Fabian Herbers: It's 'On Us' to Capitalize on Philadelphia Union's Poor Form

The Chicago Fire have found themselves in a predicament as the calendar turned over into July.

They’re currently bottom of the Eastern Conference table with only 18 points from 20 league matches and they’ve dropped consecutive matches in very different, frustrating manners as they continue their quest for the club’s first playoff berth since 2017.

The Fire went down 3-0 in less than thirty minutes against Orlando and ended up losing 4-2 in Florida despite playing well in the second half. Chicago doubled down on only playing a solid half in Seattle by following up one of their best 45 minutes of the season with two penalty kicks for the Sounders that sent the Fire home without a point .

Fabian Herbers told On Tap Sports Net that he found some solace in his team’s early performance against Seattle before the wheels came off in the second half.

“I think the first half was actually one of the best halves of the whole season,” Herbers said. “From what I can remember offensively and defensively, especially for 30-35 minutes, were really good with the ball, really good against it and didn't concede many chances. And then ourselves, I think we created a little bit and we were just really comfortable on the ball.

“Then coming out in the second half, we knew that Seattle was going to push a little bit, you know, come out a little bit higher pressing, which they did. But then we failed to find the moments where we can actually keep the ball and make them run.

“You know, you lose at the end of the day with two penalties. Obviously, Chris makes a couple of good saves as well during the game and in the second half. But I think we just have to eliminate the individual mistakes that we then end up making. Because I think if we were just organized and structured, I don't think we’d give up a lot. But then you would just give them two penalties. And that's a hard way to lose.”

Chicago needs to begin consistently taking points against Eastern Conference foes. Two of the Fire’s four wins have come against Western Conference opposition and Chicago has already played both of their matches against fellow-struggling sides Orlando City and New England Revolution. They have a prime opportunity to make up some ground in the standings against a Philadelphia side who have lost four straight and are without a win in their last seven.

Herbers, who was drafted by Philadelphia in the first round of the 2016 MLS SuperDraft out of Creighton and spent his first three professional seasons with the organization before being traded to Chicago in 2019, has confidence in his side after they played well for most of their season-opening match against the Union.

“I think we had a good game there in the first game of the season, it was a really good battle. Both teams deserved to maybe even get the three points there. We got to a point at the end of the day and Philly is a team that is struggling now as well. And you know, they haven't really struggled in a long time, so I’m a little bit surprised to see that.

“But it's on us now to capitalize on that. We play at home. It's a midweek game, so we have to be prepared and go against it. We have to make something up, gain some more points right now, especially now that we lost the points in Orlando and in Seattle. So we go [out] there to win.”

The Fire are expected to be without Federico Navarro and Carlos Terán against the Union alongside the long-term injuries to Andrew Gutman, Chase Gasper, and Tobias Salquist. It wouldn’t be surprising if the Fire called up Chicago Fire II defender Diego Konincks for the second time this season after he was an unused substitute against Toronto three weeks ago.

Who: Chicago Fire vs Philadelphia Union

Where: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

When: July 3, 2024. 7:30 p.m. CT

How to Watch: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+

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