The Chicago Fire made waves throughout American soccer yesterday when they hired former USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter as their director of football and head coach once their 2024 MLS season concludes.
Naturally, this marks a change for the organization as previous top football man Georg Heitz will head to Lugano as Berhalter arrives to take over the sporting side of the club.
Many questions remain to be answered regarding how Berhalter will set up the organization and the next few weeks should provide plenty of opportunities for everyone to see how the former USMNT team boss will operate back in club soccer.
The Fire job won’t be like the one Berhalter had with the Columbus Crew. Berhalter was fighting an ownership group that wanted to move the club to Austin and did well with the parts he was given, though the resources he will now have in Chicago far exceed that of his previous MLS head coaching job.
Operating as both a director of football and a head coach is largely an out-of-date model in professional soccer in 2024 but the Fire have empowered Berhalter to operate as such in his new position. He will only report to owner and chairman Joe Mansueto, allowing for a good deal of autonomy should Mansueto continue to operate with Berhalter as he did with Georg Heitz.
One thing is for sure: this roster will look very different by June 2025, if not earlier.
From the rest of my notebook:
22 under 22
Major League Soccer released its annual list of 22 notable young players around the league and not only did Brian Gutiérrez and Chris Brady make the list for the second consecutive year, but they made the Best XI as well.
Brian Gutiérrez No. 4
Gutiérrez, 21, moved up one spot from last year after showing off more goal-scoring prowess in his third full MLS Season with the Fire. You can see the ambition growing in the Fire Homegrown’s game and his nine MLS goal contributions (six goals, three assists) in 2024 are a career-high and his six goals are the second-most on the team behind Hugo Cuypers with ten.
Chris Brady No. 13
Brady is about to wrap up his second full season as the Fire’s starting goalkeeper and he climbed four spots up the 22 under 22 list after being included in 2023. Still only 20 years old, Brady already has 63 starts in MLS and a 71% save percentage in the league.
MLS Next Pro Playoffs
Fire II will host Orlando City B on Oct. 20 at SeatGeek Stadium after the two clubs were the final remaining options in the Eastern Conference pick-your-opponent selection show on Tuesday. The match will kick off at 2:00 p.m. CT and admission will still be free in Bridgeview.
International Window
Four members of the Chicago Fire organization will be in action during the international break, with three of them playing massive continental matches.
Ariel Lassiter, Costa Rica
Oct. 11 vs. Suriname, 5:00 p.m. CT, CONCACAF Nations League A Group 1 Round 3, Paramaribo, Suriname, Broadcast on Paramount+.
Oct. 15 vs. Guatemala, 7:00 p.m. CT, CONCACAF Nations League A Group 1 Round 4, Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica, Broadcast on Paramount+.
Sergio Oregel, USMNT U20
Oct. 12 & Oct. 15 vs. Chile U20, International Friendly, Complejo Deportivo Quilin, Santiago, Chile.
Georgios Koutsias, Greece U21
Oct. 15 vs. Croatia U21, 11:00 a.m. CT, EURO U21 Qualification Group G, Gradski Stadion, Koprivnica, Croatia.
Omari Glasgow, Guyana
Oct. 11 vs. Guatemala, 8:00 p.m. CT, CONCACAF Nations League A Group 1 Round 3 Leonora, Guyana, Broadcast on Paramount+.
Oct. 15 vs. Suriname, 7:00 p.m. CT CONCACAF Nations League A Group 1 Round 4, Paramaribo, Suriname, Broadcast on Paramount+.
MLS Offseason Dates
Major League Soccer announced its calendar for offseason events through the end of 2024, all of which will be of note for a Fire franchise that will be resetting under Gregg Berhalter and the staff he brings in.
Nov. 27: Club Deadline to Exercise Options and Submit Bona Fide Offers (1 p.m. ET)
Dec. 9: Half-Day Trade window (9 a.m. ET – 1 p.m. ET)
Dec. 11 - Saturday, December 14: MLS College Showcase
Dec. 11: MLS Expansion Draft
Dec. 12: Free Agency Opens (1 p.m. ET)
Dec. 12: End-of-Year Waivers (5 p.m. ET)
Dec. 13: Re-Entry Process , Stage 1 (1 p.m. ET)
Dec. 19: Re-Entry Process, Stage 2 (1 p.m. ET)
Dec. 20: 2025 MLS SuperDraft
What’s On Tap Next?
The Fire will host Nashville SC on Decision Day at Soldier Field on Oct. 19. The match is scheduled to kick off at 5:00 p.m. CT and will air on MLS Season Pass on AppleTV+.
Follow @soccer_ontap on X for more Chicago Fire news and updates!
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