{"id":8774,"date":"2017-07-28T16:47:35","date_gmt":"2017-07-28T20:47:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosonsoccer.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=8774"},"modified":"2021-12-13T18:26:02","modified_gmt":"2021-12-13T23:26:02","slug":"chicago-fire-face-test-vs-skc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/2017\/07\/28\/chicago-fire-face-test-vs-skc\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago Fire&#8217;s Mettle To Be Tested Against Sporting KC"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\">The Chicago Fire face the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicago-fire.com\/standings\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">top defensive team<\/a> in Major League Soccer on Saturday at the end of a remarkable week in American Soccer. A record breaking transfer deal and a wild $4 billion dollar MLS media rights proposal were announced all before the United States Gold Cup win on Wednesday night. Chicago&#8217;s visit to Children\u2019s Mercy Park will be the first game in Sporting Kansas City\u2019s post Dom Dwyer era. SKC\u2019s star striker departed the club in a record <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsoccer.com\/2017\/07\/25\/making-sense-dwyer-trade-sporting-kc-orlando-city\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">setting MLS intra-league<\/a> deal sending the English-American back to Orlando City. Saturday\u2019s match will be a new start for the Fire too as The Men In Red look to bounce back after their <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsoccer.com\/2017\/07\/22\/davd-villa-shorthanded-nycfc-chicago-fire\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first loss since April<\/a>. The Fire will look to get back to their previously dynamic form in a period of lineup shifts and transfer rumors.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Still buzzin! What an incredible month it&#39;s been <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ussoccer?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@ussoccer<\/a>. Thanks to all our fans for riding with us through this journey! \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83e\udd47 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/sjBVaOMRaL\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/sjBVaOMRaL<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Dax McCarty (@DaxMcCarty11) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DaxMcCarty11\/status\/890741952425201668?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 28, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h1><strong>Chicago Fire&#8217;s Mettle To Be Tested Against Sporting KC<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p class=\"p1\">Despite the departure of Dom Dwyer, the Fire face a tough environment in which to \u2018bounce back.&#8217; SKC hold the top defensive record in the league and are undefeated at home. Children\u2019s Mercy Park has been a fortress for the club and boasts a staggering 97-game sellout streak. The Fire are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicago-fire.com\/standings\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">currently five points ahead of SKC<\/a> in the Supporters&#8217; Shield race with a game in hand. Saturday\u2019s match will be the 28th ever trip to Kansas City for the Fire, currently holding a 8-10-9 record there. Both squads should be bolstered by the return of their 2017 Gold Cup Champions, Fire captain Dax McCarty as well as SKC\u2019s Matt Besler and Graham Zusi.<\/p>\n<h3>Paunovic&#8217;s Breakout Campaign Faces Midseason Hurdle<\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\">Saturday may be an awkward affair for Veljko Paunovic\u2019s men. The Fire showed again in New York what was seen in Orlando. The Men In Red had difficulty in adapting to a parked in defense and a general malaise in form. SKC will surely have a good plan to limit the Fire\u2019s attack in addition to having a significant home field boost. Dax McCarty\u2019s return should aide this problem as he was on national team duty during both of these disappointing performances. Keeping SKC off the scoreboard is an absolute must if the Fire are to win any points at Children&#8217;s Mercy Park.<\/p>\n<h3>Summer Distractions<\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\">The Fire\u2019s defensive depth will also be tested with injuries to left back Brandon Vincent and center back Jonathan Campbell. The contest in Kansas City may also prove difficult as it&#8217;s the Fire\u2019s third away game in a row and arrives just days before the MLS All Star game. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mlssoccer.com\/all-star\/2017\/rosters\/mls-all-star-team\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Four of the Fire\u2019s players<\/a> and their head coach will participate in next Wednesday&#8217;s exhibition against Real Madrid. Fire midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger was voted captain of the 2017 MLS All Star team.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Thank you to everyone who voted and a special thanks to <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ChicagoFire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@ChicagoFire<\/a> for your support! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2z5GiRkHrz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/2z5GiRkHrz<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Bastian Schweinsteiger (@BSchweinsteiger) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BSchweinsteiger\/status\/890294014402080769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 26, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Fire\u2019s David Accam on being left off All-Star roster: &#39;I\u2019m disappointed my coach ignored me\u2019 &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/GOXPJBMqFq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/GOXPJBMqFq<\/a><\/p>\n<p>(<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheDanSanto?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@TheDanSanto<\/a>) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/cf97?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#cf97<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8cUbz5aUqE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/8cUbz5aUqE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Chicago Sports Network (@CHSN__) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CHSN__\/status\/890962192073465858?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 28, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The summer transfer window has yet to net any new Men In Red at post time but there has been plenty of chatter. The main topic has been an ongoing discussion of Colombian midfielder Juan Fernando Quintero&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FireConf\/status\/889637482068836353\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">acquisition from FC Porto<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.csnchicago.com\/chicago-fire\/fire-talk-podcast-does-david-accam-have-long-term-future-fire\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">notable interest<\/a> in David Accam from Europe as well. The Fire are now thin in both the defender and goalkeeper positions. Uruguayan goalie <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheDanSanto\/status\/890948148348190721\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jorge Bava was sent to the disabled list<\/a> Friday morning which leaves just Matt Lampson and rookie Stefan Cleveland in net for the Fire. Chicago&#8217;s resilience will be put to the test in Kansas City and will do well earn a result.<\/p>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/698881762\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 67.003367% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/698881762?et=O0sxJJQLTBBl0gU13UBaTw&amp;tld=com&amp;viewMoreLink=off&amp;sig=IobWTqh5eXSPcRZDmnuNdFH2FiGpNcM1pUOlVp2e6Tc=&amp;caption=true\" width=\"594\" height=\"398\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p style=\"margin: 0;\">\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Chicago Fire face a tough test this weekend as the Men in Red travel to face a Sporting KC team who&#8217;s undefeated at home and have allowed just 15 goals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1809,"featured_media":8786,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13,2,119],"tags":[1334,92,86,89,120,383],"class_list":["post-8774","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fire","category-featured","category-mls","tag-2017-mls-all-star-game","tag-bastian-schweinsteiger","tag-chicago-fire","tag-david-accam","tag-dax-mccarty","tag-sporting-kansas-city"],"modified_by":"Michael Kovacs, ADMIN","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1809"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8774"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8774\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8786"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}