Firing Away: Chicago Fire at Chivas USA

Let's see if I remember how to do this.

• [PREGAME] Heck of a matchup tonight, and the question for me is continuing of form (good for the Fire) or change of pace (good for Chivas USA)
• [PREGAME] The midfield battle here is also going to be interesting, because both central pairings - Nagamura/Marsch on the one side and Pause/Thorrington on the other - tend to sit back rather than get forward. And for my money, one big reason Chivas USA has been successful is that Nagamura has kept out of trouble with yellow and red cards.
• [PREGAME] First broadcast criticism is on Alexi Lalas. Chris Rolfe is NOT a "poor man's Landon Donovan," because Donovan is more about running at you really fast, while Rolfe is a lot more clever on the ball. And I defy Landon to uncork a shot as quickly as Rolfe can. Totally different styles of play.
• [PREGAME] On the other hand, Lalas is totally justified in making fun of Rob Stone's peach fuzz.
• [2'] We're only two minutes in, but the Fire have looked a little bit confused, and Marco Pappa didn't seem interested in getting involved as Segares hit Blanco up the left wing.
• [6'] I realize Conde is taller, but I would have liked to have seen him let that corner kick go through to whoever it was behind him, because the angle was better.
• [11'] Nice work from Chris Rolfe to win the corner, but Chivas USA gets hold of it easily and Galindo is off to the races. Thorrington fouls, and his reputation may have preceded him to earn him a yellow card.
• [13'] First really good chance of the match to Chicago on a heads-up restart from McBride and a great run from Thorrington that Thornton may have just gotten a finger to and pushed wide. Great vision from both of those guys, and just missed.
• [16'] GOAL CHIVAS. Well, that sucked. Thorrington should have closed Nagamura down, and Busch got caught leaning the wrong way and couldn't recover. This after another nice chance from Chicago on a quick cross from Blanco to McBride's head, and then some good back-checking as Chivas pushed forward.
• [22'] Pappa and Rolfe haven't been involved nearly enough so far for the Fire.
• [25'] GOAL CHICAGO! Great camera work to catch the shirt tug against Conde. No question it was a penalty on the replay, so great call from the assistant referee as well. Chivas will bitch about it until they see it on television, at which point they will apologize.
• [29'] Baky got lucky that Chivas blew that chance, because he kept them onside, but Thorrington was also late to recover after giving the ball away. Hamlett's pissed at the horse-collar on Soumare.
• [33'] I'm worried that Segares is going to overcompensate for Pappa's invisibility and push up too far, leaving the left side of the defense vulnerable to the counterattack.
• [36'] GOAL CHIVAS. Oof. Baky follows up a great tackle with a terrible one on Galindo. No question it was a penalty there, either. Galindo converts.
• [42'] Don't like the Fire's mentality right now. Outside of his one missed chance, Thorrington has seemed off, particularly defensively. Pappa has been crap. Rolfe hasn't been involved. Baky made a dumb mistake. This, actually, is one of the reasons I like Nyarko in the first half, because when you're out of sorts, you can just bang the ball upfield and have him run under it. Meanwhile, it's getting chippy out there, and Busch swats a high deflection out of bounds.
• [45'] Worth a shot. Blanco scored from that same spot on a free kick against Chivas once before.
• [HALFTIME] Not a lot of rhythm for the Fire in the first half, but the physicality of the play might have something to do with it. McBride is getting manhandled up top, which has been effective. I see Justin Mapp for Pappa as the first sub to try to shake things up, assuming he's dressed, but I don't know why he wouldn't be.
• [HALFTIME] Wow, Alexi Lalas is making no sense. Both penalties were totally justified, and a "soft PK" at the other end had nothing to do with what Baky should or shouldn't have done. It was a dumb tackle, regardless. And yeah, there's grabbing on every corner kick, but if you get caught, you get caught. Deal with it.
• [46'] Geo Saverese is calling the game on ESPN Deportes? Interesting.
• [48'] Preki apologized to the refs already. Nice.
• [55'] Just once, I'd like Blanco to shoot instead of pass. Yes, the run was there -- Pappa, I think -- but so was the defense.
• [56'] This time it's Ward getting lucky for lazily keeping Chivas USA onside, as Galindo tried to dish it off instead of shooting, and Lillingston couldn't get it on frame.
• [60'] Mapp for Pappa, as predicted. Segares with a good job muscling Atiba Harris off just a bit, almost forcing him to go near post, which Busch had covered.
• [63'] Not a smart tackle from Jesse Marsch when you're on a yellow card, and he knew it. Now let's see what Chicago can do with some more space.
• [66'] Baky must have been watching the Blackhawks last night, as he does his best Cristobal Huet impression after going down early in the box, knocking it out for a corner kick.
• [68'] Rolfe finally finds some space, but shoots just wide. Good to see him doing something productive, though. With the man advantage, Nyarko might come in for Ward, so it might not be his last chance to affect the match.
• [71'] Nyarko for Ward, as expected. Chivas just got behind the Chicago defense on Ward's side, so we're already used to what's coming.
• [73'] Great save from Thornton, as Nyarko got a head to the ball on the back post off an excellent cross from Blanco.
• [76'] The only move Denis Hamlett has left is Mike Banner, but it's tough to say who he comes in for. Maybe Thorrington, or one of the central defenders if it's after the 85th minute.
• [80'] I was going to say I wanted Blanco to go straight upfield to Mapp, but the crossfield pass found Nyarko perfectly, if only Nyarko could have brought it down better. Still won the corner, but then they made a mess of that.
• [83'] Decent attempt by Soumare, but not quite enough. Still would have rathered Blanco take that shot. And it's Baggio Husidic on for Sega. Interesting. And now almost a huge mess in the back for the Fire after a lousy clearance from Busch.
• [86'] Wow, Conde just quit on that play, defensively. Play the damn whistle. Pause probably didn't make Harris miss, but he got over.
• [89'] GOAL CHICAGO! I was just about to say that I don't see how the Fire are going to get the tying goal. Great job by McBride to draw two defenders away from Nyarko's run to the far post -- passively offside, by the look of it -- and Nyarko buries it.
• [90'+] Nice use of the word "innocuous" from Harkes.
• [90'+] GOAL CHICAGO! FTW! Trujillo had his arm extended on the contact in the box against McBride, which leaves Terry Vaughan without much choice. Plus, McBride was getting abused in the box all game. Blanco converts, and that's your ball game.
• [FULL TIME] Here I was thinking the Fire would escape with one point, and they escape with three. Ugly, ugly game, so you have to love the effort to grind out the win.
• [FULL TIME] And Alexi Lalas is still an idiot. I think he just said the Chivas USA PK was both a make-up call, and a clear penalty in the same sentence.