The Chicago Fire are back on the road after an undefeated homestand that saw the team net two wins and a draw. Combined with a win and a draw on the road, the team’s unbeaten streak is five games and counting.

That streak, however, will be put to the test as they take on the Philadelphia Union, currently second place in the Eastern Conference and who handed the Fire a 1-0 defeat at home in late June.

That match – like most matches that the Union have been involved in this year – was played at a high intensity – dare I say “playoff-like” intensity – and the Fire’s offense, fourth best in the league on a goals per game basis, struggled to break through offensively.

As the Fire make their push for the postseason, the match is a good measuring stick. The Fire have played well against many of the top teams in the league but have often struggled to turn those performances into results. Changing that and getting a point – or three – against a top team that has only one defeat in their building this year – will help the team in both the standings and in developing the kind of mentality that could see the team make some noise in the second season.

Gregg Berhalter is looking forward to have his team do just that – and maybe get a bit of revenge in the process. “We were really disappointed with the result when we played them the first time,” the Fire head coach told reporters on Thursday. “I didn’t think we played up to our ability. Give them credit for making it difficult for us, but we're excited about this possibility in Philly. We know it's a good team, but we're relishing it.”

Series History

All time: 11W-9D-15LLast match: June 25, 2025: Chicago Fire 0-1 Philadelphia Union at Soldier Field, Chicago, Ill.Last home match: May 13, 2023: Philadelphia Union 2-2, Subaru Park, Chester, Pa.

What to Expect

Philadelphia Union

When we last checked in on the Philadelphia Union, they were one of the surprising stories of the first half of the MLS season. After finishing out of the playoffs last year, they dismissed longtime coach (and Chicago Fire legend) Jim Curtin, replacing him with Bradley Carnell who was last leading St. Louis City from the dugout.

The Union have been one of the best teams in the league this season, and currently sit second in the east and third in the Supporters Shield standings. That very much keeps the Shield – which the Union won in 2020, as the club’s only major trophy win to date – in reach for Philadelphia.

Another trophy very much in Philadelphia’s sights: The U.S. Open Cup, with the team advancing to the semi-finals off a 3-2 win over the New York Red Bulls on August 13. Unlike their opponents, the Union started their best players for the midweek cup match, but that set up revenge just three days later, when the team fell 1-0 to the Red Bulls in league play.

That gives Philadelphia just one win in its past four league games, going back to July 19th, including a 1-1 draw at home to Toronto FC. That match, however, was just the fifth time the Union have dropped points at home this season. Their only loss in Chester came back in March to Nashville. Since then, they’ve also had draws to Orlando, Columbus and Miami at home.

Toronto are clearly the odd ones out in that list – and it came against a rotated squad ahead of the Open Cup match.  But the rest? That’s the cream of a very, very strong Eastern Conference crop.

The Philadelphia Union make playing against them – especially at home – a challenge. Their game model expects 90 minutes of intensity from all 11 players on the pitch.

When this reporter posited that Chester was “never a pleasant place to play” to Gregg Berhalter given the Union’s intensity, well, he brought up one of about 10,000 differences between this writer and a professional athlete, former or current, saying, “I've always loved playing in Chester. I love the fans. I love how they get after it. They get after you. They get after the team. They make it a hostile environment. I think that's great. But the reality is we're playing one of the top teams in our conference, and we're playing them away, and we want to go and show that we can compete with these teams.”

Chicago Fire

The question is, who on the Chicago Fire will be showing that. Of the Fire’s three signings this window, only André Franco, unveiled at halftime last week in Bridgeview trained with the team throughout the week, is likely to feature. (With Carlos Terán’s departure, that likely means that Christopher Cupps is going to get the nod at center back if he’s back to full health. If he isn’t, Sam Rogers or Omar González – who  was on the pitch against Philadelphia in their last meeting, as the team kept the Union from scoring in open play – will get the nod.)

The big question is “how?” The logical thing – even the most likely – is that he will come off the bench: A week training with a team is great, but Franco has never played with any of his teammates, and is out of season, having not had a preseason with FC Porto (he was involved in the Club World Cup over the summer).

Still: Do you bring in a guy on loan for a maximum of eight regular season games, give him the no. 10 shirt, despite being here on loan, and then not start him? Franco is motivated. “It's eight games where I have to prove to myself,” the Fire’s marquee summer addition said on Thursday. “It's a challenge for myself and to show the people here at the Fire that they can bet on me. I don't want to be here just until December. I want to be here for a long time representing the club.”

For that to happen, he’ll have to make a mark. The question is, where? While he’s been regarded as an attacking midfielder, playing in a role similar to the one Brian Gutiérrez does, here’s what Franco told us about his game. “I think I'm a player that can maybe help with the positioning a little bit, make things a little bit more stable, to help with the timings of things, to know when we need to attack, to know when we need to defend.”

This year, the Fire’s midfield roles and shape have been fluid depending on situation and game state. Is it crazy to think that the man the Fire brought in to wear no. 10 could end up playing as a mix between that and a no. 8, playing box-to-box?

I don’t think so. Playing in a hybrid role alongside Gutiérrez – coming off his best performance of the season – would give the Fire more going forward while also helping with stability the other way. Depending on how far up Gutiérrez and Franco push, it puts more pressure on Djé D’Avilla to be a lock-down no. 6, but his play has been improving at a fast clip and he effectively took Klauss, the St. Louis’s star striker on a team that plays a similar style to the Union, out of the game for long stretches last week.

Will we see it? I kind of doubt it but, man, it could be real fun.

Projected Starting XI

Match Information and How to Watch

Date and Time: Saturday, August 23, 2025, 6:30 PM CTForecast: Around 75º at kickoff.Location: Subaru Park, Chester, Pa.TV: Apple TV – MLS Season PassRadio: wlsam.com (English), Que Buena Fire via the Uforia App (Spanish)