THOUGHTS ON THE FIRE: The message that Fire head coach Veljko Paunovic sent to fans after Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Portland is likely not one fans want to hear. Here’s a reminder of that message:
“I want to send a message to what I exactly said to the team. ‘Get ready and prepare for a tough couple of months. Because, we are from the team that we were and it’s going to take some time to fix it. We have to stick together.’ I want to make that clear. We have a good team, but we’re still not in the shape that this team used to play and showed in the past. The past is behind and what we have to do now is what’s in front of us. It’s a difficult situation with a lack off confidence, lack of precision and the lack of product. I promise we will fix it and I promise that in a couple of months I’ll make a different outlook.”
This Fire squad still feels very much incomplete and it shows. The defense continues to look horrid at times. While Brandon Vincent did get a goal and assist, nobody is covering for him when he makes runs forward. While Aleksandar Katai looked good in the first two games of the season, a halftime substitution is not a good sign. It looks more and more like the Fire’s Plan A was to acquire Juan Quintero (who went to River Plate) and Plan B is still being worked on and will be for a couple of months.
Already, the Fire are bottom of the East and that immaculate form from the first half of last season continues to look more of an aberration. The Fire have not sent the best of messages to its fans in the offseason and fans will not like the one given on Saturday night because it gives another message that the Fire have been lackadaisical in trying to build upon last season in almost every way.
THOUGHTS ON THE RED STARS: The Red Stars also look incomplete, but that’s mainly due to injuries to several key players and that Sam Kerr has been on international duty. That said, the Red Stars have not shown endeavor until they fall behind and that’s two games in a row that that has happened. They managed a point in Houston, two weeks ago, but no points against Portland.
Hopefully, the Red Stars will get some players back and we may get a truer sense of what the Red Stars are made of in two weeks when they visit Utah.
Chicago Fire
