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MLS Cup 1998 / Fire 2, D.C. United 0
PASADENA, Calif. (Sunday, Oct. 25, 1998) -- The Chicago Fire put an end to D.C. United's reign over Major League Soccer, using the creative playmaking of Peter Nowak and steady goalkeeping of Zach Thornton to claim a 2-0 victory in MLS Cup '98 Sunday afternoon before 51,350 at the Rose Bowl. Nowak assisted on first-half goals by Jerzy Podbrozny and Diego Gutierrez to earn Most Valuable Player honors and lead the Fire to a league championship in its first year in existence. "We felt as the year went on that we had a unique group of players who had what it takes to compete for a championship," said Fire Head Coach Bob Bradley. "We tried to be a good team all year, and that includes both attacking and defending. We played that way today." The Fire defense disrupted what is normally MLS' most fluid offense. D.C. United, which won the league's first two MLS Cups in 1996 and '97, struggled to get the ball through midfield as Chicago's Chris Armas shadowed D.C. playmaker Marco Etcheverry. "Chris Armas is a great player," Bradley said. "We sometimes miss players of this type when we focus on (players like Mauricio) Cienfuegos and Etcheverry, but he brings our entire team together with the little things he does throughout an entire game. I believe that's what Chris is all about and what he does for us." Armas credited teammates such as defenders C.J. Brown, Francis Okaroh and Lubos Kubik for the Fire's success in keeping United scoreless. "With Etcheverry you just have to try to stay close and take advantage of your help," Armas said. "You talk about the matchup - me and Etcheverry - but there were 10 other guys on the field." While Armas helped stifle United's midfield play, Thornton frustrated D.C.'s front-runners, making eight saves to earn his third shutout of the 1998 playoffs. Thornton made three saves against United striker Roy Lassiter, who came up empty on six total shots. "I applaud the Chicago Fire," said D.C. United Head Coach Bruce Arena. "They did what they had to do today. We didn't catch any breaks."
The Fire offense, meanwhile, turned to its engine Nowak to create two goals in the first half. Nowak got loose in the box in the 29th minute on a give-and-go with Ante Razov, lured United goalkeeper Tom Presthus out of the net and slotted a pass to Podbrozny at the far post for the tap-in. Chicago put D.C. in a 2-0 hole just 54 seconds before the break when Nowak cut from the left flank to the top of the box and sent a shot past defender Eddie Pope. Nowak's low drive deflected off teammate Gutierrez, changing direction to catch Presthus moving towards the wrong post. "This is a very special day for me, because I've never won a championship," said Nowak, a veteran of the German Bundesliga and the Polish National Team. Nowak and the Fire bring the Alan I. Rothenberg trophy home to Chicago as the conclusion to an inaugural season which saw the team rank third in the league in attendace (17,886). "We know the soccer community will react in a great way, and they have supported us well all year," Bradley said. "As for the bigger community, we compete against great teams, and the (NBA's Chicago) Bulls are the perfect model for what winning is all about. I've said all along that to gain credibility in any marketplace, you must compete for a championship. We've grown into that role in the Chicago community, and hopefully that is something the Chicago community will pick up on and respect."
OCTOBER 25--CHICAGO FIRE 2, D.C. UNITED 0
1 2 F
D.C. UNITED 0 0 0
CHICAGO FIRE 2 0 2
Scoring Summary: D.C. UNITED--Tom Presthus, Eddie Pope, Jeff Agoos,
Carlos Llamosa (Mike Slivinski 81), Tony Sanneh (A.J. Wood 70), Marco Etcheverry, John
Harkes, Richie Williams, Ben Olsen, Roy Lassiter, Jaime Moreno CHICAGO FIRE--Zach Thornton, C.J. Brown, Lubos Kubik,
Francis Okaroh, Diego Gutierrez, Chris Armas, Jesse Marsch, Jerzy Podbrozny, Peter Nowak
(Josh Wolff 79), Roman Kosecki (Frank Klopas 56), Ante Razov (Tom Soehn 74) Referee: Kevin Terry; Referee's Assistants: Chip Reed, Laszlo Nagy |
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