The Chicago Fire did their level best to play the spoiler role, but Wayne Rooney and D.C. United would not be denied.
Rooney scored twice to spearhead a second-half United comeback and bank a narrow 2-1 win over the Fire at an unseasonably hot Audi Field on Sunday afternoon, canceling out a fine Raheem Edwards goal and keeping D.C.’s frenetic playoff push on course.
Though their own postseason hopes were dashed long ago, the Fire proved a tough out, stymieing the Black-and-Red in a scoreless first half (aside from a Rooney strike disallowed by a Video Review decision) before Edwards embarked on a jinking solo dribble and finish inside the D.C. penalty box shortly after intermission.
Staring at what would’ve been a disastrous home loss, United responded quickly. First Rooney equalized, tapping in his own rebound after a Stefan Cleveland save.
Then Junior Moreno raced into the Fire box in pursuit of a flicked pass from Rooney and was muscled to the turf by Johan Kappelhof, drawing a penalty kick that Rooney calmly blasted inside the left post to deliver all three points for the hosts.
Goals
- 51′ – CHI – Raheem Edwards | WATCH
- 62′ – DC – Wayne Rooney | WATCH
- 81′ – DC – Wayne Rooney (PK) | WATCH
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: Perhaps no one in MLS this year has embraced the mission of disrupting other teams’ plans like the Fire, and they’ll be bitterly disappointed that this one slipped away. For D.C., relief may be the dominant emotion, with three hard-won points in the bag to fuel their pursuit of the sixth-place Montreal Impact.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Though the visitors angrily argued Ismail Elfath’s PK call on Kappelhof, the clever Moreno made it just about impossible for the referee to avoid giving the decisive spot kick:
- MAN OF THE MATCH: On a muggy day when many of his teammates failed to muster their best, Wayne Rooney turned in another professional performance to drag his club to victory.
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