Maren Haile-Selassie's Late Winner Lifts 10-Man Chicago Fire Past New York City FC 2-1

New York City FC had a goal kick, an extra man and about three minutes of regulation left to protect a 1-1 draw at Soldier Field. Then the pass out of the back went astray, Maren Haile-Selassie pounced on it inside the box, and Chicago's afternoon flipped from salvage job to party.

Haile-Selassie's 87th-minute finish gave Chicago Fire FC a 2-1 win over New York City FC on Saturday, a comeback built almost entirely with 10 men after Djé D'Avilla was sent off two minutes before halftime. Haile-Selassie also set up Anton Salétros for the 55th-minute equalizer, and according to the Fire, the result lifted Chicago into second place in the Eastern Conference.

Wolf Strikes, D'Avilla Walks

NYC started as the sharper side. Alonso Martínez forced Chris Brady into a save in the third minute, and Agustín Ojeda tested him from long range in the 11th. In the 19th, the visitors broke quickly after a Chicago turnover, Ojeda delivered a cross, and Hannes Wolf took a touch before bending a right-footed finish into the top right corner.

Things got worse for the hosts almost immediately. D'Avilla was booked in the 20th minute, and Chicago spent the rest of the half chasing. Jack Elliott and Robert Lewandowski both headed wide in the 26th and 27th minutes, Salétros fired over from distance, and Brady had to stop Martínez again in the 38th.

Then, in the 43rd, D'Avilla went in late on James Sands, per NYCFC, and saw a second yellow. Chicago went into the break down a goal and a man, which is roughly the soccer version of showing up to a job interview with a flat tire and a coffee stain.

Ten Men, Full Throttle

Gregg Berhalter's side came out of halftime with Mauricio Pineda on for Jonathan Bamba, and somehow the shorthanded hosts were the team on the front foot. In the 54th minute, Matt Freese saved a Salétros shot from the left side of the box. A minute later, Lewandowski dropped deep and spread the ball wide to Haile-Selassie, whose cross found Salétros arriving in the middle. His header flew into the top right corner for 1-1, and the Fire said it was his first MLS goal.

NYC tried to reassert control with a double change on the hour, sending on Luighi and Raul Gustavo for Martínez and Andrés Perea, and they won a string of corners in the final 20 minutes. Aiden O'Neill drove down the right and was brought down by Mbekezeli Mbokazi, though NYCFC noted the free kick came to nothing. Ojeda, who set up the opener, had to come off injured in the 75th minute. In the 82nd, Raul Gustavo met a corner from very close range and headed just wide, and three minutes later substitute Malachi Jones whipped a ball across the face of goal that nobody could reach.

The Turning Point

Chicago's winner grew out of a near miss. Freese pushed a Puso Dithejane shot behind in the 86th minute, and Elliott headed the resulting corner just over the bar. From the goal kick, NYC tried to play out from the back, Haile-Selassie jumped on the loose pass, and he slotted a right-footed finish into the bottom left corner.

NYC had nine minutes of stoppage time to answer. Luighi got a header on target from a set piece at the back post, but Brady saved it, and Brady also stopped a Nicolás Fernández Mercau shot from distance. That was the last real chance.

Haile-Selassie Runs the Show

Maren Haile-Selassie finished with a goal and an assist on three shots, days after signing a contract extension through the 2028-29 season, per the Fire. The club said it was the first time in his MLS career that he recorded a goal and an assist in back-to-back matches. He also reached 10 goals and 10 assists for the season, and the Fire said that makes him the second player in club history to do it in a single season, after Philip Zinckernagel's 15 and 15 last year. The goal was his 23rd for Chicago, which the club said ranks ninth all-time, and the assist made him the seventh player to reach 30 assists for the Fire. That is 53 goal contributions since he arrived in 2023.

Anton Salétros put two of three shots on target and scored his first MLS goal. His only previous goal for Chicago came in the U.S. Open Cup against St. Louis CITY SC on April 29, per the club. Chris Brady made five saves, two of them in stoppage time, as Chicago's back line soaked up pressure a man down.

For NYC, Hannes Wolf scored with his only shot, and Fernández Mercau kept creating from set pieces without anyone finishing his work.

Stats That Matter

• Shots on target: NYC put six on frame to Chicago's four and still lost.
• Saves: Brady made five, Freese two.
• Possession: NYC held 52.6 percent of the ball while playing against 10 men for nearly half the match.
• Fouls: Chicago committed 18 to NYC's 10.
• Clearances: NYC made 26, a sign of how often the Fire kept coming even a man down.

What It Means

Chicago improve to 14-6-8 (wins, draws, losses) with 48 points and have won three straight, including a 3-1 win over Vancouver four days earlier. The Fire said the result left them one win shy of their 2025 total. They close a three-game homestand against Philadelphia on Wednesday. The win also settled a score from July, when NYC beat Chicago 3-1 in New York.

New York City FC fall to 8-9-11 with 33 points and have one win in their last six MLS matches. Their next assignment is a Wednesday trip to Inter Miami.

The Closing Take

Playing a man down for nearly 50 minutes is usually a recipe for parking the bus and praying. Chicago treated it like a dare. Haile-Selassie, freshly locked up through 2028-29, made the front office look very smart on a Saturday afternoon, and NYC will be seeing that goal kick in their nightmares for a while.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional details from Chicago Fire FC and New York City FC; no postgame quotes were published on either club's recap.