Aiming to snap a four-game winless run across all competitions, the Chicago Fire welcome the Columbus Crew to Soldier Field for an MLS showdown on Saturday evening.
Frank Klopas's team suffered a 4-1 US Open Cup defeat to the Houston Dynamo in their most recent affair, while the visitors put Charlotte to the sword 4-2.
Match preview
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The new manager bounce has well and truly worn off for Chicago Fire, who won both of their opening two games under Klopas last month, but the 56-year-old has since overseen a slight downturn in fortunes.
Three days on from losing 1-0 to FC Cincinnati - not the worst result against the runaway leaders by any stretch of the imagination - the Fire were thrashed in the quarter-finals of the US Open Cup against a Houston Dynamo side sitting just one point better off than them in the Supporters' Shield standings.
Arnaud Souquet had initially given the Fire a slice of hope following strikes from Amine Bassi and Ibrahim Aliyu, but the latter completed his brace in the second half before Nelson Quinones put the cherry on the icing on the cake.
With just one win to shout about from their last seven matches in all tournaments, this weekend's hosts are only above Inter Miami in the Eastern Conference Standings, although a return to Soldier Field should lead to some optimism within the Fire faithful.
Indeed, Klopas's charges have gone unbeaten in each of their last nine MLS matches in front of their own fans, although seven of those contests ended with the spoils shared, and the most potent team in the East now prepare for what they hope to be a successful sojourn to Illinois.
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While defensive deficiencies are still bedevilling them, the Columbus Crew still possess the formula for attacking success and sealed back-to-back triumphs during Sunday's visit of Charlotte, netting four goals within 59 minutes and staving off a late fightback from their visitors.
Christian Ramirez's fourth and fifth goals of the 2023 season came either side of efforts from Max Arfsten and Cucho Hernandez, while two quickfire strikes from Charlotte duo Karol Swiderski and Justin Meram ended up proving meaningless against Wilfried Nancy's red-hot charges.
Thanks to a pair of home successes against Charlotte and the Colorado Rapids - scoring seven goals while also shipping four at the other end of the field - the Crew are firmly in postseason contention in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, while lying 10th in the overall standings.
No team in the top tier can match the Crew's 33 goals throughout the season so far, but Nancy's men often leave a lot to be desired on the road, as they have lost their last three MLS matches outside of Ohio and have won just one of their last 14 on rival territory.
Recent history favours the Crew, though, as they have lost just one of their last 10 meetings with Chicago Fire in all competitions and ran out 3-2 winners at Soldier Field last season - coming from two goals down to triumph - although their most recent showdown with the hosts in September ended in a drab goalless draw.
Team News
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None of Carlos Teran, Chris Mueller or Sergio Oregel should return for the Fire just yet as the trio battle back from leg concerns, while Mauricio Pineda is in concussion protocol and should miss out too.
It remains to be seen if Chris Brady (head) and Jonathan Dean (leg) will be given the green light to line up too, but Klopas should not be afraid to make several alterations in the wake of their cup disappointment.
Jairo Torres, Kendall Burks and Kacper Przybylko should be among those considered for recalls, and despite netting his side's consolation in cup action, Souquet's spot may not even be safe; the Frenchman was withdrawn at half time against the Dynamo.
As for the Crew, Nancy also has an unenviable list of absentees to work around, as Milos Degenek (ankle), Will Sands (knee), Gustavo Vallecilla (thigh) and Josh Williams (ankle) are all confined to the treatment room.
There is also a question mark hanging over the heads of Luis Diaz (back), Alex Matan (thigh), Eloy Room (knee) and Kevin Molino (knee), but Nancy should see no reason to disrupt the harmony following last weekend's success.
Chicago Fire possible starting lineup:
Richey; Herbers, Souquet, Czichos, Burks, Aceves; Shaqiri, Torres, Navarro, Gutierrez; Przybylko
Columbus Crew possible starting lineup:
Schtule; Zawadski, Amundsen, Moreira; Arfsten, Morris, Nagbe, Yeboah; Ramirez, Zelarayan; Hernandez
We say: Chicago Fire 2-2 Columbus Crew
Chicago Fire may have exited the US Open cup with a whimper, but with Klopas sure to ring the changes, a 10th unbeaten home game in a row in MLS could be on the cards, especially given the Crew's miserable record on the road.
The visitors are still a force to be reckoned with in the final third, albeit while struggling for clean sheets at the other end of the field, and we can envisage a back-and-forth contest ending all square.
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