Union rally for dramatic but unsatisfying 2-2 tie at Chicago Fire

CHICAGO — The Union rallied in the second half for a 2-2 tie at the Chicago Fire that certainly was better than a loss, but still not satisfying for a team knowing it’s too far down the standings.

Maren Haile-Selassie’s first-half goal and Nathan Harriel’s wild early-second-half own goal put Chicago up 2-0 before the Union rallied with two goals in quick succession before an announced crowd of 12,811 fans at Soldier Field. Dániel Gazdag started the comeback with a 62nd-minute penalty kick, and Julián Carranza tied the game two minutes later.

Chicago deserved to open the scoring when it did, capitalizing on its third good chance of the game with Haile-Selassie finishing Miguel Navarro’s cross from close range.

The Union’s defense was surprisingly lax on the play. Jack Elliott let the ball roll past him, expecting Andre Blake to get it, but Blake didn’t move. Haile-Selassie then ran behind Harriel, who was watching the ball until it was too late.

Just as worryingly, it marked the seventh time in eight regular-season games this year that the Union (2-4-2, 8 points) conceded the first goal. The only time they didn’t was the 1-0 home win over Chicago (2-1-4, 10 points) in mid-March, when it took 89 minutes for Joaquín Torres to put the ball in the net.

At the other end of the field, the Union did little of consequence. Despite starting all of their top attackers, their best attempt at goal was a sixth-minute attempt by Mikael Uhre from too far wide on the right to go in. Three minutes later, the Union put together a nice buildup, but Jack McGlynn hit a shot straight at Fire goalkeeper Chris Brady, and he saved it easily.

That came seconds after perhaps the half’s most entertaining moment: Fire right back Arnaud Souquet tried to chip Blake from midfield, and the ball landed on the roof of the net.

Harriel was starting at left back because Kai Wagner suffered another hamstring tweak in Wednesday’s Champions League game at Atlas, and Union manager Jim Curtin wanted Harriel’s defense-first play on the field against a Fire team that mostly attacks from the wings.

To say it backfired would be an understatement. After being at fault on the first goal, Harriel was the victim of a shocking play barely two minutes into the second half: Jakob Glesnes hit a clearance off his rear end that flew back into the Union’s goal.

Momentum finally turned the Union’s way in the 61st minute when Chicago’s Miguel Navarro took down Uhre just inside the 18-yard box. Gazdag stepped up and converted the ensuing penalty kick.

Right after that, Curtin made a double substitution: Quinn Sullivan replaced Uhre, and Matt Real replaced Olivier Mbaizo, moving Harriel to right back.

The move paid instant dividends. Sullivan raced down the left wing, launched a big cross, Gazdag got to it and headed it back toward the middle of the six-yard box, and Carranza thumped the ball in from the doorstep.

It still wasn’t where the Union wanted to be, but the relief among everyone on the team was clear.

The game was wide open from then on. Sullivan shot just wide, each team hit a post with a good look, and Glesnes fired a header off a corner kick wide in the 89th.

» READ MORE: Against Atlas, Julián Carranza showed again that he’s a big-time player

It was a coincidence that McGlynn’s first regular-season start of the year came amid much discussion of his not having had one yet. But it was not a coincidence that Leon Flach was injured. Something went wrong in Friday’s practice, and Curtin revealed after the game that it’s a pelvic-region injury with potential long-term ramifications. Flach will have to get an injection to ease the pain.

“Could be a couple days, could be a week, but hopefully [he] comes back quickly — I don’t think it’s anything long-term,” Curtin said. “It will be something he’ll have to manage and navigate probably for the rest of the season, and have pain with it. But he’s a tough kid, and I know he wants to get back as quick as possible.”

Wagner, meanwhile, was held out solely as a precautionary measure. Scans taken Friday came back “totally fine,” Curtin said.

Gazdag’s penalty kick was his fifth goal in 11 games across all competitions this season. But they’ve all come from the penalty spot, none from open play.

Also, while the Union’s comeback was valiant, there was no sign of Joaquín Torres or Andrés Perea. It was Torres’ third straight game without playing and Perea’s fifth straight. Curtin only used three of his five available substitutions.

» READ MORE: Jack McGlynn seized the spotlight again with a highlight-reel assist against Atlas