The universe balances itself in mysterious ways. The Chicago Fire hosted Orlando right after conceding the most goals in team history against Nashville the match prior. The team responded by smothering Orlando’s great-on-paper attack with a confident defensive performance despite playing down a man for most of the match after Chris Brady received a red card. And the team did it in then-16-year-old (now 17) Christopher Cupps first MLs start at center-back, one of six academy prospects in the team’s (initial) XI.

Brady’s red card gave Chicagoland native Jeff Gal his first MLS minutes that match, after patiently waiting as the third-string keeper before becoming the backup this year, and his first MLS start – and win – a week later as Brady served his suspension. Gal’s performances in those two should make everyone more confident in his ability to serve as a starter if needed. That need may be soon: Chris Brady has been called up to the U.S. Men’s National Team camp, and if he remains with the USMNT through a long Gold Cup run, could miss five games for the Fire.

Now, the Fire will once again be without a key academy product due to suspension, as Brian Gutiérrez received a straight red last week. (Djé D’Avilla was also sent off after receiving a second yellow, but the Fire successfully appealed the suspension and fine that D’Avilla received). Will they get another silver lining from missing the team’s best offensive midfielder?

It’s unlikely, but they did get an unexpected boost Wednesday night, when César Araújo received a straight red for putting his hands around the neck of Atlanta’s Mateusz Klich. The late decision turned what had looked like a comfortable cruise to a 2-1 victory into a 3-2 loss. Head Coach Óscar Pareja – received a red – has hinted that the team may appeal the card (presumably, Araújo’s) but, let’s be honest: the MLS disciplinary committee isn’t going to get into arbitrating how much contact a player’s hands made with another player’s neck, and they aren’t going to allow for “mitigating circumstances” like the fact that Klich had shoved Araújo in the back, for which he ultimately received a yellow.

The loss ended Orlando’s undefeated streak in MLS play at 13 games, just in time to face the Fire, who had been undefeated this month in all competitions. In fact, since the final whistle blew in Nashville on April 26th, the Fire hadn’t trailed for a single minute until New York’s Hannes Wolf sent one past Brady in the 70th minute at Yankee Stadium, with the Fire having played down a man for over half an hour by that point.

Now both teams will be missing crucial midfielders in the final match before a number of players, including wingback Alex Freeman and goalkeeper Pedro Gallese for Orlando, and the Fire’s Chris Brady and Omari Glasgow, depart for national team duty.

Balance? Not exactly. But it at least levels the playing field for the Fire. Both teams have reason to say that this feels like a trap game: Orlando, playing at home after their undefeated streak ends, and the Fire, who have been strong on the road, against an opponent that they smothered down a man in the reverse fixture earlier this month. Only one of them will be right.

Series History

All time: 5W-8D-8LLast match: May 4, 2025: Chicago 0-0 Orlando at Soldier Field, Chicago, IllLast away match: June 22, 2024: Orlando 4-2 Chicago at Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, Fl.

What to Expect

Orlando City

Araújo’s suspension is a big blow to Orlando’s chances in this match: He’s number 8 on American Soccer Analysis’s Goals Added metric amongst defensive midfielders on a per-game basis, right behind Sergio Busquets. That’s not bad company to keep, but unlike Busquets, who offers basically nothing the closer you get to goal (he’s got some help from friends in that department), Araújo’s become more of a contributor to Orlando’s attack this season, five goal contributions to date.

Goals added measures both offensive and defensive contributions to the game, and Araújo also paces all of Orlando’s midfielders in terms of passing and progressive distance covered passing, per Opta.

Still, despite losing Araújo, Óscar Pareja(‘s squad, since he won’t be physically in the dugout for this one) still has a lot going for it: They remain defensively stout (that is sort of obvious when, 16 games in to the season, you’ve had seven clean sheets). And their offensive firepower – which had largely been silenced the last time these two teams met – has woken up, and Orlando now have the fourth most goals in the league, with 30, just three behind the leading San Jose Earthquakes in that statistic.

Orlando’s undefeated streak came against weakened opponents

All that should be unsurprising when you’ve lost just three games – and gone on a thirteen game unbeaten streak. Still, as I said on our podcast, for a team that went on a 13-out-of-16 unbeaten run, it’s hard to imagine a team looking less convincing during it: The steak included six draws and was punctuated by a U.S. Open Cup loss to Nashville, but more to the point: the team lost the xG battle – sometimes by substantial margins – in a lot of those games, and the streak included wins against teams that were in rough stretches of their own, including the L.A. Galaxy (still winless 16 games in), Atlanta when they were struggling, and D.C. United.

Don’t get me wrong – they’ve also managed some strong performances along the way – but they haven’t been steamrolling teams and they were due at least one loss over the stretch.

Chicago Fire

Missing Gutiérrez, and likely Mauricio Pineda, who left the game last week with an injury and has missed time in training – presents a challenge for Fire Head Coach Gregg Berhalter, but it’s one position where the team has depth.

When asked about Rominigue Kouamé’s chances of breaking into the starting lineup for the Fire, Berhalter said “And Kellyn [Acosta]. I think that’s one position that we have good cover in, and it will be an opportunity for someone” with Gutiérrez suspended.

Another chance for Acosta incoming?

It’s been a very rough season for Acosta. When asked about “managing” the midfielder – who started off captaining the team at the beginning of the season but who hasn’t featured in MLS play since the howler against Nashville – Berhalter said “He’s been frustrated, no question about it, but I think he should be. He’s a guy that has a ton of experience, played in the World Cup, been part of the national team program for a long time, one of the leaders on the team and to not get your number called is not easy.”

Acosta started off as team captain for the first few games of the season, but Jack Elliott has worn the armband in recent matches for the Fire, including in U.S. Open Cup games where Acosta also featured. And frankly, Acosta has not looked particularly strong in the minutes he was given in the Open Cup. He did miss about a month after leaving the game in early March against Dallas with an apparent hamstring injury, and it isn’t clear if that’s been one of the factors behind his recent slide.

Either way – the team is better if Acosta, who played some of the best football of his professional career under Gregg Berhalter with the USMNT, is a consistent contributor. It sounds like this game will be a chance for him to return to that path.

Opportunities for other Fire players in the XI

Last week, Kouamé also looked like he wasn’t able to put in his best effort. With the European season over as of Saturday, players coming from Europe have now played a full year, but Berhalter noted that Kouamé did have a break period in LaLiga 2, so it doesn’t sound like planned time off is on the horizon for him.

For Jonathan Bamba, however, who also looked fatigued, it is – but not until June. Especially missing the creative spark that Gutiérrez provides, the Fire will be looking to him and Philip Zinckernagel to help create ahead of Sergio Oregel Jr.’s playmaking. The offense should also be helped by the possible return of Leonardo Barroso to the starting lineup. In limited minutes against last week, he reminded Fire fans of what he can do on the ball, but also had issues defending, which Berhalter chalked up to “rust.”

The game may also provide an opportunity for Christopher Cupps, as Sam Rogers has missed time in training this week with leg spasms. It would be a great chance to give the 17-year-old more first team minutes ahead of a departure for the U.S. Youth National Team, where he will switch roles, becoming one of the most experienced players on the roster.

Projected Starting XI

Match Information and How to Watch

Date and Time: Saturday, May 31st 2025, 7:30 PM CTForecast: Clear with temperatures around 80ºFLocation: Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, Fl. TV: Apple TV – MLS Season Pass