BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. (July 31, 2023) – Chicago Fire FC tied Club Puebla 1-1 at SeatGeek Stadium on Monday night to advance to the Leagues Cup 2023 Round of 32. Due to the match finishing in a tie, the two teams went to kicks from the penalty spot that went to 10 rounds before Puebla prevailed to earn the extra point. With the result, Chicago finishes atop Group Central 2 with four points and will host Club América, who finished in second place in Group Central 1 with three points.
Following the draw, Chicago Fire FC Head Coach Frank Klopas, midfielder Mauricio Pineda and goalkeeper Chris Brady discussed the result and the upcoming knockout match against Club América.
Chicago Fire FC Head Coach Frank Klopas
On advancing to the Leagues Cup Round of 32...
"Look, I think that was a really good game. I think both sides, they came out with really good energy. I think both teams played, I think you could just see by the reaction of the fans, and I think you can appreciate that both teams put a lot into the game, created a lot of opportunities. The game was exciting on both ends. So that was fun. And then obviously it was great for us, you know, finishing first in a group. It's always great being at home, that was one, very important for us, not to be able to travel.
And then, you know, you're playing Club América here, like I told the guys, it's going to feel probably like we're in Azteca playing them. But it doesn't matter, it's great to play Puebla today and then obviously América, really, teams with good quality and should be a fun match."
On improvements to be made on set pieces...
"I think we worked on stuff but it's still, you have to give credit to the other team also for defending well. You know, it's not just the personnel you have in there. Regardless of Kei [Kamara], Kacper's [Przybyłko] a big target, [Georgios] Koutsias attacks the space really well, but when he's not there, we still have really big guys. But they defended extremely well. We still created a lot of good opportunities. We had almost, you know, expected goals, almost three, which was great to see. And we just couldn't, we scored one offsides, I have to look at that one again, really tight, I think. Anyway, it's just an exciting game, but that's something we work on. You still have to give credit to Puebla for defending that really well."
On Ousmane Doumbia's first start...
"I thought he was excellent. Really good energy and this is the first game that he's played 90 minutes in a while, so he's just going to be sharper. I really like his – without the ball – his discipline. You know, he's a really disciplined player. He knows, he reads the game extremely well. In the short time that we have worked, he's picked stuff up pretty, really quick. And then with the ball, he has really good ability, timing of his passes, he plays the ball really quick, he sees things really quick, he's already made a decision before the ball comes. I thought he was excellent, he's going to continue to improve and he's just a great addition for our team."
On the challenge of facing Mexican teams...
"Thank you for the question. I mean, it's exciting. I mean, playing Puebla tonight, you can just see the energy level and it was great for our fans. Obviously, there were a lot of Puebla fans over here, but also the Fire fans – it's good to see a different opponent.
Again, with América, me – myself as a coach – I faced them before, many years, when I was coaching in Montréal in the Concacaf final. It wasn't a happy ending for me back then, but it was always great to play a club like América, especially playing them in Azteca and at home in Montréal, so it should be exciting. I know they've played here before in the past, América, so we're looking forward to it. It's gonna be exciting Friday night. Hopefully the stadium is packed and you know that they see two really good teams competing and playing well."
On the Club's shootout performance...
"Yeah, I mean, I think even with [Rafael Czichos], normally, he's spot on and the PK's when he takes them. When it gets to a certain point, I felt that everyone came up with confidence. Maybe he came a little bit late, maybe not being in the game and stuff like that. But, you know, I relied a lot on them for him. And, you know, every time we've been doing it in training, he's been spot on. A little bit surprised that he shot right down in the middle of the first one. But look, he's the leader, he's the captain, everyone else has stepped up and you know, just buried the – and then it gets to a point where it's, you know, the goalkeeper makes a save or someone tries to hit a little too close to the corner like it happened and there was the ending. But I felt everyone just stepped up with confidence. I have to see now, rethink about maybe the order going into it again. But I still have confidence in Rafa, he will be in there."
Chicago Fire FC Defender Mauricio Pineda
On the team’s performance tonight…
“I thought we played pretty well for the most part, I thought we could have been cleaner, offensively, to take care of some chances, half-chances that we had. I think with that, we could have been up in the game, then we give up a goal and then we're chasing the game. I think we did well to get back into the game and then tie it. Some good moments towards the end of the game, too, kept pushing. I'm sure the fans could appreciate that. So we're happy with the effort, unfortunate to lose in PK’s but like you said, top of the group so we're looking forward to Friday.”
On the crowd atmosphere tonight at SeatGeek Stadium…
“It was nice. It was loud. We heard them, you heard them having their own competition out there. I would hear Fire and then the Puebla fans started screaming so yeah, it was good. It was a good atmosphere to play in. And yeah, it was an exciting game. Glad we got enough to get top of the group.”
Chicago Fire FC Goalkeeper Chris Brady
On topping the group and advancing to the next group…
“Ultimately, the goal for this game was to advance to the next round and top the group, which is what we did. For us it's a job well done and preparing for Friday.”
On shooting his first career penalty…
“What was going through my head was just do what I practiced and execute really. In the back of my mind, it was just ‘keep calm, don’t let anything get in your head.’”
On handling the emotions of the game and moving onto Club América…
“Yeah, that we’re hyped for. In terms of this game, I think the guys are pretty easily putting it aside. The main thing for us is that we advance and top the group which is what we did. We’re really good at flipping the switch and prepping for the next game on Friday against América. We’re ready.”
On his personal assessment of his performance during the penalty kicks…
“I’m not going to say much about the first PK that I saved because you guys can see for yourself what everybody else saw, what I saw and what I think. But yeah, for me to reset is hard, I was able to – because you saw that second one. Same thing. But I mean, you guys see it all on camera, you guys see what happened and you guys see what the refs are doing. I’m not going to talk too much about that.”
On Xherdan Shaqiri’s recent form over the past few games…
“That hypes me up, for sure. After he scored I was pretty hyped, but for the whole team. It gives us a confidence boost that you know, he’s feeling himself and he’s cooking and he’s looking to dice people with his passing and his shooting. He’s back. It definitely gives us all a bit of confidence.”
