Justin Reynolds Becomes Chicago's Unlikely Playoff Hero

The Chicago Fire needed a win in Miami to clinch a playoff spot last night. With 10 minutes to play and the score at 3-3, it seemed like that just wasn't going to happen. But quite possibly the single unlikeliest hero among the 18 outfield players in the squad that day popped up at the right time and place and delivered, securing a first postseason berth since 2017.

21-year-old homegrown right back Justin Reynolds – who came off the bench in the second half for his first MLS appearance since April 5th – wrote his name into Fire folklore by scoring the goal that ended the team's eight-year drought. In scoring his first Fire goal, he became the first-ever homegrown player born in the City of Chicago to score for the team.

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"This is a great feeling," Reynolds said postgame. "I've been playing at this club for year, since I was like 12. So to get us to the playoffs for the first time in seven year, it's an amazing feeling."

It is particularly remarkable that Reynolds specifically was the one to score the decisive goal. Despite showing steady progress in 2024, the young defender had a challenging start to this season. In his first start of the year, against the New York Red Bulls in April, he was not at his best and was substituted for Omari Glasgow early in the second half. He had not appeared in MLS since then, and did not even make the bench for the entirety of the summer.

Reynolds spent the whole summer playing with Chicago Fire II in MLS Next Pro, and there was some uncertainty behind the scenes around his future. By this point, he was the third-string right back for the first team and was rarely even training with Gregg Berhalter's main group. Nonetheless, he continued to perform well for the second team and finally got back into first team training just in time for September.

"I had a long conversation with Justin this week about his year and what we'd need from him moving forward," Berhalter said Tuesday. "It's really about waiting for your opportunity, being focused, and showing that he has the right training habits. I think he's been training better for the last couple of weeks, and he earned the opportunity. I'm really proud of him and the way he entered the game, and his output by scoring the goal."

Despite the up-and-down season, which at times felt like a step backward from Reynolds' progress in 2024, none of that mattered when he stepped out onto the pitch in the 60th minute against Inter Miami. Suddenly, the Chicago native was lining up against Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, and Rodrigo de Paul in one of the most important games in club history.

Reynolds was part of a triple substitution made by Berhalter. Alongside him were fellow homegrowns Mauricio Pineda and Brian Gutiérrez, both of whom, like Reynolds, had started the season well but fallen out of favor to varying levels in recent weeks. Pineda and Gutiérrez had been starters for much of the season, but have been rooted to the bench since the end of August.

Nonetheless, all three delivered. Pineda had the assist on Reynolds' goal, drilling a ball across the box that found the 21-year-old lurking at the far post. A few minutes later, Gutiérrez unleashed a blast from long range, serving a dagger to Miami and putting the game out of reach.

"I told (Justin) that we're going to have a lot of space in behind today," Gutiérrez said postgame. "I thought he did well when he came in. I'm just so proud of him. I've known him for so long, so it's honestly a privilege to be here with him. We're sharing the same dream on the field."

That dream now extends to the MLS postseason, something the Chicago Fire haven't been able to say for eight years. At that time, both players were still in the academy, with Gutiérrez being 14 and Reynolds just 13 years old. Now they're hoping to play roles under Berhalter as the team returns to where they belong after so many years of hardship – and maybe there are still some more magic "hometown hero" moments to come.