first half was the first glimpse of Jay Simpson, who showed flashes of a new look at the forward position this year. On multiple occasions he showed the ability in the box to create space with the ball and a willingness to take chances. He also dropped deep and was the target on a number of pushes forward.

The second half was a revolving door of subs, most of which transpired at the 62nd minute. Here's how the lineup finished:

For my money, Marcus Epps showed the best in the half, especially for a rookie. He showed a strong cutback move to the left and was otherwise disruptive on offense and defense. Adam Najem and Derrick Jones also looked solid with their moments on the ball.

Here are a few overall observations on the match from myself and the staff: