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The Chicago Fire (3-5-2, 11 points) return home to host the Montreal Impact at 7:30 p.m. CT Saturday in the first of three regular season matches between the two sides in 2015. The Impact will host the second and third legs at Stade Saputo on Saturday, Sept. 5 and Wednesday, Sept. 23. Chicago, which has never lost to Montreal at home, enters the weekend unbeaten in five matches against Eastern Conference opponents this season.
The match is the first of five straight league outings slated to be telecast on CSN Chicago or CSN Chicago Plus, with the broadcast team of Dan Kelly, Kevin Egan and Danielle Slaton handling Saturday's matchup for the main CSN Chicago channel. For those planning to attend the match, visit Chicago-Fire.com/Matchday for ticket purchasing, guest services information and gameday traffic advisories.
Last Time Out
• The Chicago Fire staged a late, come-from-behind draw on the road against Columbus Crew SC last Friday evening at MAPFRE Stadium. After Crew SC seized a 2-0 advantage courtesy of a Kei Kamara brace, the Fire staged a furious comeback begun by a David Accam header and capped when substitute Jason Johnson headed home his first goal in a Fire shirt -- and just the second of his MLS career -- for a 94th-minute equalizer.
• Last week’s 2-2 road draw against Columbus Crew SC marked Fire ‘keeper Jon Busch’s 300th MLS regular season appearance, making Busch just the fourth goalkeeper in MLS history to achieve the milestone behind Kevin Hartman, Nick Rimando and Joe Cannon. Busch, who claimed 2008 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year honors during his first stint with the Chicago Fire, played his 300th match in the same venue where he debuted for Columbus in 2002.
Opponent Profile:
Record: 2-3-2, 8 points
Last five matches: 2-2-1, 7 points
Goals leader: Jack McInerney, Ignacio Piatti, Andrés Romero (2)
Assists leader: Ignacio Piatti (2)
Saves leader: Evan Bush (25)
Numbers To Know:
26 – Consecutive MLS road matches without a win for Montreal. Since winning 4-2 at New England on Sept. 8, 2013, the Impact have lost 19 and drawn seven times away from home in the regular season and playoffs. A 3-2 CONCACAF Champions League win over C.D. FAS is the team’s only road win in all competitions during that stretch.
7 – Games for Montreal from Friday to June 27. Every team in MLS has played at least 10 games except for the Impact, who have played only seven due to the Canadian Championship and the CONCACAF Champions League. The trip to Toyota Park begins a brutal stretch with five road matches.
6 – Goals in the Impact’s last two games after scoring three in the first five outings of 2015. Despite all the injuries affecting the team, from Dominic Oduro to Justin Mapp to Kenny Cooper, the team’s quick and lethal attack has found its form and is punishing opponents. Most impressive was a 2-1 win Saturday against one of the top contenders in the Western Conference, FC Dallas.
Keep An Eye On:
• The Impact have played only seven league matches thus far in 2015, due in part to their impressive run to the final of the CONCACAF Champions League tournament that culminated on April 29. Saturday's match means a return to Toyota Park for many familiar faces now plying their trade in Montreal, including former Fire forward (1998-99) and head coach (2011-13) Frank Klopas as well as former Fire midfielders Dilly Duka (2013-14) and Justin Mapp (2003-10), forward Dominic Oduro (2011-12) and defender Bakary Soumare (2007-09, 2013-14).
• Last week’s standout, Ignacio Piatti, has been the key to this recent stretch of success for Montreal. His ability to create in tight spaces draws so much attention that he has been able to set up great opportunities for Jack McInerney and Andrés Romero in tons of open space. The Impact counter attack is a thing of beauty when it runs through Piatti. He causes defenses to condense toward the middle of the field, then finds his wingers out wide for dangerous crosses. A side that struggled to score early in the season is now making opponents pay in an instant, and it’s because of Piatti. The Fire will need to slow him down and prevent him from gaining momentum going forward.
Download the complete MLS Game Guide for Chicago vs. Montreal
This Week's MLS National Broadcast Matches:
