Ambitious Chicago Fire FC to start 2023 MLS season on Saturday

Chicago – It’s time for a fresh start with the start of the Major League Soccer season, but things are no different for the club than they have been for years.

Chicago Fire FC hopes to find the right chemistry again, stay consistent, and end their current six-year playoff drought. Over the past decade, many times that question has not been answered, leaving many wondering if the club will be able to do so.

For the past two seasons the club has been out of the playoffs in the last few weeks of the season.

Manager Ezra Hendrickson is credited with motivating the club as it kicks off the MLS season against New York City FC at Soldier Field on Saturday night.

“I think it’s the lack of respect you get from the experts that’s also fueling the players, if you want to call it bulletin board material,” Hendrickson said. “But I think they stay together. This is what we asked them to do.
The team on and off the field, and we see it. at the stadium,
Whether the team is off the field together.

“I think that’s been seen very well in preseason, so we’re going to continue to push that forward.”

Training camps in Cancun, Tuscon and Chicago have done just that, with groups featuring returning players such as Xherdan Shaqiri and Chris Muller, and 10 homegrown players who make up a significant portion of the group. increase.

Goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina (Chelsea FC) and winger John Duran (Aston Villa) were among those who left the club, while Kay Kamara, one of MLS’s all-time top scorers, is a forward. Along with Georgios Kuzias, he is one of the top newcomers.

This is a group that Hendrickson hopes will defy outside expectations and help the club reach a playoff berth for the first time in six years.

“I think we always have expectations as a team, especially after last season when we didn’t make it to the playoffs. “Yeah, in the end, as coaches say, he’s the boss, and he
Set some goals and try to achieve them. ”

The quest to do it starts Saturday night.