On Tuesday afternoon, Fire Insider caught up with "The Professor," head coach Juan Carlos Osorio, just moments before he and the rest of the "Men in Red" boarded a bus for the airport for their flight to Kansas City to take on the Wizards. With just a few seconds to spare, Osorio gave his best rapid-fire responses for each of the Fire's strike force featured on the www.chicago-fire.com website: Chris Rolfe, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Paulo Wanchope, and Justin Mapp.
Fire Insider: What's your assessment of each player in the attacking third, starting with Chris Rolfe?
"Chris Rolfe's an important asset in and around the 18-yard box. He has good movement, and can turn on a defender quickly. He also has a natural ability to finish."
FI: Cuauhtémoc Blanco?
"I believe Cuauhtémoc's main attribute is his vision. He has the ability to see and anticipate everything on the field in order to execute the final pass."
FI: And what of striker Paulo Wanchope?
"Wanchope is a very good target man. His size contributes to his ability to win balls in the air, and beat defenders on corner kicks. He's also a valuable teammate as he sets an example of hard work and teamwork for the rest of his peers."
FI: Finally, Justin Mapp?
"Justin is an immense talent. His speed and agility on the pitch make him a constant threat to the opposing side and he has a spectacular right foot."
FI: Putting it all together just before you board the bus... What is your philosophy on getting these four to play attacking soccer?
"Well we are currently building a team, and developing a system where we can use the best of all of their natural abilities. So far it's all paying dividends seeing as we have scored 5 goals in 3 games. I'm very pleased."
FI: Best of luck for Wednesday.
"Thank you very much."
