The Chicago Fire secured a 3-0 win against CF Montreal on Saturday, scoring twice in stoppage time during the second half.
Jonathan Bamba, Hugo Cuypers, and Robin Lod found the net for the Fire (1-1-0, 3 points), marking their first victory of the season in their home opener.
Montreal (0-2-0, 0 points) has struggled, being shut out in both matches this season and has been outscored 8-0.
In the initial 12 minutes, both teams found it hard to create chances, although the Fire dominated possession with 70% of the touches.
Bamba opened the scoring for Chicago in the 27th minute. Maren Haile-Selassie made a run down the right and sent a cross to Bamba at the back post, allowing him to easily score into an open net.
Montreal almost conceded again just 10 seconds into the second half when Haile-Selassie got a shot off near the right edge of the goal area, but it lacked the quality needed for a serious threat.
Following a red card last week, Montreal found themselves with a man advantage starting in the 56th minute. Fire defender Jonathan Dean received a red card for pulling Hennadii Synchuk’s jersey outside the box, denying a clear goal-scoring chance.
Despite being a man up, Montreal struggled to create offense and the match slipped away from them in stoppage time.
Cuypers earned a penalty after being tripped by goalkeeper Thomas Gillier while trying to score. Cuypers converted, placing the shot to the right as Gillier dove the other way, making it 2-0 in the fourth minute of extra time.
Lod capped the scoring with a rebound goal from the left side in the 10th minute of stoppage time, bringing the final score to 3-0.