Spring Training Update: Fire Travels South of the Border to Guadalajara for Second Preseason Camp
After enjoying a long weekend off, the Chicago Fire will get back to work on Tuesday, Feb. 21, when the squad travels to Guadalajara, Mexico to begin the second camp of its 2006 preseason. Chicago has finalized the match schedule for its Guadalajara trip, adding another scrimmage over the past week to bring its competition slate to four contests: Feb. 23 vs. Chivas Select Team, Feb. 25 vs. Guadalajara All-Stars, Feb. 28 vs. Tecos and Mar. 2 vs. Atlas. The "Men in Red" are slated to stay south of the border for 10 days, coming back to Chicago on Thursday, Mar. 2 following their exhibition against Atlas. Chicago will head to Mexico with a preseason record of 4-0-1 following the team's undefeated run through a two-week camp in Bradenton, FL that ended last Friday.
Chicago Fire 2006 Preseason Calendar
Dates subject to change
Feb. 4-17: Training Camp at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL
Feb. 21-Mar. 2: Training Camp in Guadalajara, Mexico
Mar. 6-16: Training Camp at The Home Depot Center in Carson, CA
Mar. 20-26: Training Camp in Jackson, MS
Exhibition match - TBD
Mar. 27-29: Training in Chicago (Site TBD)
Mar. 30-31: Training at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, TX (Times TBD)
Apr. 1: MLS First Kick 2006 - Fire at FC Dallas; Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, TX (3:00 p.m. CT)
Midfielder Terry Alvino Joins Fire on Trial in Guadalajara; Four "Men in Red" to Miss Camp
The Fire will welcome just one new trialist to its second preseason camp, former University of Dayton midfielder Terry Alvino. Primarily a defensive midfielder, Alvino scored two goals and six assists in his lone season with the Flyers in 2005 after spending his first three collegiate seasons at Division II University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, TX. The only other trialist to travel to Mexico with the "Men in Red" is M/F Andy Rosenband, a member of the 2005 Fire who also trained with the squad during its first preseason camp in Florida.
Meanwhile, four players on the Fire's roster will not be able to make it to the Guadalajara camp - captain Chris Armas, forwards Nate Jaqua and Will Johnson and midfielder Thiago. Thiago's plight with visa paperwork continues, but the Brazilian playmaker is expected to rejoin the "Men in Red" for the team's camp in Carson, CA that begins on Mar. 6. Armas will remain in the Los Angeles area, where he continues to rehab following off-season surgery to repair his torn left ACL, and hopes are that he will be able to rejoin his teammates in some capacity at the Southern California camp in two weeks time. Jaqua, who was injured at the beginning of February while training with the U.S. Men's National Team, will stay behind in Chicago to continue rehabbing a Grade II sprain of his right MCL, his return expected to come at some point in the next 2-4 weeks. Johnson will have an excused absence from the Guadalajara trip after earning another call-up to the Canadian National Team for its Mar. 1 friendly at Austria.
Public On-Sale for Mexico-Paraguay Friendly Begins Friday, Including Special Fire Two-Game Pack
The Chicago Fire and Soccer United Marketing (SUM) have announced the public on-sale for the upcoming Mexico vs. Paraguay international friendly, to be held next month at Soldier Field. Tickets for the match between the two 2006 FIFA World Cup contenders will go on-sale beginning this Friday, Feb. 24 at 10:00 a.m. CT and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster at 312-559-1212 or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets can also be purchased by visiting the Fire offices at 980 N. Michigan, Suite 1998 in Chicago Monday-Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. or by visiting www.Chicago-Fire.com. The match, set for Wednesday, Mar. 29, will kickoff at 8:00 p.m. CT from Soldier Field. In an effort to celebrate the pre-World Cup match between the two Latin American countries, the Fire has introduced a special two-game package that includes tickets to the Mar. 29 friendly as well as a regular season Fire game during the club's inaugural season in Bridgeview. For information on the Fire's two-game package, available now, please call 1-888-MLS-FIRE.
