Chicago Fire Notebook: Carlos Terán on Recent Run, Frank Klopas on Seattle, Federico Navarro Update, More

The Chicago Fire find themselves in a precarious place as they begin a three-match run that includes two trips to the West Coast.

Chicago is currently bottom of the Eastern Conference table with 18 points but is only three points out of the playoff positions through 19 matches. They Fire have scored in six consecutive matches after only scoring a single goal in the preceding six MLS contests.

Xherdan Shaqiri has been away with the Swiss National Team for EURO 2024 and Chicago’s results tilted positively in his absence until a major hiccup over the weekend in Orlando when they lost 4-2 after going down 3-0 within a half hour of kickoff.

The Fire need to find points and this weekend in Seattle is a prime opportunity to steal a result against a short-handed Sounders Squad at Lumen Field. Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer confirmed to reporters Thursday that Raúl Ruidíaz and Nouhou will not play against Chicago, saying that it was a “coach’s decision” to keep the two players out on Saturday.

After taking only a single point against fellow Eastern Conference playoff hopeful Orlando City in their two matches, the Fire need to get a result against their non-conference foes this weekend.

From the rest of my notebook:

Carlos Terán

Terán has been at the center of the Fire’s defense ever since Frank Klopas shifted to a three-center-back formation a few weeks back and the defender’s play has risen in that time. The Colombian defender said his side was frustrated last weekend but needs to bounce back this weekend in Seattle.

“It was a difficult game,” said Terán during the club’s weekly media availability on Zoom. “Orlando plays very good. This is soccer. We take a bad decision and for us, it's difficult because we have an objective and we want to work for that.

“When we have that game, like Orlando, it's difficult for us, for the defense, for the team, for the club. But this is past. The next game is Seattle and we need to go there and do our work.”

With Colombia competing in Copa América, Terán’s long-term goal of getting a national team call-up is on his mind.

“That’s my dream. I want to play for the national team. I work for that. I know the level there is difficult. I need to work for that. That's the solution. Working and enjoy my work and, for now, I don't have that in my mind because I know that I need to do my work in Chicago Fire to go to the national team. The decision is for the coach but for me, I go to work hard for that. I want to go to the national team.”

For now, the Fire’s center back can only focus on preventing goals for the club and maybe then he will get on that international radar that he so desperately desires.

Frank Klopas on Tough 3-Match Stretch

The Fire will have two trips West in the next few weeks and Frank Klopas expects a slightly rotated squad to be used during this tough three-game span.

“Well, I think for this game, I think it's just preparation,” said Klopas during his weekly media availability. “It's just normal preparation. But I think that, you know, rotations are going to come, it's going to be a part of -- I think within the three games. We just have to take one game at a time and assess where guys are.

“Obviously, we are going to Seattle. You're playing on turf. You come back here after a long trip and we're on grass, and then, you know, then we go to San Jose, but the good thing is it's not a Saturday game. It's a Sunday. It gives us an extra day.

“But you know, I think we take one game at a time and prepare accordingly to an opponent and obviously we have to see how guys are recovering and how they feel after the next game, and for sure, you know, we are going to have to freshen up the team, you know, with some rotation in players, that's for sure.”

The Fire will need to bounce back this weekend against a Seattle side they’ve defeated in consecutive matches in all competitions going back to 2020.

Federico Navarro Injury Update

Federico Navarro hasn’t played for the Fire since their 1-1 draw against Orlando at Soldier Field on May 29 despite being listed as Questionable on the club’s availability report throughout June. Frank Klopas doesn’t expect the midfielder to be back on the pitch for at least another week.

“He still has not been on the pitch with the team doing anything. He's still inside and doing recovery stuff and treatment. I'm just hoping some point next week he's going to start taking part in training sessions.

“Obviously gradually, but as of right now, he's just been doing stuff inside with the trainers. He's, you know, unfortunately for this game, not be available. We'll have to see if there's any chance where he can be, you know, available to help the team versus Philly but then probably more realistic, San Jose or even past that.”

Academy Hardware

The Fire Academy’s U15 side came back with a trophy last weekend after scoring three unanswered to defeat the LA Galaxy Academy 3-1 in the 2024 U-15 MLS NEXT Cup. Forward Darris Hyte was named the tournament’s MVP and goalkeeper Alexander Ivanov took home the U-15 Goalkeeper of the Tournament accolade from Nashville.

Bryan Dowd Loan

As previously reported, goalkeeper Bryan Dowd is joining Nashville SC’s MLS Next Pro side Huntsville City SC on loan for the rest of the season. The deal is now official and comes with the wrinkle that Nashville maintains the option to acquire Dowd through a trade after the 2024 MLS Next Pro season. Now Dowd has a chance to forge a professional path for himself throughout the remainder of the season.

What’s On Tap Next?

The Fire will be in Seattle to take on the Sounders on Friday, June 28. The match is scheduled to kick off at 9:30 PM CT (enjoy your afternoon snooze) and will air on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+.

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