Chicago Soccer: Can this be a Miracle Summer?
Tournament Preview: Chicago Red Stars
The Chicago Red Stars have been given a massive help from the draw going into the tournament. Their opponents in the preliminary stages are the Orlando Pride, the Utah Royals, and Sky Blue FC.
Historically, this has been a minefield for the Red Stars. Sky Blue FC, despite being one of the worst teams in the NWSL for the past five years, beat Chicago twice last season. Back in August, the Red Stars fell in a shocking loss to the Pride and had to rely on an injury-time game-winner from Casey Short to win a month later. As for the Utah Royals, they’re not the best, but they’re certainly a team that has grown in confidence over the course of the previous season and are now playing in their home stadium.
However, while history says one thing, the Chicago Red Stars are still the Chicago Red Stars. The draw could’ve been so much worse. These are three of the bottom four teams in the league from last season. None have anything close to the sheer talent that the Red Stars possess.
More from MLS Multiplex
- Javier Milei Elected in Argentina: Potential Impacts on MLS and Signings of Argentine Players
- Orlando City and New York City FC in the Battle for Matías Arezo; Grêmio Enters Negotiations! Who Will Come Out on Top?
- USA, Honduras, Panama, and Canada Close in on a Spot in the 2024 Copa America
- De Gea Turns Down Al-Nassr’s Lucrative Offer: Speculation Points to Possible Reunion with Messi at Inter Miami
- Messi’s Magnetic Impact in the United States
Chicago can go all the way. They are not thinking of anything else. Unless a catastrophic event befalls the team, the Red Stars are making it out of the preliminary round. And once in the knockout stages, they will be one of the favorites to win it all.
Tournament Preview: Chicago Fire
All of the Chicago Fire’s signings were done way too late. The hiring of Heitz and Wicky was too late. The signing of all the DPs seemed rushed. It only makes sense that the team was going to look clunky and disconnected until a few games into the season. But now everyone is in Chicago and despite the disruption, Wicky has had time to build his team.
Training only resumed recently, but the suspension of the season has given the players a chance to connect with each other, at least digitally, during that time. This sort of thing is usually developed in training and matches, meaning that without this suspension the Fire would’ve struggled quite until they reached a level of cohesion. But with more time to gel on a personal level, the team may have been to navigate that awkwardness.
This doesn’t even take into account that in the Fire’s first two games, there was a lot of good to take away. The only real problem areas were in spots that were supposedly going to be filled by the new players. The only thing left was an opportunity to perform, and now they have it.
The Chicago Fire were drawn into the six-team group alongside Orlando City, Inter Miami, Nashville SC, New York City FC, and the Philadelphia Union. The Fire will take on two expansion teams of dubious quality, Nashville and Miami, and NYCFC, who, despite finishing at the top of the Eastern Conference last season, lost their first two matches of the 2020 season.
This was a fortunate draw for the Fire, who have a very realistic chance at advancing from the group. But now they need to capitalize on this and execute on the pitch. Hope is normal for the Chicago Fire. Deliverance, though, has been left wanting. It is time for Wicky and his players to flip the script.