CHICAGO FIRE MEDIA CONFERENCE

July 16, 2025

Maren Haile

Press Conference

Atlanta United 2, Chicago Fire FC 2

Q. This has been a difficult stadium for the Fire. What are the overall feelings right now after this result?

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: Obviously everybody is very disappointed in the dressing room right now. It almost feels like we lost a game. That's how disappointed everyone is. Yeah, we clocked huge two points away after a pretty good game where we deserved three points.

It's tough to give up a goal like that at the end. Yeah, very disappointing.

Q. Looked like it was going to be the winning goal.

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: If I remember correctly, we combined on the left side and Phil played to Andrew, and Andrew found me in the space. Before the game, we talked about the space there being open. He played a good ball to me. I think my first touch was not bad and my second touch was good and set me up for a good finish.

Obviously I wish that it could have brought us three points.

Q. Was there any instruction from Gregg going in knowing that side had been the weaker side throughout the game?

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: No, as always, I try to give my best. He gave me some type of instructions. I obviously knew defensively what my role was as well and I did my job there, too. We saw some space in the counterattack, too, and that was something we discussed about, too, so yeah, that was the instructions.

Q. Goal contribution by games -- does that help your confidence?

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: Well, it's good as an attacking player. You always want to help the team with goals or assists. So that's good, but like I said, I wish it would have given us three points.

Q. What do you think this team can learn from these moments that are really tough when you still have so much of the season to play for?

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: Yeah, I mean, it's really tough. It shows us until the whistle is blown, we have to be dialed in.

I feel like even before that corner, we could have played smaller and like less nervous. There was no need to be hectic because they were not really dangerous. I think the throw-in that led up to the corner, we could have defended better.

Those are small things we keep talking about in the season and it just cost us points. We have to learn from it as the season goes as well.

Q. So you mentioned this being like a draw that feels like a loss. You were also with the team last year when it seemed like the team also had some really tough stretches. Can you just talk about the mentality of the group right now after kind of having some tough results despite playing decently or well, and how that changed from what you experienced last year?

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: It's similar. I don't remember exactly last year what the result was, but when you just give up a goal at the end, I think maybe last year we might have lost, I'm not sure, so that's even tougher.

Right now it's at least a point. But it's still, like I said, it feels like a loss, and our mentality is to go into every game expecting to win the game. So I think that's maybe what changed from last year.

So obviously very disappointed.

Q. You mentioned that the team might have played a little bit nervous at the end. You guys kind of dominated the game throughout. Why do you think that mentality comes up? Is it from previous experiences of maybe not locking down games; that there's nerves, especially in a game where you weren't in control and didn't feel they were that dangerous?

MAREN HAILE-SELASSIE: That's a good question. I don't really know why. Just maybe, you know, looking at the recent results that we had, we didn't like maybe come with the highest confidence of a winning streak. That the does something to your confidence as well.

Maybe it is, but yeah, like you said, after a pretty good game, we could have been more confident, especially the other team wasn't really dangerous or pressing or anything like that. So it's totally on us and we could have prevented it. Yeah, we have to learn from it.