“No, I don’t think so. Because you know, beyond those top three or four teams, everything is still there within reach,” Chicago Fire FC head coach Ezra Hendrickson said. “You know, we have eight games now to play. We just got to remain confident, and I got to make sure I instill that confidence in them, that we have not reached our ceiling, that our ceiling is above the line, if there is a ceiling.
“The last two games and yes, it’s been tough opponents. But NYCFC haven’t really been in that good of form and we’re at home, and we’re fighting for our playoff life. At the least, we have to show up. We didn’t show up; that’s the disappointing thing about it. I know we can play better football. The goals we’ve given up, even last week, are very soft goals. Some miscues but for the most part, just soft goals. And that has to stop. And so, it starts with that, we’ve got to stop giving up poor goals and then the football has to be better.”
Trying to have the club playing at the same level as in past matches didn’t seem to be there for some reason. Anything that Hendrickson could do with changes with subs or try to get some energy, it didn’t seem to be there.
“This is the first time all year that I felt we weren’t in the game the entire time, from start to finish,” Hendrickson said. “Yeah, there were some moments, hitting the crossbar late in the game there, but for the most part, our game was not fluid, and we play a more fluid football than what we showed. And I don’t know how to explain that, but I know we haven’t reached our ceiling because I still think this team can do what it takes to get into the playoffs.”
Even on the pitch, some of the players we’re not seeing some of the success that was with the team recently. But what was missing as a group that wasn’t there to be playing better.
“We need to be better on the ball, guys need to take the ball and try to play forward,” Chicago Fire FC midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri said. “There (are) a few things we need to do better. But we will sit together and check this out with the coach.”
“There (are) a few things. We have to deal better with the ball, you know, we need to want the ball more, everybody. This is what New York showed us today, how we should play. They played very well; they managed the game and that is what we want. We weren’t in our best form today.”
A trip to the playoffs is in sight if the team can regroup and find its recent form, but they will have to do it quickly and against some of the better teams out there like hosting Montreal next Saturday night 7 p.m. CT back at Soldier Field.
