Jonathan Bamba netted two goals as the Chicago Fire triumphed over the Colorado Rapids 4-2 on Saturday evening in Commerce City, Colo. Robert Lewandowski and Puso Dithejane also found the net for the Fire, contributing to their win.
The Fire, with a record of 16-10-7 and 55 points, currently hold fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They trail third-place Inter Miami by one point, with Inter having two matches left. The Fire are two points ahead of fifth-place Charlotte, which has one game remaining. Securing the No. 4 seed provides the Fire with home-field advantage in the best-of-three first-round playoff series.
The team is set to host the Columbus Crew in the final regular-season match on Saturday at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview.
Lewandowski’s key moment came in the 74th minute. On a counterattack, he received a pass from Philip Zinckernagel, sidestepped the Rapids’ goalkeeper Nico Hansen, and scored from close range, reclaiming the lead for the Fire at 3-2.
Bamba first scored in the 41st minute, tying the match 1-1 at halftime. He again found the back of the net in the 56th minute, marking his first multigoal game in MLS. Dithejane added the final goal in the 88th minute from a Lewandowski assist.
Morgan Whittaker initiated the scoring for the Rapids in the 22nd minute, while Paxten Aaronson scored in the 58th. Whittaker now has goals in three consecutive games.
The Rapids, now 12-14-7, ranked eighth in the Western Conference, had a five-game unbeaten streak halted by this loss. They possess 43 points, positioning them one point ahead of 10th-place Real Salt Lake.
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