Jason Shokalook Powers Chicago Fire Fc Into Round of 16
Jason Shokalook carried chicago fire fc into the U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 with both goals in a 2-1 road win over Detroit City FC. St. Louis CITY SC now gets Chicago on Wednesday night at SeatGeek Stadium, with the winner moving on in a knockout match that arrives after both sides reached this round through different paths.
Shokalook’s Two-Goal Night
Shokalook scored Chicago’s only two goals against Detroit City FC in the Round of 32. That was enough to send the Fire through after a 2-1 win on the road, and it gave Chicago a forward who already has the clearest scoring line in this cup run.
Chicago did not need a wide scoring spread to advance. It needed one player to finish, and Shokalook did that twice. The result set up a Round of 16 trip to SeatGeek Stadium, where the Fire will meet the same club they eliminated there in the 2023 Round of 32.
St. Louis And Chicago Form
St. Louis reached this stage with a 4-0 win over FC Tulsa on April 15. Chicago came in through a different test, beating Detroit City FC 2-1 before following it with a 5-0 league win over Sporting Kansas City over the weekend.
The Fire’s league start gives this matchup extra weight. Chicago sits in third place in the MLS Eastern Conference with a 5-2-3 record and 17 points, while Hugo Cuypers leads the club with eight goals and Philip Zinckernagel and Maren Haile-Selassie are tied with three assists each.
SeatGeek Stadium History
St. Louis also brings a long Open Cup history into the match. The club’s legacy spans more than 100 years and includes 10 championships, starting with the 1920 title when Ben Millers defeated the Fore River Rovers.
This meeting carries some recent history too. Chicago beat St. Louis 2-1 at SeatGeek Stadium in the 2023 Round of 32, so Wednesday night gives St. Louis a chance to turn that result around in the same venue. For viewers, every CITY SC Open Cup match this season will be streamed live on CBS Sports Plus and Paramount+, and for the teams the equation is simple: one win keeps the cup run alive, one loss ends it.
