BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. ā Itās must-win time for the Chicago Fire.
Currently wallowing in 11th place ā seven points behind Seattle for the eighth and final playoff spot ā the Fire play their biggest game of the season Wednesday night when they host ninth-place Toronto FC at Toyota Park.
Fire players said Tuesday that anything less than a win against their Canadian rivals will be unacceptable.
āWe need points and we need wins,ā said defender C.J. Brown. āOne pointās not good enough for us. Weāre at home, so we need three.ā
āItās simple: we need to come out and win the game,ā added winger Patrick Nyarko. āItās crunch time right now [and] we need every point we can get.ā
Wednesdayās meeting will be the second time the Fire face TFC this year. Chicago were blown out in their first matchup, losing 4-1 in May at BMO Field.
Toronto put the Fire on their heels in that match, scoring the first goal and taking advantage of some disorganized play in the back to run away with the game.
āWe came out in the second half and we felt we needed to push ā¦ from the back and we just got all out of sorts,ā said Brown. āI was stepping in at the wrong time, Wilman Conde was stepping in at the wrong time ā the whole back line was disorganized.ā
The Fireās defensive struggles have taken a new shape since that blustery spring day.
Chicago are now defending fine during open play but struggling mightily against set pieces, having allowed five goals from set plays in their last three matches, including one in the 91st minute of Saturdayās 1-1 draw with the LA Galaxy.
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Brown said one of their keys to victory will be to limit the amount of set plays they give up on Wednesday.
āWe give up too many free kicks, too many corner kicks,ā Brown said. āAnd off of the corner kicks weāre giving up another corner kick, so theyāre getting three or four opportunities on what should be one chance. Thatās where weāre struggling.ā
Nyarko mentioned that Chicago need to remain focused throughout the entire 90 minutes.
āWe just need to stay disciplined and concentrated,ā he said. āIf weāre able to do that, weāre going to come out with a win.ā
Sam Stejskal covers the Chicago Fire for MLSsoccer.com. Email him at sam.h.stejskal@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @samstejskal.