Hang Together: Chicago Fire at D.C. United Match 15 Preview

With the Fire’s season on the ropes and the team stuck in 14th place out of 15 teams in the MLS Eastern Conference – and 28th out of 29 teams overall – the Fire travel to the nation’s capital looking for a spark that has long eluded the team as they search for their third win of the season.

They’ll be facing a D.C. United team that has been riding high off the finishing of Christian Benteke and playmaking of Mateusz Klich, two of D.C. United’s Designated Players who have found new life under new Head Coach Troy Lesesne.

Series History

All time: 28W-22D-27LLast Match: September 2, 2023: D.C. 4-0 Fire at Audi Field, Washington, D.C.

Recent Form

D.C.

Last week, D.C. United traveled to Ft. Lauderdale to face Inter Miami and outplayed the hosts but lost 1-0 thanks to a stoppage-time goal from Leo Campana. It was the second loss in a row for D.C., who lost at home to the Red Bulls midweek. Last Saturday, they beat Atlanta United in Atlanta 3-2 and the week prior, they hosted  Philadelphia and played them to a 2-2 draw.

Fire

The Fire finally got on the scoreboard at home, but still lost 3-1 to the Columbus Crew. The Fire’s most recent victory remains the one over the Houston Dynamo on April 7, and their most recent result remains the draw they got against the Red Bulls a week later.

The Storyline

When the Fire entered the league, D.C. United were the giants, winning the domestic double in the league’s inaugural 1996 season and adding a second MLS title a year later.

The entry of the Fire into the league the Fire challenged the giants, becoming the second club to hoist MLS Cup in their inaugural 1998 season and they, too, completed the domestic double. Throughout the league’s first decade, few teams were more feared than D.C. United and the Fire, with the former winning four MLS Cups in that span while the insurgent Fire won for U.S. Open Cups.

After that, both teams hit substantially harder times (though D.C. did win the Open Cup in 2008 and 2013), shrinking, eventually, from the league’s giants to something closer to its minnows. As it stands, the two longest-active playoff streaks in MLS belong to D.C. United (at four seasons) and the Fire (at six).

This season, though, the Fire and D.C. took divergent paths: D.C. appointed a new Chief Soccer Officer following the 2023 campaign, who in turn, brought in a new coach in Troy Lesesne, and the team’s offseason roster moves were largely domestic, while the top-end talent – forward Christian Benteke and midfielder Mateusz Klich headlining – remained the same.

The Fire, meanwhile, stayed pat, offering Sporting Director Georg Heitz and Head Coach Frank Klopas new deals, while making one of the largest incoming transfers in league history to bring in Hugo Cuypers from Belgium, alongside a number of other moves including landing prized free agent Kelyn Acosta and revamping the team’s defense.

The different approaches have yielded different results so far this season: D.C. United are holding on to the 9th and final postseason spot in the East, while the Fire are just three points removed from the league’s basement, and D.C. can rightfully say that they’ve earned points they didn’t get. They outplayed a (mostly) healthy Inter Miami team for the bulk of the 90 minute match last week, limiting Lionel Messi to just three shots, none of which landed on target.

The Fire, meanwhile, have scored two goals in the past 46 days, and haven’t held a lead for a single second of a competitive match since their victory over the Dynamo on April 8th. Although there’s still 20 matches left to play for the Fire including this one, the results have probably caught up with the team, and from here on out, they’ll likely have to be one of the top two or three teams if they want to push their way into the final postseason spot that D.C. currently occupies.

If they want to start, the time to do it is tonight. Three points won’t move the team up the standings by much (the highest they can climb, barring an monumentally historic defeat to Atlanta, is 13th), but they’ll start to chip away at the deficit the team has found itself in.

It’s got to start somewhere. Why not on a warm spring night in the nation’s capital? Adding significance to tonight’s match: The all-time series between the two clubs remains in the Fire’s favor, as it long has – but just by a single match. A D.C. victory will level the series between the two teams, just a week after Columbus, the Fire’s historic rival, pulled within one match of the all-time series.

D.C. Players to Watch

Christian Benteke: Hugo Cuypers countryman was brought in midway through the 2022 campaign and after a slow start in MLS, found his way to 14 goals last season. This year, he’s on pace to shatter that, having scored 11 in just 12 appearances, including a hat trick against Atlanta – his third since entering the league. During the last matchup between the two teams, Benteke netted a brace.

Jared Stroud: D.C. United’s assist leader, the former New York Red Bulls product has been key in providing service to Benteke. Stroud was brought over from St. Louis City, where was part of their successful inaugural season, scoring six goals during the campaign.

Fire Keys to Victory

• Get ahead: The Fire seemed like a different team on April 6th, where they cruised to a win over Houston that was, if not comfortable, entertaining for fans and felt under control for the squad. That was the last time the team held a lead. It’s now been 630 minutes of competitive football since, and the Fire haven’t been ahead. Getting a lead – preferably early, as they did against Houston – will be a massive relief to the squad mentally. D.C. gives up goals - 24 of ‘em to date, only two fewer than the Fire despite the distance between the teams in the standings – so this isn’t asking the impossible here.

• Stop a head: Specifically, Christian Benteke’s. The player leads the league in aerials, getting 9.48 per 90 minutes – the league average amongst forwards is 2.41, and seven of Benteke’s 11 goals come off of headers. Relying on headers gives Benteke the ability to rapidly change the direction of balls in ways that are a lot harder to predict than a ball to his feet. Careful marking – not something the Fire have been great at this season – of both Benteke and sources for the cross (specifically from Stroud)

Panel Predictions

Alex Calabrese

I have no reason to believe this will be any different.

Prediction: D.C. 2-0 Fire

Jiggly Carollo

"So now I'm standing on the overpass screaming at the cars/Hey, I wanna get better!" The thing about MLS is that things are changing constantly. Except the Fire. A trash DC team can make a couple solid signings and turn it around. And they did. And Benteke's going to body a few dudes. I just hope we can change some day.

Prediction: D.C. 4-0 Fire

Tim Hotze

One goal each in the past two games. Let’s see if the Fire can double that output against a DC team that lets in a lot of goals. Progress, of a sort. Fire are overdue for a result but I just can’t see it yet.

Prediction: D.C. 3-2 Fire

Matt Shabelman

We are soooooooooooooooooo due.

Prediction: D.C. 3-2 Fire

Match Information and How to Watch

Date and Time: Saturday, May 26, 2024, 6:30 PM CTLocation: Audi Field, Washington, D.C.Forecast: 77’F expected at kickoff, winds at 6 mph, 63% cloud cover and a 51% chance of precipitationTV: Apple TV – MLS Season Pass