Fire’s depth chart ahead of the transfer window

The new year is here, signaling the MLS offseason is coming to an end: the Fire’s first announced preseason game is set to take place on February 5th as part of the Coachella Valley Invitational tournament and players will be reporting to training camp in more of a matter of days than weeks.

Although significant changes to the Fire’s roster are likely with the European transfer windows open and the transfer window in the United States set to follow soon, here’s a look at the team’s depth chart that is currently due to report to the Fire’s training camp in coming weeks.

Since MLS released information on each team’s available General Allocation Money, which we used to analyze the Fire’s roster and cap situation, the departures of Gastón Giménez and Tobias Salquist have given the team additional roster and cap flexibility, and the team’s pathway to reach Director of Football Gregg Berhalter’s goal of adding around five starters is clearer.

Still, the team has had more notable departures than arrivals in the offseason, and as the Fire look to bulk up with the MLS transfer window set to open, the team has clear needs if they are going to field a competitive starting XI from the time the team’s season kicks off on February 22nd.

Two disclaimers are important: First, the depth chart below shows first team players currently on the team’s roster. Second, formations are not tactics and although the team is likely going to line up in either a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1 at kickoff (and I’m not going to nitpick about whether the distinction between the two here), formations are fluid and I’d almost expect to see that to morph into a 5-3-2 or a 3-2-5 in-game depending on possession and game state.

With that out of the way, here’s where the depth chart things stand today.

Current Fire depth chart

With just over seven weeks until their MLS campaign begins, here’s a roundup of where each position group stands. As we move towards opening day, we’ll have more in depth coverage of both positions and players, but as we get ready for the transfer window to open in the United States, here’s where things stand today.

Which players are locked-in starters?

There are six players on the roster who seem like likely starters, but of those, the only ones who seem to have both their spot in the XI and their role set in something close to stone are Chris Brady in net, Hugo Cuypers at striker, Andrew Gutman at left back and new arrival Jack Elliott at center back.

Past that, Kellyn Acosta and Brian Gutiérrez are almost certainly going to be starters for Berhalter but there’s questions about what role, exactly, they’ll be playing: Will Gutiérrez play centrally or on the wing? Will Acosta play a more advanced #8 role in the midfield, or will he be tasked with a more defensive-oriented #6 role?

If the latter, Federico Navarro will likely see fewer starts. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Navarro, Maren Haile-Selassie, and Carlos Terán in the XI on opening day, but their spots seem less guaranteed than players like Acosta, Brady, or Cuypers.

Will we see more departures?

Although the bulk of the Fire’s outgoing moves have happened, we’re likely to see a few more departures, with Alex going over some of the most likely candidates.

Notably, despite finding ways to move on from several high-profile players that were still under contract, the Fire have retained their option to unilaterally buy out a player.

With transfer windows open for most of the footballing world, moves abroad are also possible in the coming weeks, and players can be traded within MLS up through the end of the window, typically in mid to late April.

How many additional signings will the Fire make this offseason?

At present, the team has seven spots available on the senior roster but it would be surprising to see Berhalter sign that many players, especially before the season begins at the end of February.

Instead, expect somewhere around four or five new additions, with a minimum of two of those looking like starters on the roster.

What are the Fire’s biggest areas of need?

The Fire need to add players, either starters or depth, throughout the roster. The team has, at present, three full-time center backs for two spots, and that’s counting the versatile Mauricio Pineda, who has also played in a defensive midfield role, as one of the three. The club remains in discussions with Wyatt Omsberg, who is a free agent after the expiration of his contract at the end of last season.

If the team does move on from Souquet, they will certainly need a replacement starter in the right back position. Jonathan Dean may be a fan-favorite, but it’s hard to see him playing carrying the team as a starting right back, particularly if Berhalter is expecting the position to contribute offensively in more of a right wingback role.

Cuypers may be a locked-in starter and Barlow is a capable MLS backup who is in line for a rebound in his performance in 2025, but Dean Boltz has never played a professional game, making the team feel short at that position.

The team may also be looking for either reinforcement or a starter in the defensive midfield, though that wouldn’t seem to be the area of highest concern for the team.

The biggest need, however, is in the attack. The Fire need at least one, and preferably two, secondary goal scorers alongside Cuypers, whether playing out of the wing or from an attacking midfield role.

They also need one or two creators: One of the reasons that Cuypers had 10 goals and not more was because of a lack of consistent service. Maybe Berhalter funded a way to get Gutiérrez to more capably fill that role, or maybe the team needs to bring in a reinforcement there as well.

Where things stand today

For the Fire to find the kinds of success in 2025 that have eluded the team for so long, Berhalter needs to do three things: First, find ways to move on from players that were underperforming their cap hits. Second, bring in new, higher quality players – especially starters – to improve the team’s quality on both sides of the ball. Finally, he and his coaching staff need to find ways to get more mileage out of the talent that was already on the roster, with a number of players feeling like they haven’t been reaching anything close to their full potential.

The team’s front office has done a good job of the first task, finding ways to move on from players Gastón Giménez – something that eluded the previous regime for years – while keeping the buyout, giving the team latitude for further changes.

They haven’t yet made as much progress on rebuilding the roster, and although the team signed several promising players to the reserve team, including finding ways to keep Fire II standouts Omari Glasgow and David Poreba in the fold, the only starting-caliber player that the team has signed is Jack Elliott. That isn’t surprising, considering the transfer window in Europe just opened, but it means that they have relatively little time to make a number of moves – especially if they want to give incoming signings the benefit of all or most of a preseason with the team.

While the verdict will remain out on the third goal, maximizing the output from returning players, until the season is well underway, if Berhalter can make good on all three, the team will be a contender for most-improved in the league, making a long-awaited return to the postseason, at a minimum, likely, and laying a foundation for further progress going forward.