The Chicago Fire are back on the road in a game that unexpectedly pits the 4th and 5th best teams in MLS's Eastern Conference against each other as the Fire take on D.C. United in the nation's capitol.
The game gives the Fire shot at revenge against the team gave them their first home loss of the year off a winner from striker Tai Baribo in the fifth minute of second half stoppage time.
Two weeks ago, it seemed like the teams would be in very different places, with the Fire seeming to find their footing and putting together a string of consecutive results, while D.C. United followed up their win victory at Soldier Field with a five game winless run during which time the team failed to score a goal in the first four matches of that stretch.
Now the tables have turned — if only somewhat. The Fire are on a three game losing streak across all competitions, while D.C. United are undefeated in their past five league game (although the that ignores a loss in penalty loss to One Knoxville in the USL League one).
It's a quick turnaround for the Fire – but that suits the team after two home losses in their previous two outings.
"I think it's good when you don't have to stew on a bad result," Fire captain Jack Elliott said after the loss to the Red Bulls [We can] get back after it on Wednesday and try and help correct the things that went wrong tonight, and then do them better in a few days. Obviously, we want to change the form and go back to being a more resolute defensive team."
That's a sentiment shared by defender Andrew Gutman, who said "I think playing Wednesday is a big help for us because it's a shorter turnaround to kind of right the ship. So hopefully, we go to D.C. and get a result there and get on a good run before the break."
D.C. might be a good place for the Fire to look for that break — the team trounced the MLS originals 7-1 in their last visit to the nation's capital.
D.C. United
In their last outing, D.C. were ahead by two goals late against top-of-conference Nashville SC, only to see right back Silvan Hefti sent off with a second yellow. Moments later, Nashville halved their deficit and just before the game ticked to stoppage time, Nashville salvaged the point.
Hefti's second yellow of that match also means he'll be suspended for this one. That's a loss to D.C. United: Before being sent off, he had played all but 14 minutes of D.C. United's league season. The only time he was substituted off came when D.C. was searching for a late equalizer against Orlando City in late April (D.C. went on to win 3-2, in their first victory since facing the Fire over a month prior).
On top of that, Tai Baribo, D.C.'s hero for the late match, played just six minutes in his first game back missing time with injury — there's a good chance that he won't be close to 90 minutes fit for this one.
Chicago Fire
After the loss to the Red Bulls on Saturday, the mood in the Fire locker room was notably more somber than it a week prior against Cincinnati. Both games had the same result, with the other taking three points back from Soldier Field, but notably different performances: Against Cincinnati, virtually every mistake cost the Fire but the team put together an overall strong performance over 90 minutes.
Against the Red Bulls, though, the team didn't do a lot that they can be proud of, and the team felt it. The question is, both on an individual and collective level, how the team responds.
In both games, the Fire played out of a 4-4-2, and although formations aren't tactics and 4-4-2 wasn't the primary reason that the Fire gave multiple Red bulls players time and space uncontested in their box.
Still — with three games in a week and things not working out, rotation is inevitable and change is warranted.
It might be too much to expect wholesale changees, particularly in the midfield, but a return to the 4-3-3 and giving an opportunity to players like Mauricio Pineda and Sergio Oregel Jr., both of whom were mainstays a year ago, makes sense, as would, giving Dylan Borso an opportunity to start in a game where the Fire could really use a first goal.
If looking for positives heading, here's one: The Fire may not have been winning at home, but their only defeat of the year on the road came back in their home opener in February.
Lineup and Match Information
