The Chicago Fire haven’t made the MLS Cup Playoffs in back-to-back seasons since their five straight appearances from 2005-09. They’ll have a chance to change that Wednesday evening against the visiting Philadelphia Union.
The Fire (14-8-6, 48 points) have several potential paths to a playoff berth Wednesday, but a victory would guarantee their place.
“It’s good to be able to be thinking about qualifying (for the playoffs) already,” Fire left back Leonardo Barroso said, according to MIR97 Media. “We’re coming off a win, so we have the confidence to play our game, especially at home.”
Beating Philadelphia (12-10-6, 42 points) will be easier said than done for a Fire team that has won three matches in a row. The Union have won seven straight and are 11-0-2 in their past 13 outings.
Philadelphia, though, is looking to stay grounded ahead of “probably the biggest game that we’ve had to play,” according to interim head coach Ryan Richter.
“Now, with the run that we’re in, to play against a really good team like Chicago, it’s a chance for us to show that we belong in the position we are in the league, and we’re going to continue to push forward to now compete against the top teams in the Eastern Conference,” Richter said.
The Fire won the last meeting between the two teams, 2-1 on March 21, which dropped the Union to 0-5-0 on the season. That came nearly five months after Philadelphia swept Chicago in a best-of-three first-round playoff series.
Milan Iloski (17) is tied with the Vancouver Whitecaps’ Brian White for the third-most goals in MLS. The Union striker made it seven goals in his last seven matches during a 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
Maren Haile-Selassie has two goals and two assists in his last two matches for Chicago. He scored his 10th goal of the season and added an assist on Saturday during the 10-man Fire’s 2-1 win over New York City FC.
Chicago midfielder Dje D’Avilla will miss Wednesday’s match (red-card suspension).
–Field Level Media
