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2017 MLS SuperDraft Full Analysis: Chicago Fire

By Dan Cunningham

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The Chicago Fire made moves in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft that signified the changes that fans were hoping for ahead of the 2017 season.

Jan 13, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Daniel Johnson gets selected with the 11th pick by the Chicago Fire during the MLS SuperDraft at the Los Angeles Convention Center Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 13, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Daniel Johnson gets selected with the 11th pick by the Chicago Fire during the MLS SuperDraft at the Los Angeles Convention Center Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /

2016 was supposed to be the season Chicago Fire changed things.

After finishing 2015 at the bottom of the league with just 30 points from eight wins, they needed a change and tried to enact it with new management. But debut General Manager Nelson Rodriguez and first-time Coach Veljko Paunović failed to move them forward (they followed with seven wins and 31 points in 2016).

The result: Chicago Fire occupied the berth at the bottom of Major League Soccer for a second straight year. The outlook: plenty more work needed to be done.

So for this year’s SuperDraft, they made their plan clear: a preparedness for any eventuality with a clear contingency plan to get them what they want.

Following this plan, they emerge from the two-day SuperDraft with five players. The question is have they found their next franchise star? Here’s a look at them:

Pick: #11

Name: Daniel Johnson

Position: Midfield

School: University of Louisville

They started the day with two first round selections – #3 and #11. But after agreeing an unheard-of $250,000 in allocation money from NYCFC to forgo the #3 pick it left them only with pick #11 in round one.

With it, they opted to take University of Louisville midfielder Daniel Johnson.

Now perhaps the best of his credentials are the three years (2009-12) spent playing at West Ham United’s Academy. But from his four years of college soccer, he clocked up 64 games – the first two seasons at the University of Maryland where he appeared in 23 of them, before transferring to Louisville and collecting seven goals and five assists from a further 41 appearances.

With exception to David Accam – the Fire’s 2016 Player of the Year – wide players are not something they specialise in, but at the same time is an area they certainly need to improve.

Johnson’s stock was high going into the draft following multiple reports he was one of the standout performers at the combine. And with this pick, they haven’t just ticked a box, but in Johnson, drafted a player who arrives knowing he should be pushing for a starting spot.

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