Set pieces hurt Fire in loss to Galaxy

David Beckham -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

Since taking over the Chicago Fire's coaching duties, interim head coach Frank Klopas has preached about strengthening the defense on set pieces.

The Fire had not allowed a set-piece goal during Klopas' first seven games at the helm. But David Beckham and the Los Angeles Galaxy put an end to that trend, as the Galaxy scored twice on set pieces en route to a 2-1 victory over Chicago on Saturday at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

Beckham scored directly off of a corner kick for the game-winner, and he provided a corner kick assist on a Landon Donovan header. Cristian Nazarit scored the Fire's lone goal in between Beckham's corners, with all three goals coming in an eight-minute span.

"We got too comfortable against the wrong team," Fire midfielder Patrick Nyarko said. "We lost concentration on a couple of goals, and that's unacceptable. A lapse of concentration against a team like this, they'll take advantage of it."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Nazarit suspended as Fire host RSL

Fire's Marco Pappa -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

Chicago Fire forward Cristian Nazarit will be suspended for two matches, according to a source. The MLS Disciplinary Committee is expected to suspend the Colombian forward for Chicago's matches against Real Salt Lake on Wednesday and the New York Red Bulls on Sunday.

The Fire (2-4-9) and Salt Lake (6-3-4) kick off at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Toyota Park. Midfielder Marco Pappa returns to the Fire after playing for Guatemala in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Nazarit, Fire end drought, top Crew

Cristian Nazarit -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

For 280 minutes, the Chicago Fire could not put anything in the net. But on Sunday, Fire forward Cristian Nazarit broke that scoring drought with a game-winning tally in second-half stoppage time en route to a 1-0 win over the Columbus Crew at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

The win was Chicago's first since its March 26 home-opening victory over Sporting Kansas City, and it snapped a team-worst 11-game winless streak.

"It's always great to get a win, especially going this long without one," Fire midfielder Patrick Nyarko said. "It's a happy locker room, and rightly so. Things haven't gone our way, but we have kept at it and kept fighting."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Colombian forward Nazarit joins Fire

Fire signing Cristian Nazarit -- Getty Images

The Chicago Fire brought in 20-year-old Colombian Cristian Nazarit on Wednesday -- a 6-foot-1 target forward who recently was playing for Colombian Primera A side Independiente Santa Fe.

In the Fire's grand plan, the club clearly hopes that Nazarit or some other striker will provide scoring power to complement Diego Chaves, who leads Chicago with four goals. Chaves has been a workhorse for the Fire, and for much of the season he has been Chicago's only go-to guy on the scoring front.

Chaves also has noticeably lost some steam in the closing minutes of Chicago's recent games, so adding an offensive weapon -- provided the Nazarit plan comes to fruition -- is a welcome addition for the Fire.

But Nazarit's signing also does not address the Fire's most immediate needs, the biggest of which is an established central midfielder. Even through seven games, the Fire have yet to finalize the look of their middle formation.

The Fire's 10 goals in seven games is pretty much on par with the rest of the league's offenses. Heading into this week, before Wednesday's slate of games, there were four other MLS clubs with that exact goals-to-games ratio, including the Eastern Conference-leading New York Red Bulls.

The major difference between New York and Chicago is that the Red Bulls (4-1-2) have allowed only two goals this season, while the Fire (1-3-3) have given up a whopping 13.

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.