SEATTLE, WASH — Seattle Sounders and Chicago Fire faced off at Lumen Field on Saturday afternoon in a back-and-forth match that ended in a 2-2 draw. The match also marked the Sounders debut of Dejan Joveljić, who made an immediate impact by scoring both of Seattle’s goals. Chicago continued its strong run of form, extending its MLS unbeaten streak to five matches.
Seattle came out strong and found the opening goal in the 12th minute. Sebastian Gomez played the ball across goal for Joveljić, who finished from close range to score his first goal for the Sounders. Chicago began creating chances of its own as the half continued. After Philip Zinckernagel hit the woodwork, Maren Haile-Selassie leveled the match in the 38th minute after receiving a pass from Robert Lewandowski and finishing into the bottom corner. The two sides went into halftime tied 1-1.
It did not take long for Seattle to regain the lead. Just three minutes into the second half, Albert Rusnák found Joveljić at the top of the box, where the striker fired into the top corner for his second goal of the match. Joveljić became the fastest player in Sounders history to score a brace in his debut, giving Seattle another glimpse of what their newest signing can bring to the attack.
Chicago continued to push despite going behind for a second time. Their pressure finally paid off in the 82nd minute when Puso Dithejane sent a cross toward the far post for Lewandowski, who headed home the equalizer to make it 2-2. Chicago finished the match with 20 shots and 11 on target, forcing Sounders goalkeeper Andrew Thomas into nine saves. Thomas made another big stop in the closing moments to make sure Seattle walked away with a point.
The draw moves Chicago to 11-6-4 with 37 points, while Seattle sits at 7-9-5 with 26 points. Chicago will continue its road trip against Toronto FC on September 5, while Seattle returns to Lumen Field to face the New York Red Bulls the same day.
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