Now that the dust has settled on what may be looked back on as the most impactful summer window Chicago Fire has ever had, the questions inevitably start to emerge.
How does the team play with the new arrivals? How does each addition play? How much will each be able to contribute? Who starts?
While some answers are clear, for a transfer window that resulted in two max-TAM players and a U-22 Initiative player arriving, a respected veteran and three promising youngsters leaving, and the club choosing not to pull the trigger on a big-name Designated Player to play alongside Robert Lewandowski, ultimately leaves things somewhat underwhelming.
So let’s unpack the moves made and discuss why sometimes, four rights can still make a wrong.
Anzor Mekvabishvili (25, Central Midfielder)
We’ll start with the Georgian - and no, not everyone’s favorite right back. Central midfielder Anzor Mekvabishvili joins from Universitatea Craiova in Romania. To state it plainly, he’s one of the best players on the best team in Romania. While he’s played more as a defensive midfielder in his time with Craiova, his more natural role could end up as someone who blends the styles of André Franco and Anton Salétros.
A more classic box-to-box approach, but he has the ability to drop deeper into the back line and orchestrate plays with long passes to progress the ball. While he won’t offer much in the air, he should serve as the final piece in what has turned into a very defensively adept midfield trio led by Djé D’Avilla.
For the Fire, this calls into question Franco’s role if and when he returns to play, and it seems to put a nail in the coffin of acquiring a creative midfielder to play the number ten role; that's the problem with the acquisition.
While Mekvabishvili seems to be an upgrade over the current options, Oregel and Lod, anyone watching the Fire since returning from the World Cup would be hard-pressed to say THIS was the style of player needed to take the team from merely a contender to firmly in the mix for MLS Cup. The team has relied heavily on its wings and fullbacks to progress the ball since Gregg Berhalter arrived in Chicago, and while one could say they have the best collection of options in those positions in MLS, it has oftentimes left the spine of the team lacking, particularly in the attack.
This seemed to work well for Hugo Cuypers, but it has not produced the level of service a player like Lewandowski needs to thrive, and the statistics show it.
Andreas Hanche-Olsen (29, Center Back)
The next name requires another move attached to it, because Berhalter has essentially chosen to swap out MLS veteran Joel Waterman for Norwegian international Andreas Hanche-Olsen. The acquisition itself, absent any other context, is an objectively good one, albeit with some caveats.
Hanche-Olsen was an out-and-out starter for Mainz 05 in the German Bundesliga as recently as December of 2025. He was starting in both league and Europa Conference League matches, including a loss to Mekvabishvili’s Craiova side on Thanksgiving Day. However, he has not played a competitive match since a scoreless draw against FC St. Pauli on December 21st of last year.
Berhalter & co. have not shied away from reclamation projects since taking the reins, and so far it’s gone quite well. Between Jack Elliott returning to form and serving as captain in nearly every match he's played since joining, and the 400 glorious minutes the Fire got out of Franco prior to his injury, it’s clear they see Hanche-Olsen as another bite at the proverbial apple, but it's hard to ignore the strings attached.
Firstly, they’ve signed Hanche-Olsen (who turns 30 in January) through the summer of 2031 – his age-34 season. Even as MLS roster rules are expected to be loosened this winter, it’s a massive commitment for a player coming off of a major injury, and one you wouldn’t expect from a front office that has done a good job at keeping the club out of bad situations after shedding the mistakes of previous regimes.
Second, the team is facing down a shortage of center backs, and barely a week after loaning out lauded USYNT prospect Christopher Cupps, they trade Waterman to the Portland Timbers to clear an international slot for Hanche-Olsen. Put aside the long-term implications of losing Waterman for a moment; the club now likely faces Toronto, Miami, New England, and potentially Nashville with TWO centerbacks on the senior roster.
While you have the benefit of Mauricio Pineda available to step in, it won’t be a surprise to see Jack Sandmeyer on the bench via short-term agreements in what could be the most consequential run of MLS regular season matches this version of the 2026 squad will face. Even after a string of positive performances for Rogers, it’s hard to imagine this is the back line Berhalter would’ve chosen to carry through this stretch.
In the long-term view, one hopes this loan for Cupps could put him in position to be the clear third-choice center back in 2027 with Elliott out of contract, but it does feel like an odd choice to jettison high-quality depth at an incredibly valuable position in the midst of a push for MLS Cup.
