Photo by SGFsoccer

Team: Chicago Fire
Coach: Carlos de la Cobos
Last Year’s Finish: 4th Eastern Conference, 10th Overall, 9-9-12

Last year’s Chicago Fire were going through a transition regardless of the tumultuous offseason they’ve had.  With the retirement of U.S. legend Brian McBride and MLS veteran C.J. Brown, the team would have had to adjust without its legends.  But management, seeing a mid-table finish in a weak Eastern Conference, decided a rebuild was in order and jettisoned some of its bigger (read: more expensive) names.  To replaces the likes of Freddie Ljungberg and Collins Johns, the team has turned to some international signings and a youth movement.  In an Eastern Conference that is again weak this year, even a rebuilt Chicago team could be a playoff contender again.

Key Roster Additions: To fill the role of veteran leader, the Fire picked up Cory Gibbs in the re-entry draft.  The defender not only will likely start on the backline but can help young keeper Sean Johnson reduce the 38 goals allowed last season.  To score some goals, Chicago turned to Uruguay and signed two forwards: Gaston Puerari and Diego Chaves.  The two were teammates at Motevideo Wanderers in 2009, so their familiarity should help coordinate the Fire’s attack.  Both have scored consistently in their domestic leagues and it behooves Chicago that they do so in the U.S.  An under-the-radar trade brings Jon Conway over from Toronto as a stable and veteran backup keeper to young Sean Johnson.

Key Roster Subtractions: Brian McBride’s leadership and veteran presence will be hard to replace, no doubt.  He finished last season with six goals and four assists.  In the case of addition by subtraction, Freddie Ljungberg made the highly-publicized move to Celtic this offseason after his contract expired.  His impact was not quite as expected so hopefully Chicago can put the money to better use.  Same for Collins John – another pedigreed international who just didn’t adjust to MLS.

Projected Starters: A guaranteed starter is Sean Johnson, who caught Bob Bradley’s attention and was invited to “Camp Cupcake” last month.  He looks to be another in the long-line of overseas-quality American keepers.  The backline will be renovated with C.J. Brown’s retirement.  Gibbs is almost definitely a starter, and could be joined by two newcomers: Josip Mikulic signed from Zagreb and Jalil Anibaba, their #9 pick in the SuperDraft from the University of North Carolina.  Returner Gonzalo Segares could be the other starter on the outside.

Carlos de la Cobos plays both a 4-4-2 and 4-5-1, but with so many new forwards he may play more 4-5-1 at first.  Last season’s leading goal scorer Marco Pappa (8) is likely to start on the right and Patrick Nyarko on the right.  The cooly nicknamed Baggio Husidic will start in the middle possibly flanked by last year’s starter Logan Pause, who has six caps for the U.S. in his career.  Depending on the formation, either Puerari and Chaves will start or the head coach will a midfielder while putting one of the Uruguayans up front.

Player to Watch: Guatemalan international Marco Pappa has three seasons with Chicago and is a key to the team.  Not only was he the team’s leading scorer last year, but he is in his fourth year with the club and is one of the more recognizable players.  With so many new players to the team in key positions, Pappa is a player who can carry the load while the others catch up to MLS.

Predictions: Chicago saw their future last season, and it was middling.  A team with big-name talent that couldn’t finish above the middle of the pack in a weak conference was not a long-term strategy, so management took advantage of McBride and Brown’s retirements to let Ljungberg and Johns walk.  These are definite improvements, but their replacements are unknown.  Will Puerari and Chaves be able to score more goals than the departed talent?  Can youngsters Johnson and Anibaba help reduce the number of goals allowed?  Can Gibbs provide McBride-esque leadership?  This is a team in transition that looks to have maybe less talent overall than last season, but might have more productive talent.  Productive enough to sneak into a playoff spot.

Best Case Scenario: The Uruguayans take to Major League Soccer and provide the goal scoring needed, which is supplemented by a strong and veteran midfield.  Gibbs stabilizes a young backline and they are defensively adequate.  Chicago grabs a playoff spot and makes a surprising run during the playoffs (whatever the structure looks like).

Worst Case Scenario: Same as last year- the international signings fail to come through and the team looks stuck in neutral.  The proud franchise misses another playoffs.  The team has to reassess its strategy the next offseason.

