Bruno Damiani Brace Powers Union Past 10-Man Chicago Fire for Eighth Straight Win

At halftime at Soldier Field, the Philadelphia Union's seven-game winning streak looked like it might be in trouble. They trailed by a goal, the Fire had momentum, and Robert Lewandowski was on the other team. Then Jack Elliott picked up a second yellow card, and the next 45 minutes were basically a Union highlight reel.

The Union beat Chicago Fire FC 3-1 on Wednesday night, with Milan Iloski equalizing early in the second half and Bruno Damiani scoring twice, all of it with a man advantage. The win was Philadelphia's eighth straight and stretched its club-record unbeaten run to 14 matches, according to the AP, and Cavan Sullivan's assist made him the first teenager in MLS history with 21 goal contributions in a season, per the Union.

Chicago Strike, Then Self-Destruct

The Fire, playing in front of 21,265, per the club, had the sharper start. Lewandowski had a shot blocked in the 13th minute, and Maren Haile-Selassie kept testing the Union's offside line. Philadelphia leaned on set pieces, winning five corners off Mbekezeli Mbokazi in the first half alone, and Mbokazi was booked for a foul on Damiani in the 34th minute.

Elliott, the former Union center back now captaining the Fire, was cautioned in the 41st minute for another foul on Damiani. A minute later, Chris Brady saved a Cavan Sullivan effort from an Iloski delivery. Then Chicago struck. In the 44th minute, Jonathan Bamba won a long ball on the left and fed Noah Allen, who cut it back for Haile-Selassie to finish from close range. It was his 11th goal of the campaign, and the Fire said he had now scored in three straight matches for the second time this season.

The good vibes lasted about two minutes. In the first minute of stoppage time, Elliott brought down Iloski as he tried to run onto a Cavan Sullivan pass, and the second yellow sent him off. The Fire went to the locker room ahead, but a man short.

Eighteen Minutes, Three Goals

Fire coach Gregg Berhalter replaced Bamba with Andreas Hanche-Olsen at the break, but Philadelphia came out swarming. Quinn Sullivan forced Brady into a save inside the opening minute of the half. In the 49th minute, the Union kept the ball alive through a frantic sequence in the box, and when Damiani laid it back, Iloski finished from close range into the top left corner. The Union said it was his 18th goal of the season.

Six minutes later, Philadelphia were in front. Cavan Sullivan slid the ball across the face of goal and Damiani converted from the middle of the box. Jesús Bueno, who had started alongside Jovan Lukic in midfield, was replaced by Indiana Vassilev two minutes later after a stoppage for an injury. In the 67th minute, Damiani put it away for good, finishing a counterattack by smashing a left-footed shot from outside the box into the bottom right corner. Lukic got the assist.

Berhalter threw on Philip Zinckernagel, Puso Dithejane and Leonardo Barroso right after that, and Chicago did have one wild flurry. In the 83rd minute, Andre Blake made three saves in quick succession, on Zinckernagel, Haile-Selassie and Dithejane. Those were the only three saves he made all night, and he needed every one.

The Guys Who Did It

Bruno Damiani scored twice on three shots and assisted Iloski's equalizer. The AP put him at 11 goals this season, and the Union said this was his team-leading third multi-goal game and his eighth goal in six matches.

Cavan Sullivan, who turned 17 this season, had four shots, three on target, and the assist on Damiani's first. The AP said it was his 14th assist of the season.

Milan Iloski took five shots and scored the goal that flipped the momentum.

Chris Brady made four saves for Chicago, two of them on Cavan Sullivan.

Maren Haile-Selassie scored again and, per the Fire, now sits ninth on the club's all-time scoring list with 23 goals and sixth with 54 goal contributions.

The Turning Point

Elliott's second yellow in first-half stoppage time changed everything. Chicago had just scored and had a halftime lead in hand. Instead, they played the entire second half with 10 men against the hottest team in the league, and the Union took full advantage with three goals in 18 minutes. The timing was especially cruel for Elliott, whose sending-off came against the club where he used to play.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Philadelphia 19, Chicago eight. On target, it was 8-4.
• Possession: Nearly even, with the Union at 50.9 percent.
• Corners: Philadelphia won seven to Chicago's two.
• Clearances: Chicago made 37, a sign of how much time they spent defending.
• Second half: Philadelphia won it 3-0.

What It Means

Philadelphia moved to 13-6-10 (wins, draws, losses) with 45 points. The AP noted the Union started the day sixth in the Eastern Conference after sitting last before a coaching change at the end of May, and that they are 12-0-2 under interim coach Ryan Richter, who replaced Bradley Carnell during the World Cup break. They have not lost since a 6-4 defeat at Inter Miami on May 24. Next up is a home match against Charlotte on Saturday, where a ninth straight win would match the league's single-season record, according to the Union.

Chicago fell to 14-6-9 with 48 points, and the Fire said they remained fourth in the East after the match. The loss snapped a three-match winning streak and gave the Union a measure of revenge for Chicago's 2-1 win in Philadelphia on March 21. On a happier note for the hosts, Jonathan Dean made his 100th regular-season appearance for Chicago, becoming the 25th player in club history to reach that mark, according to the Fire. Chicago visit New England on Saturday.

The Closing Take

The Fire hosted the hottest team in MLS and ended up getting burned. Philadelphia are in full NBA Jam mode right now: every shot seems to come with flames attached, and nobody has figured out how to cool them down.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional details from the AP recap via ESPN and as reported by the Philadelphia Union and Chicago Fire FC.