Offseason a "Work in Progress," says Berhalter

CHICAGO, Ill. — The United Soccer Coaches Convention is back in Chicago this week, and earlier today, new Fire Director of Football and Head Coach Gregg Berhalter spoke before a jam-packed hall of eager attendees that overflowed well beyond its double doors. Following a thorough, hour-long presentation about his game model and approach for 2025, he spoke with media to provide some updates as the start of preseason looms next Monday. Here's what we learned from Berhalter's appearance at McCormick Place on Friday.

Offseason is still a "work in progress"

While the Fire are now almost exactly two-thirds of the way through the 2025 offseason, there is still plenty of work to do off the field, particularly in the incoming transfer market. Nonetheless, Berhalter has already made six additions to the first team roster, namely David Poreba, Omari Glasgow, Jack Elliott, Dylan Borso, Dean Boltz, and Philip Zinckernagel. Though both Elliott and Zinckernagel were signed as Targeted Allocation Money players, two Designated Player slots remain unfilled as well as one Under-22 Initiative slot. There are also four open international slots which can be used for any of the six remaining senior roster slots.

"Things are going well, but I would say things are a work in progress," Berhalter told MIR97 Media. "We're still building and that's just a reality. When you look at the signings across the league, it hasn't been what people expected, but we're in a really good position with a number of players and we just have to be patient in terms of timing."

"We all want things done right away, and that's our mindset. But I have to tell myself sometimes that you have to be a little bit more patient, because good things are coming."

One big addition could be in-form French winger Gaëtan Perrin, who, according to Fabrizio Romano, has received an official bid from the Fire. Nothing is done yet, and mid-table overachievers AJ Auxerre would likely be reluctant to sell given his importance to their game, but with a potential €4 million transfer fee, it may have to be a DP deal. In addition to winger, the Fire are expected to search for reinforcements in central midfield following the departures of Gastón Giménez and Fabian Herbers, so that would also be a likely spot for a DP signing if two are made in this window.

Brian Gutiérrez joins the USMNT

While Berhalter never brought Fire homegrown Gutiérrez into camp during his national team tenure, he's certainly someone he was very familiar with. Now, Berhalter's successor, former Chelsea and PSG boss Mauricio Pochettino, has summoned "Guti" for his first senior national team camp. The dual-national, eligible for both the United States and Mexico, has received attention from both sides of the border in the last 12 months but now finally gets a shot to stake his claim with the first team in the country of his birth.

"Guti was a guy that we always thought highly of," Berhalter said of his time with U.S. Soccer. "We had the U-23 team for him to really focus on. But I spoke to him about this opportunity for him in January Camp, and it's a real opportunity for him to really embrace it and understand that it's a process for him."

"I've seen guys that perform really well and then fade, and guys that start horrendous and put themselves in a big hole and never get out of it. So I just said to focus on consistency, consistent effort, consistent mindset, and try to make a big impact because you can use this as a springboard to be part of the team long term."

The U.S. will play two friendly games at the end of the month, facing Venezuela (January 18th) and Costa Rica (January 22nd) in two low-stakes Florida exhibitions. However, with a lack of true midfielders in the squad, this camp provides a unique opportunity for the 21-year-old to finally showcase himself at the international level and solidify himself as a member of Pochettino's player pool just 18 months out from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Integration from the top down

One area Berhalter focused on in his presentation was building a unique identity for the Fire that resonated throughout the whole club, from the first team down to the academy. He conducted a three-day workshop with club staff, going over his game model to get everyone on the same page, and cited examples from games throughout his USMNT tenure demonstrated his ideal principles.

"We should see something no matter what age group is playing," Berhalter said in his presentation. "It could almost be like there's not even jerseys or emblems on, and we know that's the Chicago Fire. When we add in our principles of play, which are really important, it will create the framework for complete understanding from the players."

The academy has been a point of emphasis in discussion around the club since Berhalter's takeover. The signing of Dylan Borso from the academy, albeit after one short season at Wake Forest, represents one piece of commitment to the club's youth system, and Berhalter has made it clear young players will play a big role in his team. A session on Thursday morning with Fire Academy Technical Director Gary Lewis aligned with all of that too, and he stated numerous times that the club had set of a goal of "getting five homegrown players from Chicago on the field in every game" in 2025.

"We have high aspirations for where we want this club to go, and I don't think the academy has been good enough," Berhalter added after his presentation. "We want to push it as much as we can. We have examples in the United States, we have examples in Europe, and we've had contact with a lot of good clubs to get a lot of good structure and ideas. Now it's about implementing them, but the demand will be that we're producing players for the first team, and we want players from Chicago on the field representing the Chicago Fire."

Cupps, Hlyut will join first team in preseason

Building on the discussion around the Fire's future, Berhalter confirmed that two of the club's top teenage prospects – Christopher Cupps and Vitaliy Hlyut – will join the first team for the first phase of preseason in Florida. Cupps and Hlyut were both contributors for Fire II in MLS Next Pro last season and have been tipped as future stars for the first team in the coming years.

"It's no pressure on them," Berhalter said. "We want to give them an experience, we want them to be around the group and see what the level is like. Hopefully they enjoy themselves and they acquit themselves well. We know they are talented players with long futures, and this is the first part for them of really being embedded with the first team."

Cupps, who is set to captain the U.S. U-17 National Team in World Cup Qualifying next month, recently committed to Notre Dame but is still seeking opportunities with the Fire and will play a role with the second team again in 2025. Hlyut, a dual-national eligible for the U.S. and Ukraine, is also trying to establish himself and is looking to break into a talented U.S. pool in the 2008 age group. The opportunity to travel with the first team to Florida represents a great chance to excel in front of coaches and potentially accelerate their ascent to bigger roles within the Fire's playing ecosystem now and in the future.

Read more:

https://meninred97.com/berhalter-hungry-to-succeed-in-chicago/

https://meninred97.com/what-berhalters-usmnt-stint-tells-us-about-the-fire/

https://meninred97.com/kellyn-acosta-looking-into-the-future-under-berhalter/