The Fire look to get back in the win column against New England originally appeared in NBC Sports Chicago
Ten games into the season and it’s fair to say things haven’t gone exactly as the Chicago Fire imagined.
The team is mired in a three-game winless streak and has not won since early April, when they defeated the Houston Dynamo 2-1. Playing their third consecutive game at home, the Fire will look to get back into the win column when they face the New England Revolution.
“I just think we need to get results at home. I think that’s the important thing,” said Frank Klopas. “We know it won’t be an easy game. You look at the team that, in the table, is at the bottom. But we know it’s a quality team. You know, the league here has a lot of parity. There are no easy games.”
As Klopas mentioned, Revolution are at the bottom of the table in the Eastern Conference. They won just one game and conceded 18 goals, tied for the most goals conceded in the Eastern Conference.
It’s good news for the Fire, who have gone three games without scoring a goal. Chicago scored just 11 goals in ten games. It’s one of the reasons why the team is close to the bottom of the standings.
To score, opportunities have to be present. It’s an area that Kellyn Acosta alluded to during the pregame press conference.
“I think it’s a combination of moving the ball from the back to the front and finding our attacker,” Acosta said. “I feel like we have to get the ball to them in dangerous areas where they are revealing their strengths, and I think we didn’t do a good job of advancing the ball into situations for them.”
In addition to New England’s poor defensive record, they also have the worst attack in MLS, having scored just six goals all season. In short, it’s a match that the Fire should expect to get three points from.
That being said, despite their record, they are not a team that is being underestimated.
“Yes, they have a good team,” Acosta said. “They know each other and have been around for a few years, the same group of guys with their number 10, Carles Gil, he is a special player. He makes the team move. I think he’s the catalyst for the team and he’s a guy you should definitely be interested in. And from the attackers to the full-backs, it’s a team with a good system and a team that fights until the end.”
These two teams have already faced each other this season, with New England holding off the Fire’s 1-1 result in March.
Both teams are desperate for a win, but playing at Soldier Field and given New England’s struggles on both sides of the ball, it’s a game that, on paper, favors the Fire where they should come away with a positive result.