Photo by SGFsoccer

Team: Chicago Fire
Coach: Carlos de la Cobos
Last Year’s Finish: 4th Eastern Conference, 10th Overall, 9-9-12

Last year’s Chicago Fire were going through a transition regardless of the tumultuous offseason they’ve had.  With the retirement of U.S. legend Brian McBride and MLS veteran C.J. Brown, the team would have had to adjust without its legends.  But management, seeing a mid-table finish in a weak Eastern Conference, decided a rebuild was in order and jettisoned some of its bigger (read: more expensive) names.  To replaces the likes of Freddie Ljungberg and Collins Johns, the team has turned to some international signings and a youth movement.  In an Eastern Conference that is again weak this year, even a rebuilt Chicago team could be a playoff contender again.

Key Roster Additions: To fill the role of veteran leader, the Fire picked up Cory Gibbs in the re-entry draft.  The defender not only will likely start on the backline but can help young keeper Sean Johnson reduce the 38 goals allowed last season.  To score some goals, Chicago turned to Uruguay and signed two forwards: Gaston Puerari and Diego Chaves.  The two were teammates at Motevideo Wanderers in 2009, so their familiarity should help coordinate the Fire’s attack.  Both have scored consistently in their domestic leagues and it behooves Chicago that they do so in the U.S.  An under-the-radar trade brings Jon Conway over from Toronto as a stable and veteran backup keeper to young Sean Johnson.

Key Roster Subtractions: Brian McBride’s leadership and veteran presence will be hard to replace, no doubt.  He finished last season with six goals and four assists.  In the case of addition by subtraction, Freddie Ljungberg made the highly-publicized move to Celtic this offseason after his contract expired.  His impact was not quite as expected so hopefully Chicago can put the money to better use.  Same for Collins John – another pedigreed international who just didn’t adjust to MLS.

Projected Starters: A guaranteed starter is Sean Johnson, who caught Bob Bradley’s attention and was invited to “Camp Cupcake” last month.  He looks to be another in the long-line of overseas-quality American keepers.  The backline will be renovated with C.J. Brown’s retirement.  Gibbs is almost definitely a starter, and could be joined by two newcomers: Josip Mikulic signed from Zagreb and Jalil Anibaba, their #9 pick in the SuperDraft from the University of North Carolina.  Returner Gonzalo Segares could be the other starter on the outside.

Carlos de la Cobos plays both a 4-4-2 and 4-5-1, but with so many new forwards he may play more 4-5-1 at first.  Last season’s leading goal scorer Marco Pappa (8) is likely to start on the right and Patrick Nyarko on the right.  The cooly nicknamed Baggio Husidic will start in the middle possibly flanked by last year’s starter Logan Pause, who has six caps for the U.S. in his career.  Depending on the formation, either Puerari and Chaves will start or the head coach will a midfielder while putting one of the Uruguayans up front.

Player to Watch: Guatemalan international Marco Pappa has three seasons with Chicago and is a key to the team.  Not only was he the team’s leading scorer last year, but he is in his fourth year with the club and is one of the more recognizable players.  With so many new players to the team in key positions, Pappa is a player who can carry the load while the others catch up to MLS.

Predictions: Chicago saw their future last season, and it was middling.  A team with big-name talent that couldn’t finish above the middle of the pack in a weak conference was not a long-term strategy, so management took advantage of McBride and Brown’s retirements to let Ljungberg and Johns walk.  These are definite improvements, but their replacements are unknown.  Will Puerari and Chaves be able to score more goals than the departed talent?  Can youngsters Johnson and Anibaba help reduce the number of goals allowed?  Can Gibbs provide McBride-esque leadership?  This is a team in transition that looks to have maybe less talent overall than last season, but might have more productive talent.  Productive enough to sneak into a playoff spot.

Best Case Scenario: The Uruguayans take to Major League Soccer and provide the goal scoring needed, which is supplemented by a strong and veteran midfield.  Gibbs stabilizes a young backline and they are defensively adequate.  Chicago grabs a playoff spot and makes a surprising run during the playoffs (whatever the structure looks like).

Worst Case Scenario: Same as last year- the international signings fail to come through and the team looks stuck in neutral.  The proud franchise misses another playoffs.  The team has to reassess its strategy the next offseason.

