Crew vs. Fire: Match Preview

By: James | July 3rd, 2008

On May 25th, the Chicago Fire beat the Red Bulls 5-1 earn a spot at the top of the table, tied with Columbus and New England. That bright spot came in the midst of a poor run for the Fire: It’s their only MLS win after week 7, that’s a record of 1-4-2 since May 17. Chicago has slid to fifth in the Eastern Conference, and Columbus sits in second. With the Revs and DC busy with SuperLiga, and Toronto participating in Canadian CONCACAF play, July presents opportunities to both Chicago and Columbus.

There are a lot of parallels between the Crew and the Fire. For one, the Crew is only 2-3-2 since May 17. The Crew had 4 games without a goal from 5/17 to 6/7, but have scored 8 goals in the 3 games since. The Fire hasn’t scored a goal since June 10, but even with those 3 goal-less games they maintain the best goal differential in MLS at 9, compared to Columbus at 5. Icredibly, Columbus and Chicago failed to score against the some of the same teams: both failed to produce against San Jose and Chivas USA during their goal droughts.

The Crew seemed to keep faith during their goalless streak, proclaiming in every interview that the goals would come. It’s hard to read the mind set of the Chicago side, even if Chad Barrett seems a little shaken by his failure to score. Still, it’s probably better for the Crew to assume the worst: Chicago wants to do the Crew at home like Columbus did Kansas City: a homestand shaming. With Sigi Schmid out this week for his daughter’s wedding, I’m curious to see how Robert “The Polish Rifle”
Warzycha directs the Crew, especially how he manages substitutions and halftime adjustments.
Mexican legend Cuauhtemoc Blanco plays a similar role for Chicago that Schelotto plays for Columbus: a veteran playmaker who can control play and create chances. Managing Blanco is a critical detail for Columbus this week. Defender Wilman Conde has recently stepped up to join Gonzalo Segares as stand outs in the back and should provide strong pressure against the Columbus attack.

Tomasz Frankowski, Chad Barrett, and Chris Rolfe provide attacking options up front, but offensive play has had trouble gelling and seems to get broken up in the midfield. Andy Herron left Columbus to start 2008 with Chicago and is competing for the starting spot in the attack. However, Herron went out after 16 minutes last week and won’t play this week due to a concussion.

A real standout for Chicago, even during this tough stretch, is South African midfielder John Thorrington. He has a strong presence on the field and transitions well from offensive to defensive play. Still, Chicago’s weakness seems to be in the midfield. They give up a lot of possession here, and haven’t been able to control the tempo of their recent games.

To win, Columbus will need to focus a little more on possession than in previous weeks and still be ready find opportunities for the quick, dangerous attacks and counterattacks that have led to many of this year’s goals. Controlling the midfield, especially winning 50-50 balls and aggressively pressuring Chicago in the middle third could really unlock the game for Columbus.

The game is not without risks. Denis Hamlett is likely to have noticed that Colorado was able to out-shoot Columbus last week, and were especially effective when they moved quickly out of the middle third, essentially chipping balls into the attacking third and hoping for the best. Columbus will need to sort out whatever defensive issues left men unmarked and the defense out run. Fatigue seemed an issue last week for the defense, which can be somewhat rectified if the Crew concentrates more on possession.
Similarly, defensive clearances and midfield play focused on moving the ball into the attacking third as quickly as possible as last week’s game moved to a close, even when Columbus was up a goal. The Crew lost possession too easily and allowed the Rapids offense to press the Crew defenders as they struggled with fatigue. Again, focusing more on possession and building to chances out of the midfield should help bottle up the Chicago attack, as well as soften their admirable defense.

Look for Hesmer to calm his play this week and to work on more effectively directing the defense. Danny O’Rourke should look strong on the left, but will need to mark his man carefully, and challenge aggressively as play approaches the defensive third, trusting Iro and Marshall to back him up. Hejduk will deliver. Iro and Marshall are building a rapport in central defense, but there seems to be some difficulty coordinating activities with Brian Carroll.
I am a huge Brian Carroll fan. He hasn’t gotten a lot of attention, but he has an impact that casual fans might not appreciate. Carroll has done so much to strengthen the Crew’s defensive profile, knowing where to be when to break up attacks as they develop. He fights for every ball. On the offensive side, Carroll has been effective in distributing balls down the line, as well as find ways to capitalize on balls dropped to negative space.
As the defense has retooled and Brad Evans has taken a persistent spot upfield of him, Carroll hasn’t quite sorted out his role whereas in the season’s original lineup he was always in the right place at the right time. I’m hoping that, again, shifting the focus slightly toward possession, Carroll can play a pivotal role in a victory.

Schelotto, Moreno, Rogers, and Ekpo should be able to provide some potent attacks, but will need to stay in step with one another. I’d like to see them mix up their pace of attack: taking the time necessary to craft solid tries developing out of a probing midfield in some cases, yet punching through to breakneck crosses in other cases. Brad Evans, and to a lesser degree Emmanuel Ekpo, need to hit their stride in the first half rather than into the second half as they often do. Evans should focus a bit more on pressuring Chicago when they possess the ball in their own half. He clicks well with Schelotto in the second half but needs to be ready from the first whistle.

Possession and tempo can win this one for the Crew, but I’m nervous about it. The Crew needs to be ready from the opening whistle and on every restart. Chicago will be hungry, so the Crew need to set the tone early and to get exceptional support from the 12th man that is Nordecke. I want 3-1 Crew, and will get it if Columbus executes. Chicago, though, will be playing for the win. If they’re up, it will be a serious challenge.