Chicago Fire Defeat Indy Eleven in U.S. Open Cup
Coming off being crowned champions of the 2016 NASL Spring Season, Indy Eleven headed to Toyota Park on Wednesday to take on the Chicago Fire in the Fourth Round of the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Both goals came in overtime setting up penalty kicks, which saw the MLS club come out on top in a hard fought and exciting night in Chicago.
Soccer News: Indy Eleven nearly turned a historic week into a legendary one at Toyota Park, but Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire SC would dig deep to pull out the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Fourth Round tie, equalizing in extra added time to finish 1-1 after 120 minutes before advancing 4-3 in penalty kicks. Indy Eleven striker Justin Braun was nearly the hero after scoring a go-ahead goal in the 105th minute, only to have Chicago’s David Accam equalize in the 111th minute, sending the hard fought affair into penalties.
“I think if you look at the way we’ve won games, we’ve won some games or drawn some games that didn’t look like great football, but the guys did not give up, they battled,” said Indy Eleven head coach Tim Hankinson. “We knew we weren’t going to have all our fuel tonight. A game like Saturday, a championship, you’re giving a game and a half. We looked at the chances around the box, and many of them were in a great spot, but a lot of the shots were getting cut out. Having said that, it was great to get the first goal and some of the players at the end were fatigued and were losing their feet.”
The two sides started the proceedings even in possession and chances in the opening 20 minutes, the opening pace favoring an Indy Eleven side just three days off its impressive but exhaustive Spring Season clinching 4-1 win over Carolina.
Accam would be a menace throughout the first half, first causing trouble by being played into the top of the area in the ninth minute, only to see Indy captain Colin Falvey slide in to tackle away in a last gasp effort. The first save in the match would come in the 14th minute when Eleven midfielder Nicki Paterson floated a shot from distance that forced Chicago ‘keeper Matt Lampson into a backpedaling tip over the crossbar.
In the 17th minute Accam nearly capitalized on an Indy Eleven turnover in the final third, but the Chicago striker fired a low shot right to waiting Indy Eleven goalkeeper Jon Busch on his line. Khaly Thiam would have a good look just two minutes later for Chicago, but his low shot would curl just wide of the far right post. The two would combine to threaten in the 22nd minute when Accam slammed Thiam’s far post cross squarely off the crossbar from close range.
Chicago would keep the pressure coming for the next 15 minutes with continued forays into its offensive third, highlighted by Accam’s near-angle shot that Busch parried away for a corner in the 34th minute. Indy Eleven had a great chance against the run of play to go up near the end of the first half when midfielder Dylan Mares fired a shot from the top of the area that skipped a foot wide of the base of the right post.
The second half would see neither side threaten seriously until Indy Eleven had a pair of chances just after the hour mark, starting with Braun’s shot from 22 yards out that forced Lampson into a two-handed punch save. Just a minute later Mares would take a cleared free kick and send it back into the danger zone, forcing Lampson into another tip over his bar for a corner.
Chicago would ramp up the pressure again for the final 15 minutes of regulation, starting with Kennedy Igboananike’s blast from 25 yards the screamed just over frame. Chicago was unlucky not to go up in the 84th minute when Marco Franco’s tackle on a streaking Accam saw the ball pop loose to midfielder Nick LaBrocca, whose first time effort on an all-but-empty net flashed wide right. Accam had another effort from space in the 88th minute that had eyes for the upper right corner of goal miss just high, while Indy debutant Souleymane Youla’s flick on header missed a back post runner and the post itself a minute later, sending the proceedings into an extra 30 minutes of added extra time.
While Indy Eleven would ask the most questions in the first 10 minutes of bonus soccer, it was Chicago that would rue not going up in the 101st minute. Busch first batted Brandon Vincent’s driven ball into the six away before recovering to make a remarkable kick save of Razvan Cocis’ rebound effort.
After scoring a pivotal goal just before the halftime break on Saturday night, it was Braun doing the same in the dying moments of the first stanza of added extra time to give Indy the lead. After accepting Sinisa Ubiparipovic’s ball with a turning first touch, Braun swung across his body with his left foot to drive an unstoppable shot past Lampson and into the right side netting to put the visitors ahead going into the added time break.
The 109th minute saw Busch make a diving save on a shot from distance, and when Igboananike pounced on the rebound only to slot wide left of the open frame, it appeared the game might be destined to go the NASL club’s way. However, two minutes later it was Accam making up for all of Chicago’s near misses, dancing through the area to deke numerous Eleven defenders before finishing inside the far left post to even things up at 1-1, where the score would stay, forcing the survivor to be decided from the penalty spot.
Things looked good for Indy at the start of PK’s as Paterson finished the opening chance, followed by Igboananike sailing his shot over frame. Indy Eleven’s Eamon Zayed and Thiam would convert their kicks keeping Indy up 2-1 after two rounds, but Lampson would stop Nemanja Vukovic’s low effort up the middle, followed by Vincent powering a shot inside the right post to even things at 2-2.
Another Lampson save, this time on Daniel Keller would give Chicago the edge, and the home side would go up 3-2 when LaBrocca blasted into the upper left corner. While Ubiparipovic would keep the Eleven alive with a well struck kick into the left side netting, it was none other than Accam ending things, his stutter step up followed by an upper 90 finish to send Chicago through to the Round of 16.
With the match going into the record books as a draw, the painful result – marking the first game decided by penalty kicks in Indy Eleven’s history – does technically keep “Indiana’s Team” undefeated through 12 competitive matches in 2016.
After some well-earned rest over the weekend, Indy Eleven (4W-6D-0L in NASL play) will face a stiff challenge during its midseason break next Sunday, June 26, when it welcomes Mexican Liga MX champion C.F. Pachuca to Carroll Stadium for an international friendly. Tickets for the exhibition match, kicking off at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Source/Photo Credit: Indy Eleven
