Match Preview: New England v. Chicago [Eastern Conference Final]

It’s just under an hour till kickoff now. Just under an hour until the Chicago Fire and New England Revolution renew their rivalry in Foxborough, Massachusetts. New England has undoubtedly been something of a thorn in the side of Chicago in recent years, ending their season early the last two seasons.

However, this is a very different Chicago Fire team. The arrivals of Cuauhtémoc Blanco and (perhaps more importantly) new manager Juan Carlos Osorio have turned the struggling club into contenders for the title nearly overnight. In the sole meeting between these two sides since Chicago’s mid-season renaissance, the Fire ran out convincing 2-1 winners at Toyota Park.

New England saw off Red Bull New York in the first round of the playoffs, but were largely unspectacular, managing only one goal against a struggling Red Bull defense. It will likely take more firepower than that to puncture the Chicago backline that has been brilliantly anchored by unsung new arrival Colombian defender Wilman Conde.

New-found confidence abundant, Fire striker Chad Barret has said the team “want[s] revenge”. Will Chicago be able to shrug off their bogey team and go through to the final for the first time since 2003? We’re about to find out.

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