3 Winners, 3 Losers from Chicago Fire's Preseason

The countdown to the official kick off of the Gregg Berhalter era in Chicago is well and truly on, with MLS opening day in Columbus now just five days away. It was a successful preseason for the Fire, who finished strong with a pair of wins at the Coachella Valley Invitational including a 5-1 win over the San Jose Earthquakes and a 1-0 win over the reigning MLS Cup champion L.A. Galaxy.

Between incoming moves and departures, the Fire's roster changed considerably since the start of preseason camp over a month ago. Federico Navarro and Arnaud Souquet were former key players who made way, while the likes of Jonathan Bamba, Rominigue Kouamé, and Omar González were among those added throughout the camp.

Here are some of the biggest winners – and losers – from the Fire's MLS preseason who saw their stocks change the most heading into the new season.

Winner: Sergio Oregel Jr.

No player benefited more from the Fire's preseason than Oregel – and it isn’t even close. After making zero appearances in MLS over the last two seasons, it would have been easy to write off the hyper-talented 19-year-old, but he responded with a rockstar preseason this year to thrust himself right into Berhalter's first team plans.

Oregel missed the first game of preseason while away on national team duty with the U.S. U-20s, but then scored in his first game back with the Fire – the second goal in a 2-0 win over Sporting Kansas City. The central midfielder then went on to keep his spot in the starting XI for all four of the Fire's games at Coachella, partnering team captain Kellyn Acosta each time. Against the Earthquakes, he recorded an assist for Brian Gutiérrez and played a key role in the Fire's five-goal first half outburst before playing the full 90 minutes against the Galaxy a few days later.

While new midfield signing Rominigue Kouamé has already joined up with the team and will be available on matchday one, his place in the XI is not guaranteed in large part due to the impressive performances of Oregel – an outcome that seemed unlikely just a few months ago.

Loser: Tom Barlow

With star Designated Player striker Hugo Cuypers still working his way back to full fitness ahead of the start of the season, an opportunity emerged up front for the Fire's backup number nines. Barlow, as the team's de facto #2, got the bulk of those but didn't have the impact Fire fans might have hoped for in terms of goal contributions.

Barlow started all but one of the Fire's six matches in preseason, including all four at Coachella. Despite the Fire's total haul of eight goals across the matches, the center forward scored in none of them; he also only recorded one assist across his plentiful minutes. The third-choice forward, Dean Boltz, performed similarly, as he failed to score as well, albeit with slightly fewer minutes total; a long-term injury to MLS Next Pro MVP David Poreba also took him out of contention in the center forward race.

At the end of the day, if Cuypers isn't ready to go on matchday one, Barlow will still likely get the nod. Given his MLS experience, the 29-year-old will be able to get the job done and combine with his teammates well enough. However, it doesn't seem like Berhalter will have a high-level, dependable backup to Cuypers unless another signing is made before the end of the transfer window.

Winner: Philip Zinckernagel

If any of the Fire's plethora of new additions has made the biggest impact so far, it is Zinckernagel, who arrived in camp in February after a million-dollar swap from Club Brugge. The Danish winger scored less than 15 minutes into his debut against Kansas City and followed it up with strong performances in Coachella, including with a goal and assist against San Jose.

Zinckernagel's instant impact is particularly meaningful given the injury to Maren Haile-Selassie, who was the incumbent starter on the right wing. The duo had been expected to battle it out for the starting position opposite new DP winger Jonathan Bamba, and Zinckernagel certainly staked a good claim with his outings across the preseason matches. The 30-year-old started all four games at Coachella, though he did come out of the final match against the Galaxy early with an apparent leg injury.

Assuming he's ready to go from the start, the first glimpses of Zinckernagel in a Fire shirt are very promising. As of right now, it seems there won't need to be an adaptation period, and he'll slot right into the Fire's lineup on opening day.

Loser: Chris Mueller

Heading into the offseason, it seemed that Mueller might not be in Berhalter's long-term plans. A near-total lack of minutes in preseason ensured that he didn't have an opportunity to change that, even as he traveled with the team for the entirety of the last month.

Though fitness setbacks have been partially to blame, Mueller did not appear for the Fire in any of the four Coachella matches. Bamba and Zinckernagel also played quite differently to Mueller stylistically in their appearances, suggesting he is not much of a system fit for Berhalter's system either. Mueller struggled for sharpness in his one appearance against Fortaleza, likely due to fitness setbacks, and faces an uphill battle for minutes given the competition on the wings.

Given Zinckernagel's instant impact since arriving in January, the blockbuster signing of Bamba, and the consistency of Haile-Selassie, Mueller has an uphill battle to win minutes this season. He will also face competition from Omari Glasgow, who will have a major fitness and sharpness advantage come the first weeks of the season. It would not be shocking to see the Fire test the trade market this season for the 28-year-old whose contract expires at the end of the year.

Winner: Carlos Terán

Terán is entering his sixth season in Chicago, and it seems almost certain that he'll start the year partnering Jack Elliott in the Fire's best eleven. The Colombian has been in and out of the lineup throughout his time in MLS and has been linked with a move away in recent offseasons. However, a solid preseason means he's set to lock down a starting job.

Terán is the only center back who started all four preseason matches at Coachella and performed well; the Fire did not concede any goals with him on the field. His performance at Coachella also demonstrated a strong bounce-back from a challenging start to the Fire's winter camp in Florida, where he has previously looked off the pace in the exhibition against Fortaleza. He was also good enough at Coachella that the Fire's subsequent two defensive signings – Omar González and Christopher Cupps – are not likely competitors to start but rather depth options or moves for the future.

Over the course of the last few weeks, the 6-foot-3 defender has strengthened his role in the first team – barring a late knock; he's solidified his position in the Fire's first eleven, beating out new signing Sam Rogers to be Elliott's go-to partner on the back line.

Work in Progress: Leonardo Barroso

There weren't many players whose stocks dropped during the preseason, and it would be pretty unfair to put the 19-year-old Barroso in this category as well. However, while his talent is unquestioned and the traits that make him a future talent are evident, he didn't lock down the starting job at right back in the way that he might have hoped.

The Portuguese right back started the Fire's first three games at Coachella but was then replaced in the eleven by Jonathan Dean for the final match against the L.A. Galaxy. While nothing is certain, this could be indicative that Dean has surpassed Barroso in his depth chart, at least for now. Barroso is yet to appear in a top-flight match, coming from Sporting CP's second team, so it might take some time before he's ready to start.

Nonetheless, this is not an indictment of Barroso. The Fire clearly have tremendous faith in his ability, handing him the #2 uniform, and over the course of the season, he will likely emerge as the go-to guy on the right side. However, it seems he'll have to battle with Dean for minutes for now.