Andrew Gutman to miss 3-5 weeks after MRI
Chicago Fire left back Andrew Gutman will miss roughly three to five weeks through injury, source told MIR97 Media. The new signing made his first MLS start for the Fire last Saturday when the team opened their season at the Philadelphia Union, but within two minutes of kickoff, he had already been forced off.
The news of Gutman's short-term absence – which was confirmed following an MRI late on Tuesday evening – will come as fairly welcome news to Fire fans and staff, who feared the worst when he went down with a non-contact injury. The 28-year-old has almost no injury history, missing more than a week just once in his professional career.
Gutman's debut last weekend came more than half a decade after he was first offered a homegrown contract with the Fire when he opted not to sign with his boyhood team. He finally returned to Chicago in a blockbuster trade with Colorado in December which saw Miguel Ángel Navarro go the other way.
Last weekend, when Gutman was forced off early, he was replaced by fellow new addition Chase Gasper. Gasper, 28, arrived in a clever trade that essentially saw the club part ways with next to nothing while his salary does not affect the Fire's cap. Gasper played 71 minutes before he was substituted for natural right back Jonathan Dean.
"Coming in in a difficult moment, I felt [Gasper] did a really good job," Klopas said postgame. "He doesn't have the game fitness yet... you [could] just see it late in the game as he got a little bit more fatigued, we had to make that sub."
Both Gasper and Dean represent options for not only this weekend's game against reigning Supporters Shield winner FC Cincinnati but for the next couple of weeks in general. New free agent signing Kellyn Acosta – primarily a central midfielder – has also played left back in the past, and it was the position where he first made his name with the U.S. at the 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup and 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. However, it is highly unlike that the USMNT midfielder would be played at left back, despite putting in several high-level performances at the position, as recently as the 2021 CONCACAF Nations League final win over Mexico.
It's also no secret that the Fire had been looking to shop French right back Arnaud Souquet this offseason. The defender, who failed to live up to expectations from when he signed an expensive contract ahead of 2023, remains on the roster but was omitted from the 20-man squad for the Union game. With Gutman now out, Souquet's presence goes from a roster nightmare to a minor blessing, as he represents depth at the fullback position with the starting left back out and young prospect Justin Reynolds set to join Lugano on loan until the end of the spring.
