Chicago Fire FC is set to square off with the Philadelphia Union for the third time this season on Sunday night, in what will be a nationally broadcast matchup from Subaru Park.
The Fire will enter the match coming out of one of their most statistically dominant performances of the season last weekend, but they were ultimately on the wrong side of a 2-1 defeat at home to Toronto FC. Head coach Raphael Wicky is back at the helm having missed the prior three matches due to personal matters, and he'll look to get a win against the Union this evening after a 2-0 defeat in May and a wild 3-3 draw back in June. Head coach Jim Curtin and the Union currently occupy fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
Coverage of tonight's match comes to you nationally on UniMás, TUDN, Twitter (English audio) and TUDN 1200AM starting at 5 p.m. CT. Get the details on how the Fire will start in the lineup notes below:
- Three changes have been made to the starting XI that fell to Toronto FC last weekend.
- Captain Francisco Calvo returns to the lineup having returned from participating in the Concacaf Gold Cup tournament with Costa Rica. He replaces Jonathan Bornstein in defense, in what will be his first start for the Fire since the Fire's last meeting with Philadelphia on June 26.
- Forward Chinonso Offor is back in the starting XI for the first time since June 19, replacing Robert Berić in the attack alongside fellow starter Ignacio Aliseda.
- Midfielder Fabian Herbers gets the starting nod tonight after appearing in the Fire's last two matches as a substitute and picking up an assist against Toronto. He's in for the injured Miguel Navarro this evening.
- After scoring the team's lone goal against Toronto last weekend, midfielder Álvaro Medrán gets his seventh straight start. Medrán retains the team leader in assists with five so far this season.
- Medrán will be joined in midfield by Gastón Giménez and Przemysław Frankowski. Tonight's match marks the third-straight that outing in which this trio will start alongside one another centrally.
- Rounding out tonight's defensive backline are Wyatt Omsberg, Mauricio Pineda, and Boris Sekulić. Sekulić's impressive run of starts continues, having been part of the opening lineup in all 36 of his Fire appearances dating back to his debut last season.
- Goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth takes his usual place in net tonight in Philadelphia, entering the match with the third-most saves made in Major League Soccer this season (56).
- Available to Wicky as substitutions tonight are goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina, defender Jhon Espinoza, defender Johan Kappelhof, defender Jonathan Bornstein, midfielder Stanislav Ivanov, midfielder Luka Stojanović, midfielder Brian Gutiérrez, and forward Robert Berić.
- Defender Carlos Terán (right shin), defender Miguel Navarro (right shin), midfielder Javier Casas Jr. (right shin), midfielder Elliot Coller (left foot), and goalkeeper Kenneth Kronholm (right knee) are out due to injury for tonight's match.
Get a look at Philadelphia's starting lineup below: