Chicago Fire at Coachella: Everything You Need to Know
The start of the Major League Soccer season is less than three weeks away, and the Chicago Fire's preseason preparations are now in full flow. With the roster close to complete, new head coach Gregg Berhalter is gearing his team up for some of the first proper organized tests of 2025, and that will happen at the Coachella Valley Invitational.
Here's everything you need to know as the ball gets rolling in California.
Coming Together
When the Fire played Fortaleza last month in their preseason opener, Berhalter had just 16 first team players available for selection. As the season approaches, he'll have something much closer to his full squad. Fede Navarro, who started that game, has left the club, but he was quickly replaced by new signings Leonardo Barroso and Philip Zinckernagel upon their arrival in camp.
In addition to those two, the likes of Hugo Cuypers and Maren Haile-Selassie, who missed the game, are building up to full fitness and should play a role in this phase of preseason. Brian Gutiérrez and Sergio Oregel Jr. – fresh off of U.S. national team duties – are also back in camp, with the latter scoring a goal in a scrimmage last week against Sporting Kansas City.
Not everyone is in camp yet, however. Star Designated Player signing Jonathan Bamba is close to finalizing his U.S. residency permit and arrived in Ottawa this weekend to do so, but is expected to join the team soon. It's a similar story for Rominigue Kouamé as he sorts out his visa following a recent loan move from Cádiz. Italian midfielder Claudio Cassano, who has agreed a move to Fire II, is also set to join the first team in California this week.
As of right now, the only known long-term injuries are those to Dylan Borso (out approx. 4 months) and Chase Gasper (out indefinitely). Frozen-out Arnaud Souquet is also not with the team.
Competition for Places
While Berhalter likely has a probably starting XI in mind at this point as the roster takes shape, there is still undoubtedly competition for bigger roles on the team that can be fought for in preseason. The most obvious battles will come on the right wing between Maren Haile-Selassie and Philip Zinckernagel and at center back between Carlos Terán and Sam Rogers. Players like Chris Mueller will also be eager to prove that they have a role given the other options in their positions.
The absence of a few remaining key names will also give those who were with Fire II last season the opportunity to prove that they should be reliable options off the bench against MLS opposition. Sergio Oregel, David Poreba, and Omari Glasgow come to mind, considering their combined three career MLS appearances, all late cameos. Given that (until Kouamé arrives) Oregel is either the second or third top central midfielder in camp, he has a great chance to show that he deserves a role in the first team rotation.
For the current Fire II players in camp, preseason is an opportunity to continue to demonstrate their talent in front of first team coaches. Vitaliy Hlyut, Diego Konincks, Patrick Los, Harold Osorio, and Sam Williams are all confirmed camp attendees, with Hlyut (16) the youngest of the group. Christopher Cupps, who impressed in his two appearances during the first phase of preseason, has left camp for U.S. U-17 duty.
MLS Opposition
While the Fire did play a behind-closed-doors friendly against Sporting Kansas City last week, the Coachella event will be Berhalter's first consistent run of matches against MLS opposition in somewhat faster-paced games. The Fire will play four matches, all against West Coast opposition, though only one of the four is a team they will face this year in the regular season.
Today, they'll open the schedule against Los Angeles FC at 3:30 p.m. Central Time. The Fire faced LAFC at this event last season, and it was their lone defeat of the whole preseason, losing 3-1. Last year's U.S. Open Cup champions beat the Portland Timbers and tied the San Jose Earthquakes in scrimmages last week.
The Fire's three subsequent matches will come against the Portland Timbers (2/8, 4:30 p.m.), San Jose Earthquakes (2/12, 12:00 p.m.), and Los Angeles Galaxy (2/15, 2:00 p.m.). If last year's games are anything to go by, they'll be played at a pace more similar to regular season games, but results will not necessarily be reflective of looming MLS fortunes; the Fire went 4-1-1 in preseason last year but finished 14th in the Eastern Conference.
How to Watch
FOX announced on Monday that the Fire's matches will be broadcast on FOX Local and streamed on the Fox 32 Chicago website. This is a departure from previous seasons, where preseason games were often inaccessible for most fans. Tickets can also be purchased to attend the matches in person.
Read More:
https://meninred97.com/berhalter-on-progress-signings-and-neymar/
https://meninred97.com/coming-and-going-fire-roster-depth-chart-updates/
https://meninred97.com/4-things-we-learned-chicago-fire-vs-fortaleza/
