The Galaxy and Fire both come off midweek games to face each other Sunday in the Windy City. Chicago returns home after a loss in front of an amazing crowd in the Timbers home opener. Los Angeles comes off of a draw in Toronto and are hoping superstar Landon Donovan can return today. Donovan did not make the trip to Chicago with the team so it is very unlikely he will play.
How I’ll be watching: I’ll probably be at the airport waiting for my flight home from Little Rock while this one’s going on. So it’ll be listening to Joe Tutino call the game live online from my cellphone for the first 75 minutes or so, but I’m pretty much SOL after that unless I can get someone to record it for me. Then again, I got real lucky with the Toronto match; my flight was delayed three hours, so I got to hear the whole thing live. Who knows, maybe I’ll be that fortunate again.
Who’s out: David Beckham, thanks to Yellow Card accumulation. Juninho, thanks to a stupid, pointless second yellow against Toronto. Donovan’s still questionable with a bum knee. He was in home in SoCal for the DC and Toronto matches, and hasn’t joined the team in Chicago.
What’s the opponent look like: Well, in their last game, they had their heads firmly up their rears for the first 65 or so minutes, until a Portland own-goal kinda-sorta woke them up. Their defense looked disorganized, and the goalkeeper’s performance was an affront to every American that ever played the game, Sylvester Stallone included. They have two injuries right now, Mike Banner in midfield, who started all of 9 games last season,and Steven Kinney on the back line. They’re 1-2-1 (W-L-T) after four games, tied for last in the East on four points.
What do we look like: Oh my. This has not been a fun road trip at all. First, there was that heart-breaker in DC that we shouldn’t have won anyway, and then there was a game in Toronto that we really should have won, but there are no degree-of-difficulty points given for hitting the post in this league. Our offense has been anemic, our midfield has been generous with possession, and our defense has been holding our season together. Our three designated players have been injured (Donovan), reckless (Beckham) and MIA (Juan Pablo Àngel). We’re a hot mess, and we can thank the Soccer Gods that we’ve earned two points in these past two games.
What I’m expecting: As bad as we are right now, Chicago may be worse. This is a game we should win, but so were the last two. If Donovan’s back and healthy, I feel pretty confident. If he’s not, we need a good game out of Chris Birchall and Juan Pablo Àngel in order not to lose. Losing Beckham is going to hurt us on set pieces, which is basically our entire offense, except for the two wonder strikes Juninho has had this season. My prediction: 1-1, with our goal coming off of a miscue by the Chicago goalkeeper. It’s not going to be pretty.
