Chicago Fire FC will look to make it two wins in a row at Soldier Field when they welcome CF Montréal to the lakefront on Saturday afternoon.
Head coach Raphael Wicky's side got their first win of 2021 last weekend in a 1-0 finish against Inter Miami CF. Midfielder Luka Stojanović provided the difference on a direct free kick in the second half. Montréal enter today's match with eight points from seven matches played under new head coach Wilfried Nancy, and are currently in seventh place in the Eastern Conference.
Today's matchup kicks off at 12 p.m. CT, with coverage available on WGN-TV, CFFC Live, and Latino Mix 93.5 FM. Take a look at how the Fire will line up below:
- Two changes have been made to the opening lineup from last weekend's win against Inter Miami CF.
- Midfielder Gastón Giménez returns to the first XI after missing last weekend's match with a right hip injury. Luka Stojanović also rejoins the starting lineup for the first time since May 8. Stojanović scored the match-winning goal as a substitute last weekend against Miami.
- Fabian Herbers gets his second-straight start after returning from a right injury to make his first start of 2021 last Saturday. Herbers was named Heineken Man of the Match for his performance in the win.
- Homegrown product Brian Gutiérrez starts for the third match in a row. He'll join Herbers and Robert Berić in the forward line this afternoon.
- Álvaro Medrán makes his 30th appearance and 29th start for the Fire today since joining the Club in 2020.
- Wicky will deploy the same defensive unit for the third-straight match, consisting of captain Francisco Calvo and Wyatt Omsberg in central defense and Boris Sekulić and Miguel Navarro out wide. Goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth will look to earn a second clean sheet in a row.
- Available to Wicky as substitutions tonight are goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina, defender Jhon Espinoza, defender Carlos Terán, defender Jonathan Bornstein, defender Johan Kappelhof, midfielder Javier Casas Jr., midfielder Mauricio Pineda, midfielder Ignacio Aliseda, and forward Chinonso Offor.
- Midfielder Stanislav Ivanov (left knee), midfielder Elliot Collier (right leg) and goalkeeper Kenneth Kronholm (right knee) are out for tonight's match.
Get a look at both team's starting lineups as they're available in the graphics below:
