Enemy Scouting Report - Chicago Fire FC

(image via Chicago Fire FC)

The Houston Dynamo open their 21st season with a home clash against an Eastern Conference opponent, the Chicago Fire on Saturday night at Shell Energy Stadium.

The Dynamo have an all time record of 8W-6L-7D against the Fire, with a record of 5W-1L-4D when playing in Houston. Futi, by John Muller, categorizes the Fire as a team that mainly played with the “Patient Buildup” and “Central Attack” tendencies, meaning that they primarly played with slow build ups through the back which transitioned into attacking down the middle.

This playstyle brought the most out of Chicago’s talented wingers Jonathan Bamba and Philip Zinckernagel. However, Chicago could be without Bamba this weekend. The Fire brings back players that accounted for 88.4% of their minutes played last season, the most in MLS. They hope to get back to their great end-of-season form, where they won 7 out of their last 12 regular season games, including a 5-3 win at eventual MLS Champions Inter Miami.

Key Players:

Philip Zinckernagel

31 year old Danish Winger - Former Nottingham Forest player who had 30 goals and assists in MLS last season playing as an inside winger.

Hugo Cuypers

29 year old Belgian Striker - Ended last season with 19 goals, tied for 6th most in MLS, but he could be out for the Dynamo matchup.

Robin Lod

32 year old Finnish Midfielder - Signed as a free agent after 6 seasons at Minnesota United. He scored 5 goals and tallied 2 assists in 15 games against the Dynamo for Minnesota.

Head Coach:

Gregg Berhalter

A familiar face for US Soccer fans, the longtime USMNT Coach returned to MLS with the Chicago Fire last season. Under Berhalter, the Fire returned to the MLS playoffs for the first time since 2017, scoring the second-most goals in MLS (2.0 per game).

Last Match Staring XI (from fotmob.com)

Here’s how the Fire lined up in their last game, a 4-3 loss against Portland in the Preseason.

2026 Roster

Goalkeepers: Chris Brady, Jeffrey Gal

Defenders: Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Viktor Radojevic, Leonardo Barroso, Diego Konincks, Chirstopher Cupps, Sam Rogers, Jack Elliott, Joel Waterman, Andrew Gutman

Midfielders: Anton Saletros, Andre Franco, Dje D’Avilla, Sam Williams, Philip Zinckernagel, Robert Turdean, Jonathan Bamba, Dylan Borso, Maren Haile-Selassie, Johnny Dean, Sergio Oregel Jr., Mauricio Pineda

Forwards: Dean Boltz, Jason Shokalook, Hugo Cuypers, Omari Glasgow, Chris Mueller