The Chicago Fire hit the road this weekend for a Saturday meeting with the Houston Dynamo.
Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. CT with coverage coming to you on ESPN+ and Univision Radio WRTO AM 1200. Get set for Saturday with this weekend’s Match Storylines, presented by NovaCare.
Form Guide
The Dynamo (9-10-3, 30 points) are coming out of a 1-0 defeat to the Seattle Sounders last weekend, in which they were undone at home by an acrobatic second half Jordan Morris finish. Head coach Wilmer Cabrera and his side have lost seven of their last nine matches with the result, but sit just one point outside the playoff picture. They’re currently in ninth place in the Western Conference through 22 matches played.
The Fire will look to claim three points away from home, after finishing scoreless against D.C. United at home last weekend in a 0-0 draw.
Saluting a Legend
As he announced in late May, the 2019 season will be the last for current Houston Dynamo and former Fire defender DaMarcus Beasley, who will call it a career at year’s end.
No less than a U.S. Soccer legend, Beasley got his professional start with the Fire and made 134 appearances across all competitions from 2000-2004 before departing for PSV Eindhoven of the Dutch Eredivisie.
Beasley is a two-time Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup champion, a five-time MLS All-Star, a 2003 MLS Best XI selection, and won the Concacaf Gold Cup four times with the U.S. Men’s National Team. He returned to MLS in 2014, and is in the midst of his fifth and final season with the Dynamo.
Join us in saluting a Fire legend in what will be his final regular season meeting against his first pro club.
Bornstein Debuts
After arriving in Chicago a mere 11 days ago, defender Jonathan Bornstein made his Fire debut in last weekend’s scoreless draw against D.C. United. Bornstein went 90 minutes in his first MLS appearance since playing with Chivas USA in 2010, and helped the Fire record the team’s first clean sheet since May 11. He’ll now look to help contain a Houston side led by forwards Mauro Manotas and Alberth Elis, who have combined for 15 goals and 12 assists so far in 2019.
All-Star Pivot
On Wednesday night, Bastian Schweinsteiger represented the Fire in the 2019 MLS All-Star Game at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium. Schweinsteiger came on at halftime for LAFC defender Walker Zimmerman and put in a 45-minute shift in a 3-0 victory for visitors Atlético Madrid.
In addition, Fire defender Andre Reynolds II and Dynamo defender Erik McCue each put in 45 minutes in Tuesday night’s MLS Homegrown Game, a 3-2 penalty shootout win against the Chivas de Guadalajara Under-20 team.
#HOUvCHI All-Time
Saturday’s match will be the first and only meeting of the Fire and Dynamo in 2019. The Fire are 6-10-8 all-time against the Dynamo dating back the team’s inception in 2006. Last season, the Dynamo were 3-2 victors in a May 20 meeting at SeatGeek Stadium.
