It’s a cliché to say a given soccer match is ‘a game of two halves.’ Saturday night’s season opener at Soldier Field between Chicago Fire FC and the New England Revolution was more ‘a game of the first two sixths’ as the opening 30 minutes contained all four goals and showcased Chicago’s strengths and weaknesses.
The Fire lived up to their name from the get-go, as the offense came out hot and produced a two-goal lead in the opening 11 minutes. Last season’s club top-scorer Robert Beric opened his 2021 account just five minutes in, tapping home a Boris Sekulic cross after he was played perfectly into space by fellow countryman Luka Stojanovic.