Dejan Joveljić scores two goals in debut, but Fire salvage 2-2 draw with Seattle Sounders
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - AUGUST 29: Dejan Joveljic #9 of the Seattle Sounders celebrates after scoring his second goal in his Seattle Sounders debut against the Chicago Fire during the second half at Lumen Field on August 29, 2026 in Seattle, Washington (Olivia Vanni / Getty Images)
SEATTLE - New addition Dejan Joveljić scored two goals in his debut with the Sounders, but Robert Lewandowski's 82nd minute goal denied Seattle their first MLS win since May in a 2-2 draw with the Chicago Fire on Saturday.
Joveljić scored early in each half to put the Sounders in front twice, but Chicago managed to equalize in the latter stages of each half to deny the Sounders their first victory in league play since a 3-2 win over the San Jose Earthquakes on May 13. Seattle lost eight straight matches in MLS play before snapping the skid with a 1-1 draw at FC Cincinnati last Saturday. A 3-0 win over Querétaro in Leagues Cup is the only win by the Sounders in the last three months.
Joveljić's debut suggests that the slide could be close to ending.
The backstory:
Seattle grabbed the lead when Joveljić scored in the 12th minute, using assists from rookie Sebastian Gomez — his first — and defender Kalani Kossa-Rienzi — his second. It was the ninth goal of the season for Joveljić, who arrived this week after a $6 million cash-for-player trade with Sporting Kansas City.
Chicago pulled even in the 38th minute on Maren Haile-Selassie's fifth goal, one off his career high. Lewandowski notched his fourth assist in his first seven league matches, and defender Andrew Gutman collected his fifth of the campaign.
Joveljić scored again to give the Sounders a 2-1 lead three minutes into the second half. Albert Rusnák picked up his eighth assist and 19-year-old Snyder Brunell his second.
Lewandowski used his head to score his fifth goal for the equalizer in the 82nd minute. Haile-Selassie earned his eighth assist to match his career high set in each of the last two seasons. Rookie Puso Dithejane snagged his first assist.
Chris Brady stopped one shot for Chicago (11-6-4). Brady topped 10,000 career minutes in the 34th on Saturday. He is Chicago’s second homegrown player to reach the mark.
Andrew Thomas totaled nine saves for Seattle (7-9-5), which is 6-0-3 all time at home against the Fire. Thomas' final save came on Jonathan Bamba with the final touch of the match to preserve the draw.
Joveljić is the fifth player to score in his debut with the Sounders and the second to score twice, joining Fredy Montero (2009), Nelson Valdez (2015), Pedro de la Vega (2024) and Brunell (2025). Montero scored two goals in Seattle's 3-0 win over the New York Red Bulls in the first match of the Sounders' debut season.
Chicago went 3-0-2 in August and improved to 4-3-4 on the road in its climb to third place in the Eastern Conference.
Up next
Chicago: At Toronto FC on Saturday.
Seattle: Hosts New York Red Bulls on Saturday.
Featured
Seattle Sounders set to acquire Dejan Joveljić from Sporting KC, per reports
The Seattle Sounders are closing in on a deal to acquire forward Dejan Joveljić from Sporting Kansas City, according to multiple reports.
The Source: Information in this story came from The Associated Press and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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