March 31, 2024, Atlanta, Georgia At Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday afternoon, Chicago Fire FC (1-3-2, 5 points) lost 3-0 to Atlanta United FC (3-2-0, 9 points) away from home.
In the 83rd minute, defender Carlos Terán was sent off with a straight red card, leaving Chicago with 10 men for the remainder of the game.
The Fire got their first opportunity in the fourth minute in a back-and-forth game that saw both sides have risky opportunities in the first few minutes. After a blunder by Atlanta goalkeeper Brad Guzan and defender Noah Cobb, midfielder Brian Gutiérrez skillfully sent a backheel pass into Maren Haile-Selassie’s path. The winger blasted just wide of the goal after taking a touch to sidestep his marker.
Five minutes later, midfielder Saba Lobjanidze of Atlanta broke off a pass from behind and carried the ball into the box, which allowed Chris Brady to tie the score at 0. As Brady held his ground to make the close-range stop before the ball was cleared out of danger, he carried the ball into the right side of the six-yard box and got off a shot.
Just before the first half ended, Lobjanidze and Giorgos Giakoumakis connected to break the tie and give Atlanta the lead. A defender was closing in on Lobjanidze as he carried the ball up the left wing and squared it into the area. Giakoumakis, who was sprinting to overcome his opponent and touch the ball once into the goal, was the recipient of the pass.
After Brooks Lennon’s cross was headed in by substitute Jamal Thiare in the 65th minute, the score was 2-0 in favor of the home team. In the 90+5th minute, Thiare scored his second goal of the game, taking advantage of a Thiago Almada effort that struck the post and bounced across the goal mouth while the Fire was playing down a man. To finish his brace, Thiare grabbed the rebound, cut inside to open up space for himself, and sent a shot into the goal.
