(Over the next week we?ll look at two or three Major League Soccer clubs per day, considering what they need to accomplish and which questions most deserve answers during preseason training camp. Opening day in MLS is March 2.)
Frank Klopas? team wasn?t the best coming down the stretch late last year, but it was a good one ? and absolutely one of the most intriguing.
If someone other than Chris Rolfe could have scored a few more goals in October and into the November playoffs, perhaps we would be looking upon Toyota Park differently today.
Klopas? team is spending the first 10 days in relative seclusion at Ave Maria University in Florida.
- Is there another scorer in the Fire house?
Looking at the men who finished last season with Chicago, after Chris Rolfe?s team-leading 8 goals, Patrick Nyarko, Dominic Oduro and Sherjill MacDonald had 14 goals between them. Not. Good. Enough. (And while Maicon Santos, collected through the re-entry draft process, may provide some able depth, he?s not the answer.)
- Who steps into the Pavel Pardo leadership void?
The club announced Jan. 19 that Pavel Pardo, their highly respected Mexican international midfielder, had retired from professional soccer. Leadership and chemistry seems to be a talking point as camp opens this year.
(MORE: One of CONCACAF?s best retires from Chicago)
- What does a new midfield look like?
New additions Joel Lindpere (from New York) and Jeff Larentowicz (pictured above, from Colorado) give Chicago more bite in the middle, a little more athleticism and more forward drive. ?It?s on Klopas now to build the right balance around them, and to pinpoint exactly where Lindpere (who played centrally and on the left for New York) best fits.
Next up later today: Chivas USA
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