Media Day at the Bridgeview Sportsdome featured the full current roster in training with the exception of the two mystery international strikers, Deris Umanzor who has been loaned to Aguila in El Salvador, and Steve Kinney and Mike Banner who are recovering from injuries.
Carlos De Los Cobos and Frank Klopas addressed the media after training. You can listen to both interviews here in the first episode of 2011 Fire Confidential podcasts.
Filed under: 2011 Pre Season
Tags: 2011 Pre Season, Carlos De los Cobos, Chicago Fire, Frank Klopas
Why is it I am always more confused about the team when DLC talks about it?
Yikes!
That's because DLC is confused.
Come on Klopas, we are snowed in and bored, give us some news about these two un named forwards to provide a badly needed warm and fuzzy feeling about this season. Save us from this frozen wasteland! If they are already signed by the league what is with the coyness?
For real, don't tell us there will be announcements on Monday if it's now Wed with no announcements still. Maybe someone needs to explain to them the power of expectations in business. Makes them look like they don't know what they are doing...which, looks more and more like that's the reality of the Fire's front office.
By the way, I'd love to see a list of starter level players (or close to) that have left the organization in the past 2 years and the starter level players that have been brought in. No time like the present, so I'll take a stab at it, though I'm sure I'm missing players...
Out:
1. Busch
2. Brown
3. Soumare
4. Ward
5. Prideaux
6. Blanco
7. Thorrington
8. Rolfe
9. McBride
10. Mapp
11. Conde
12. Segares
13. Castillo
14. Ljungberg
15. John?
16. Lowry?
In
1. Watson-Sirobe
2. Gibbs
3. Ristic
4. Segares
5. Husidic
6. Johnson
7. Kinney
8. Anibaba?
9. Paladini?
10. Bone?
11. Mikulic?
12. The mysterious, top secret int'l strikers that most likely won't be announced for another few weeks? (side note, these players better be worth the wait and anticipation that the organization has created)
By the looks of it, it's pretty easy to see why the organization has slipped so far. It's too early to make rash judgments, but there are so many question marks that it's at least worth questioning whether the organization has done enough to this point to justify much faith. I hope I'm wrong and these signings and new players live up to some of the names that have departed recently. But I foresee a very rough '11.
That would be a pretty good have your say piece.
Stephen King starts for DC. Going back to Williams at RSL and Guerreo, Jaqua and now Lowry and Thorrington, the Fire unprotected have all been starters in the league. Add Ward, Busch, Mapp and Barrett and the fire have lost talent with zero in return
I believe Barrett was traded for the rights to acquire McBride. I considered King too but wasn't quite sure what his status was nowadays. If he's starting for DC, that's another one to the list.
Barrett was indeed traded for the rights to McBride.
I think they overpaid for MacBride as he would only play for Chicago and MLs were desperate to have him. We traded a young player for 1 and 1/2 seasons of McBride. good if he puts you over the top, not so good long term if he doesn't . Barrett scored as many goals as McBride and was traded for value to LA. By itself, no big thing, but it is part of a drain of players with little in return.
True....but the decision was a no brainer at the time.
Excellent break down of info on each trialist......
http://www.hottimeinoldtown.com/2011/2/1/1968038/sam-stejskal-releases-list-of-trialists
More info than the Team has supplied us on the trialists, but is there anyone to be really excited about? No one on the list that makes you say YES the Fire are going to make a run of it this season. If these two mystery players are linked to the Taliban I would be apprehensive about clueing us in as to who they are but after this list of trialists they need damage control, time to put up or stop wasting our time!
Nice point Drew on the exodus of talent and the lack of quality coming in to replace them.
The answer to the question on the trialists is no. The snow must also have affected the completion of ITC paperwork, which is apparently being delivered via pony express.
Maybe we should send our season ticket payment checks via the same service...might expedite things a bit!
http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/report-osorio-lead-honduran-national-team
that would explain why homeland security shut down the streaming sites
I'm sure the sites will be back after the superbowl
I would make that trade every time it would be presented to us. We got rid of Chad Barrett to get Brian McBride. Its a no brainer still today.
I'm with you on that Joe.
My favorite part of the whole McBride-Barrett transaction, aside from getting my childhood hero on the Fire, was that the game right after Barrett was traded, the gameday program advertised a special section called "Getting to know Chad Barrett". Classic.
The pony must have arrived and dropped the ITC's in the Fire's mailbox this morning.....player announcement coming at 11am.
about effin time. why are we the only team in the league that can't announce an international signing until the ITC and visa has been worked out? could you ask frank that question next time you see him? and do you think that if 2011 doesn't go so well that both cobos and frank will be shown the door?
I would say that both of their jobs are on the line if there is no improvement in 2011....and I will ask him about the ITC issue.
Feel like I'm in a James Bond film waiting for the announcement. I can here the thickly accented person manning lthe clock..."Five minutes and counting"
Who will he be?
I hope I don't react like an owl and say "Who, Who"
http://www.chicago-fire.com/news/2011/02/fire-sign-gaston-puerari
Well?
Or maybe not so well
Watched you tube highlights, hope he works out. at least he has a Wikipedia page.
This might be why they are so hesitant to announce
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?p=22722135
Frank -- no pressure !! Brazilian midfielder Marcos Paullo has signed with the New York Red Bulls following a trial with the Major League Soccer team last year.
The 20-year-old spent last season with Atletico Paranaense in Brazil but did not appear in a first-team game. He appeared for the Red Bulls as an 81st-minute substitute in the exhibition against Manchester City on July 25.
His signing was announced Wednesday.
except the guy philadelphia took last year, he lasted one game IIRC
After they are announced and their names don't appear on Wikipedia we'll know in advance they suck.