CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Brian Gutiérrez had two goals and an assist, and the Chicago Fire defeated Charlotte 4-1 on Saturday night to run their unbeaten streak to three.
Slumping Charlotte has lost five in a row.
Jonathan Bamba opened the scoring in the 42nd minute with a right-footed shot from the left half-space outside the box to the lower-left-central zone. Gutiérrez assisted.
Gutiérrez and Philip Zinckernagel added back-to-back goals in a four-minute stretch of the second half, giving the Fire (5-4-4, 19 points) a commanding 3-0 lead. In the 60th minute, Gutiérrez scored with a right-footed shot from the center of the box to the bottom right corner. In the 64th, Zinckernagel followed with a left-footed shot from the center of the box to the central-bottom zone. Andrew Gutman assisted.
Leading 3-1 in the 79th minute, Gutiérrez capped the scoring with a penalty shot to the lower-right zone.
Patrick Agyemang scored Charlotte’s goal in the 70th minute. The Fire had 10 shots on goal to five for Charlotte (6-7-1, 19 points) and a 25-12 advantage in total attempts.
The Fire visit New England on Tuesday in the U.S. Open Cup round of 16. The Fire visit New York City in MLS play on May 25.
North Carolina 2, Chicago Stars 0
Manaka Matsukubo scored goals in the 51st and 77th minutes, and the Courage ran the Stars’ winless streak to five matches Saturday in Cary, N.C.
The last-place Stars (1-7-1, 4 points) have scored five total goals in nine matches (six shutouts) this season, and their NWSL-worst goal differential dropped to minus-14. They play host to the Kansas City Current at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview.