Canada Calls on Forward Will Johnson for Mar. 1 Friendly in Austria
Fire forward Will Johnson's recent busy schedule with the Canadian Soccer Association will continue, as the 19-year-old striker has once again been called upon by Canada Head Coach Frank Yallop to compete for the nation's senior team. As the Fire heads south for Mexico, Johnson will stay behind to join Canada in preparation for its international friendly against Austria next Wednesday, Mar. 1 at Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna, Austria (8:30 p.m. local, 1:30 p.m. CT). Johnson, a native of suburban Woodridge, IL, will be looking for his third career appearance for the full Canadian squad after representing the "Maple Leafs" at both the senior and Under-20 levels in January. Johnson emerged as one of the Fire's players to watch during its first spring training camp in Bradenton, FL, scoring two goals and adding three assists across four exhibition contests.
Forward Chris Rolfe Gets First International Start and Assist in USA's 4-0 Win Over Guatemala
Fire forward Chris Rolfe picked up another pair of firsts in his fourth career appearance for the U.S. Men's National Team on Sunday, earning his first start and point for the "Red, White & Blue" in a 4-0 drubbing of Guatemala in an international friendly at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, TX. U.S. Manager Bruce Arena gave Rolfe his first chance in the starting XI, and the move would pay dividends as the 23-year-old striker would play a role in both of the U.S.'s second half tallies. Rolfe would earn his first assist at the international level just 70 seconds into the second stanza, his long ball finding Eddie Johnson, who finished from six yards out to give the U.S. a commanding 3-0 cushion. Rolfe wouldn't get credited with an assist on the team's fourth goal, but it was his deflected shot off a free kick that fell directly to midfielder Chris Klein, who buried the chance from the top of the penalty area to finish the day's scoring. Following Sunday's contest, which ended an extensive and exhaustive six-week camp for the U.S., Rolfe will get some rare time off before joining the Fire at its training camp in Guadalajara on Saturday.
Fire Mascot Sparky to Help Comer Children's Hospital Celebrate One-Year Anniversary on Wednesday
Sparky the Chicago Fire Mascot will be on hand at the Comer Children's Hospital at the University of Chicago this Wednesday, Feb. 22 to help the hospital celebrate the one-year anniversary of its opening. Sparky will join event emcee and ABC-7 sports anchor Jim Rose, players from the Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Storm and Chicago Bandits, and other dignitaries at the event, which will take place in the lobby of Comer Children's Hospital, located at 5721 S. Maryland Ave. in Chicago, at 12:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday. For more information on the anniversary event, please contact John Easton at John.Easton@uchospitals.edu or 773-702-6241 or Gina Czark at 773-795-5227.
Razov's July 4th Bomb Gives Fire a Spot in Top 10 of MLS's Goal of the Decade Voting
Another week led to another cut in the Sierra Mist Goal of the Decade contest, and while Damani Ralph's "Spin to Win" goal from the 2003 campaign fell by the wayside, fans have helped push one tally from the "Men in Red" into the top 10 - former Fire striker Ante Razov's curling 40-yard bomb against Dallas from their July 4th tilt in 1999. The third of four rounds of voting got underway today and will conclude next Monday, Feb. 27, when the field will be paired down to the best five goals in League history. Fans may vote up to 10 times a day by visiting www.mlsnet.com/MLS/mls/awards/2006/goal_of_the_decade/. The winner of the Sierra Mist Goal of the Decade will be announced Mar. 7.
Season Ticket Holders Getting First Pick of Seats
The seat selection process for all sections at Bridgeview Stadium for current Fire Full Season and Half Season ticket holders is now underway. Fans can stake their spot on the Fire's growing seat priority list by acquiring a season ticket package for the team's first season at Bridgeview Stadium. Season ticket packages are available now and can be purchased by calling 1-888-MLS-FIRE or by visiting
. Fans can scout out which seats they would like by checking out the Bridgeview seating chart in the Ticket section at www.Chicago-Fire.com.
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