If you’re like me, the holidays are a time of getting out of your workday routines due to relaxation/travel/stress.  In fact, at times I miss news stories because I tend not to check news sites or Twitter as much as I normally do.  So as I begin my work week routine again, I notice that I have missed some news items over the past week or so that were interesting or important.

So as a service to our loyal readers and fans who may have been more focused on family and friends than on following all the American soccer news out there (and you know who you are), here is a summary of the major goings-ons from the past week and a half that we have not covered here on MLS Talk.  And if my holiday celebration prevented me from including some major news, please enlighten or remind me in the comments section:

-  The Beckham loan rumors are flying again, and this time he is expected to become a bench option at Tottenham.  The rumor sounds fishy, but Harry Redknapp is crazy like a fox, so maybe there is something to this.  Expect a post this week on David Beckham and MLS.

-  The Generation Adidas class has been finalized, and nine college underclassmen will be part of the 2011 Superdraft, five from the NCAA champion Akron Zips.  Expect many of these players to be taken in the first round and possibly contribute immediately to their new clubs.

-  Edson Buddle and Omar Cummings have been eyed by a few English clubs, but no deals have been announced.  Both players are wanted by their current teams, so we shall see if anything comes of their overseas trainings.

-  Two players who definitely are moving overseas are Robbie Findley and Freddie Ljungberg.  Findley will sign with Nottingham Forest, a second-tier English club, once his work permit has been sorted out.  Former Chicago and Seattle player Ljungberg, who made his name playing for Arsenal prior to his MLS move, has signed a contract with Celtic.

-  In coaching news, Toronto looks set to hire ex-Netherlands international Aaron Winter as its new head coach and Revolution assistant Paul Mariner to the front office.  Or vice versa.  While it’s not official until the press conference, this is good news to TFC fans after the De Rosario controversy last week.  Chivas USA would then become the only team without a head coach, after Juan Carlos Osorio rejected an offer to take the team’s vacant position.  But it looks like RSL assistant Robin Fraser will be named the new head coach very soon.

-  American international Brad Guzan will finally get some starts for a club team, as Aston Villa have loaned him to Hull City.

What did I miss?

Jaime Moreno was not the only big-name retiree this weekend; the Chicago Fire said goodbye to American soccer legend Brian McBride and longtime defender C.J. Brown.  The club’s overall record was disappointing to fans, but by getting ten points in the last six matches the club has some optimism going into the offseason.

Swedish international Freddie Ljungberg was the star of the show, finishing with a goal and an assist.  It was his assist that gained the attention rather than his match-winning goal.  In the fortieth minute he provided a cross in the goal area that for the eightieth time Brian McBride slide into the back of the net, this time with his right foot.   McBride remained on the field long enough to watch Ljungberg slot the game’s second goal inside the right post to take a 2-0 lead, which was expanded to 4 Fire goals later in the match by Carr (67) and Husidic (90+).  Maldonado notched a goal for Chivas, but their season ended as it did so often this season – on the wrong side of the ledger.

McBride, quite possibly the greatest U.S. national player in the past few decades, was substituted off in the 51st minute to applause from the home fans.  Rather than rehash his illustrious career in MLS, the national team, and England, I want to just point out some of the amazing highlights (you can see the summary here).  He was the first player selected in the MLS Inaugural Draft and went on to be named one of the MLS All-Time Best XI.  Since his retirement from international soccer, the US has had problems finding a consistent threat at striker, helping build his international legacy.  He is a legend for his first club the Columbus Crew and his hometown team the Chicago Fire, and MLS will lose another major star next year.

McBride was not the only player playing in his last game, however.  C.J. Brown, one of the “Fire Originals” selected in the 1998 Supplemental Draft, also played his last match.  The defender had a solid international and domestic career, and witnessed all of the Fire’s great moments on the pitch, including one MLS Cup and four U.S. Open Cups.  In a testament to his work in the community, Brown also won three Humanitarian of the Year Awards.

The offseason will be a critical one for both clubs.  Chicago, who is used to contending for the playoffs, could have only one starter back after a number of retirements, contracts expiring, and unprotected players in the expansion draft.  On the other side of the pitch, Chivas fell from four straight playoff appearances to utter miserableness and now face the loss of Jonathan Bornstein to Mexico.

Playoff schedules, analysis, and awards coming later today!  Share your Brian McBride memories below in the comments section.

Freddie Ljungberg hasn’t played for Seattle since July 4 because of an ankle injury, and if the rumors floating around him are true, he may not be playing for them again anytime soon.

The Sun and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer are both reporting that the former Arsenal winger is considering leaving the Sounders for a possible return to Europe.

“Ljungberg is still with the ankle but also, at this point, he is exploring options,” Seattle coach Sigi Schmid told reporters. “So we’ll see how things proceed in the next three, four, five days.”

Sounders’ general manager Adrian Hanauer also sounds like a man preparing to retool his roster a bit.

“I don’t anticipate the roster staying completely as it is,” he said. “The transfer window opened two days ago and we’ve been working hard and will continue to work hard to make the team better. That certainly is likely to include … There are internal things we can do then there are roster moves and certainly roster moves are something that we’re working on.”

The former Swedish international has made 37 league starts for the Sounders since his arrival in 2009, netting two goals and 12 assists in that span.

Think Ljungberg is heading back to Europe? Will Seattle, which has been playing fairly well in his absense, need to make a move to replace him?

I guess we’ll just have to see how things proceed…

Editor’s note: MLS Talk writer Josh Pedley recently sat down with Sigi Schmid to reflect on the 2009 season, to take stock of Seattle’s successful season and to look ahead to 2010.

Here is the transcript of that interview:

Before the season, you stated that making the play-offs would be a minimum requirement. Having achieved that, are you disappointed to go out at the first stage?

Yeah it was disappointing but at the same time we were the first expansion team to make the play-offs in their first year since Chicago in 1998. But we had high expectations because of the squad we had and having experienced players like Freddie Ljungberg and Kasey Keller.

Houston Dynamos have been one of the strongest teams over the past couple of seasons but it was a close game. What did you think was the difference between the two sides? How key was their experience of previous playoff campaigns?

Best way to describe it is that Houston’s 4 starting midfielders have been playing together since 2006 and for us, as a group, we are in our first season. They had a little bit more belief, were harder, a bit more physical and their experience definitely helped.

It was a big decision to leave Columbus Crew for a new franchise. What was it that attracted you in the first place?

Well, the contract negotiations were going bad with Columbus and dragging on. I heard what was happening in Seattle and spoke to the club and liked what heard. And speaking to Joe Roth (Sounders FC majority owner), Adrian Hanauer, Paul Allen and Drew Carey (minority owners), I knew something special was happening here.

Seattle has a soccer history and a huge amateur scene. But still have you been surprised by the soccer fever that has gripped the city?

The atmosphere has been unbelievable from the start. The owners did a good job in keeping guys from the previous Sounders around, to provide that link with the past, and the support has been fantastic. I think our attendance puts us up in the top 50 clubs in the world and you just have to go around the city and you will see lots of people with Sounders jersey’s on and people honking their horns and wishing you well.

How do you plan to take the team forward? Will there be big squad changes or do you plan to keep the nucleus together?

The planning starts now, we are already having meetings about next season and providing the players with their off-season plans so there ready to comeback fit. We are also looking around at players and I’m going out to a few college games as well. I think its easier in year two. Last season we didn’t know what we had. Now we do, so we know that we need a couple of wide guys and we need to add a little bit of guts to the team.

How do you feel Freddie Ljungberg has performed this season? It’s the first time in a while that he has been injury free?

We signed him on the basis that he would have surgery on his hip to correct that. And he came into the side after our second game and apart from missing one or two games with a migraine he has played.

We had games against Everton and Chelsea this summer and they noted that it’s the freshest they had seen him in a long time.

How important have the experienced players been in helping this season?

Having Freddie and Kasey has definitely helped. We have a lot of young guys and they would help them out and talk to them about things on the field, which has been great especially for a wide guy like Steve Zakuani.

The players got to know him and like him but the best example he set was by training hard. That has more effect than any words.

And what chances are there of him following Beckham and moving to Europe for the off-season?

It’s a possibility but Beckham needs to play because he has the World Cup on his mind. Freddie doesn’t have that as Sweden didn’t qualify, so he’s not been motivated towards that goal. I think he wants to take a little time off and relax and then comeback ready for next season.

Freddy Montero has been a great signing for the club. There were rumours about a move to Europe with Fulham. How far do you think he can go in the game?

He’s still young, just 21, and he can still get better. The biggest difference to a player like Montero is the adjustment to training. Getting used to the rhythm and the hard work of a European or North American training schedule is a lot different to that of South America and he will get better and better the more he gets used to it.

Highlights of the season?

Obviously winning the US Open Cup was definitely a highlight and no one will ever forget the opening game. It was a great day for the city and a great atmosphere.

And if the league were a single table (instead of two conferences) we would have finished just two points off first place. Just one win away from winning the regular season championship and that would have been an amazing achievement in our first season.

What are your experiences of the 1994 World Cup? And what would getting the world cup for 2018 mean?

It was a pretty unique time, as we had no professional league, so except for the guys playing in Europe, we were training like a club and trying to get games against teams to be ready. We played against countries I had never even heard of, like Moldova and Armenia, just to play.

Bora [Milutinovi?, USA Head Coach] really set a rhythm and a way of playing. We weren’t the most entertaining side but he set a structure that gave us the best chance.

If we get the World Cup in 2018 the US team will be a lot better. There will be more depth in the squad and I believe we will have the quality to beat any team on our day.

1994 was massive in raising the awareness of the game but 2018 would be on another level. The atmosphere was great in 1994 but the landscape has changed and people are more aware know of soccer. For example, in 1994 Seattle wasn’t a host city.

We have fantastic stadiums and due to the sheer size of our population, the games will be played to full grounds of 60,000 – 80,000 people.

One of the major complains that many have against the MLS is that it is a developmental league. No American dreams of playing for the San Jose Earthquakes or the Kansas City Wizards – they imagine themselves playing in Italy, Spain or England. The best MLS players are always eyeing their European opportunities. Their agents are mapping out career strategies of moving from the US to one of the “lesser” European leagues in Holland or Denmark as a transition to a bigger European League. The USMNT has two types of players – those who play in Europe and those who should.

For many US Soccer fans, this reality has made Major League Soccer look like a minor league operation, simply holding players until they get a shot at the big show. Seeing the trickle of past-their-prime players like Freddie Ljungberg, Kasey Keller and (yes) David Beckham make the reverse journey only reinforces the degree to which the MLS is viewed as an unimportant league. While Tony Parker comes to the NBA to compete against the best, his fellow Frenchman Patrick Vieria looks at spending his last year as a professional playing in the MLS as “an experience.”

When you go to a MLS game, you look around the crowd and see lots of people wearing the jerseys of some of the great teams of Europe. What is the soccer fan who is wearing the Arsenal, Barca, Real Madrid, AC Milan or ManU jersey at a MLS game really saying? “I love this sport, and I am willing to come to a MLS game because that is all we have, but please don’t confuse me with someone who thinks this is any good.”

So when will the MLS be talked about in the same breath as the EPL, La Liga, or Serie A? Realistically, the answer is never. The MLS will always be a feeder league for the high fliers of Europe. We should absorb that fact, and root for our MLS team without reservation or an ounce of insecurity.

There are plenty of great soccer nations that export all their great players and yet command a fervent following from their fans. Nearly every great Dutch player plays outside of Holland, and that does not make the Ajax fans walk around bemoaning the state of their league. The majority of the Argentina national team plays in Europe, and the River vs. Boca Super Classico in Buenos Aires makes the Galaxy/Chivas Superclassico look like a garden party. And of course, there is not a single member of the Brazil starting XI who plays for a Brazilian club team, but there are still over 400 teams in the Brazilian Football Confederation.

The US Soccer fan has to adopt this same attitude. The MLS is our league, and its players are our players. When some of them get the opportunity to play in Europe, that does not diminish the status of our league – it enhances it. It proves we are turning out players with the ability to compete among the best. Whether our teams can compete among the best is irrelevant.

Sometime in January, a handful of the best the MLS has to offer – Chad Marshall, Robbie Rogers and (almost certainly) Landon Donovan – will be taking off their cleats and uniforms and be putting on their boots and kits. As a proud MLS fan, I will be looking forward to see how they stack up with their new teams in their new leagues. I will also be looking forward to seeing the new blood the MLS brings in. I will still go to my 12 Galaxy games a year and Tivo the rest. I will still play my Sunday 5 on 5 games in my “vintage” gold and green Galaxy uniform.

The MLS may not be a first tier league, but that does not mean we should be second tier fans.