Throughout 2016 preseason training, the Chicago Fire attack thrived thanks in no small part to the performance of an in-form Gilberto, whose physicality and combination play proved a handful for opposing MLS defenses.
It was more of the same for the Brazilian Designated Player in Sunday’s season-opener vs. New York City FC. Gilberto’s initial foray in behind the NYCFC back line came in just the second minute, when his speed and a clever step-over in the area brought him face to face with goalkeeper Josh Saunders.
It was far from the last time Gilberto would create a legitimate scoring chance for the Men In Red on Sunday, but unfortunately it was also the play that caused his shift to be cut short, picking up a calf strain that prompted Veljko Paunovic to remove his first-choice striker at halftime.
"We need 100 percent guys on the field," Paunovic explained in his postmatch comments Sunday when asked about the substitution. "We had to decide before the second half started if he can play because we wanted to change the system. We are concerned about the situation and will have to see all the medical tests that he will go through."
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After Gilberto trained separately from the full team Tuesday morning, Paunovic said the staff continues to monitor how the strain progresses and will make a final determination later this week for his availability Friday vs. Orlando City SC (6 p.m. CT, UniMas).
"He has an issue with a strain that happened in the [second] minute of the game on that great chance that he had," Paunovic said. "That conditioned a little bit the outcome of that opportunity. We are working on him and hopefully he can recover, but we are not sure yet."
Aside from Gilberto, Paunovic said the Men In Red emerged with a clean bill of health from the season-opener and that the team is paying close attention to physical recovery from the match, given the short week of preparations, travel, and conditions that await them in Florida.
"We are preparing for the (artificial) turf, we are preparing for the weather, we expect it to be hot there," he said, "and we'll do our best to prepare for those conditions."
