Chicago Fire: What do Bastian Schweinsteiger and Dax McCarty have left?

Bastian Schweinsteiger and Dax McCarty are the heart and soul of the Chicago Fire midfield. But what do they actually have left to give?

It was a rough 2018 for the Chicago Fire. Entering the season with hopes of challenging for the playoffs with a solid squad and a starring midfield, as well as the goalscoring exploits of Nemanja Nikolic, it quickly became apparent that they lacked the necessary attacking quality to compete at the sharp end of MLS.

Nikolic was still an excellent goalscorer, but other than Aleksandar Katai, who’s production badly deteriorated in the latter part of the season, goals from other options were hard to find.

The Fire scored 48 goals in 2018. Only four teams scored fewer in all of MLS. More concerningly, though, Katai and Nikolic combined for 27 goals, more than half of the Fire’s total. No other player in the squad scored more than four.

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The plan was simple: with Bastian Schweinsteiger and Dax McCarty holding down the midfield, the Veljko Paunovic wanted to control matches with extended periods of possession and break teams down through pressure thanks to waves of attacks, providing plentiful service for the sharp-moving Nikolic in and around the penalty area. But by the end of the regular season, the Fire averaged just 48.1% possession, the fifth-worst tally in MLS.

Moreover, they had just 10.1 shots per game, the worst record in the league and only ranked 14th for pass accuracy. For all of the focus on a strong, tidy passing game that exerted control over matches and created chances for centre-forwards, Chicago were unequivocally unable to deliver. When a plan does not work, it is frustrating. But when a plan is not even executed, that, in professional sport, is criminal.

Now, there were injuries to the Fire squad. Schweinsteiger was forced to play at centre-half at times. McCarty suffered a hamstring problem midway through the season and only featured in 26 matches, clearly not fully match sharp in a handful of them.

And there is also the question of age. McCarty is 32 this April and is nearing 30,000 career minutes. Schweinsteiger, at 34, has over 50,000 career minutes and has noticeably slowed in recent years, though he was never known for his pace, even during his prime. McCarty and Schweinsteiger should provide a midfield base for Chicago to build from. They are two of the smartest, most technically capable players in the whole league.

Yet, last season, the Fire did not keep the ball well, they did not control matches through their possession, they did not create many chances for Nikolic and Katai. This season, Paunovic is dealing with similar options in the midfield. He will again be relying upon on Schweinsteiger and McCarty. But it is fair to ask whether they have much left to give.

Age catches up to us all. Father Time wins in the end, unless if you’re named Tom Brady. Can the Fire rely on a pairing that did not perform, perhaps through no fault of their own, last season?