It does bode well for a potential return of Mbekezeli Mbokazi, but even then Waterman’s salary was low enough that looking to move the Canadian international feels like it should have been pushed to the winter. Hanche-Olsen appears to be a quality signing, and one who should massively help the Fire in their pursuit of airborne dominance, but pairing this with the departure of your most in-form center back taints the excitement.
Noah Allen (22, Left Back/Center Back)
Now we get to the Americans.
When news broke that Chicago was sending U-22 Initiative left back Viktor Radojević to CF Montréal on a short-term loan (along with a 2026 international slot), it all but confirmed the rumors that the Fire would be acquiring South Florida native and Greek youth international Noah Allen from Inter Miami CF. The move was agreed Wednesday morning, though the announcement had to wait until after the deadline; it's an initial loan with a $3 million option to buy at the end of the season.
It would be disingenuous not to call this move an upgrade. Allen, 22, is only a few months older than Radojević, well seasoned in MLS, and less than a year ago started out of his natural position on a playoff run that resulted in his club lifting MLS Cup. Despite representing Greece on the international level, Allen is an American citizen and should be available for the club as soon as this Saturday against Toronto FC, potentially even in the starting lineup.
The questions arise when you factor in what Allen’s role will be in a fully healthy squad. His natural position is left back, where the Fire just extended Andrew Gutman - who has been one of the league’s best since Berhalter’s arrival - through the summer of 2029. He can also fill in well as a center back, but it’s hard to imagine him doing more than just that, even in the future. Mbokazi took MLS by storm prior to his thigh injury in the summer that has left his 2026 status up in the air, and the signing of Hanche-Olsen implies a level of commitment as well.
It isn’t simply the swap for Radojević that raises questions. Allen will cost more in both transfer fee and annual wages, meaning that although he is under a U-22 deal at the moment, he, unlike Radojević, cannot be moved off that deal should the need arise. This is before mentioning that the deal for Radojević is only a loan through the end of 2026. While Montreal does have an obligation to extend it an additional six months through the sprint season, it is entirely possible Radojević ends up back in Chicago in the summer of 2027. It also cost Chicago the international roster slot they would have saved by moving Radojević.
This, paired with Waterman and Hanche-Olsen saga makes the entire back line strategy feel like a game of whack-a-mole Berhalter is playing against himself, seemingly undoing a lot of the work the front office had done in year one to create a stable foundation for the club to build off of roster and cap wise.
Johan Gómez (25, Center Forward/Winger)
Finally, Johan Gómez joins from Eintracht Braunschweig in the German second division, and while he’s played as a wingback, expectations (paired with the departure of Jason Shokalook) seem to point toward Gómez either pairing with Lod to serve as the understudies to Lewandowski up front, or being a domestic replacement for Swiss army knife Maren Haile-Selassie who is out of contract this winter.
On the positive, as mentioned above, he’s American - no international slot needed, no waiting for a visa. He’s also a player who scored a bunch of goals for FC Dallas’s youth system and looked like one of the brighter stars at a time when it was one of the better academies in the country.
Now, though, he’s produced only 11 goal contributions in 99 appearances since arriving in the German 2nd division. Braunschweig has narrowly avoided relegation in each of his three seasons, so it’s fair to wonder if a combination of playing out of position and poor surroundings has led to the downturn, but it feels safe to assume this move would be for depth and not top-end talent.
Ultimately, it feels like a disjointed window working around the edges instead of attacking the one need everyone can see from a mile away, and using the most valuable roster slot available in a questionable manner. Though no one who’s paid attention would ever argue Philip Zinckernagel was undeserving of the tag or presumably the raise that came along with it, the Fire REDUCED the length of his contract by six months. I would assume this is temporary and wouldn’t be surprised to see another new deal for Zinckernagel in the next 12 months, but shortening the contract of your best player while increasing their pay isn’t exactly A+ roster building.
It brings us back to a point that has been made on The Bonfire repeatedly, and may bear watching as things continue.
Gregg Berhalter is often the smartest person in the room. He also seems to know that.
Look around the league, and other contenders like Nashville, Miami, Vancouver, Houston, and LAFC aren't making wholesale changes to their rosters. They’re adding key pieces that bolster their squad, while keeping their core intact.
The Fire entered the summer window as a clear MLS Cup contender, seemingly a piece or two away from having a chance to catch Nashville in the Supporters' Shield race. Now they exit the window, arguably more talented but also with more question marks.
They took a gamble on fixing something that wasn’t broken, and all that’s left is to let it ride and hope it lands on red.
