New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire Preview
The upcoming match at Red Bull Arena sees the New York Red Bulls (4-2-1, 14 pts.) hosting Chicago Fire FC (2-2-3, 8 pts.). This game marks the 62nd regular-season meeting between the two teams. Despite the surprise of finding themselves at the top of the league after 7 games, the Red Bulls are ready to embrace the challenges accompanying this position.
The reasons behind the Red Bulls’ recent form deserve praise. They’ve won 4 out of 7 matches, lost 1, and managed a 2-1 victory over FC Cincinnati last week, with goals from Frankie Amaya and Dante Vanzeir. Chicago Fire’s performance, on the other hand, has been less impressive, not quite fitting into the league’s top tier. While they’ve managed 2 wins and 3 losses in 7 matches, their form has been inconsistent.
They recently clinched a 2-1 win against Houston Dynamo but have yet to find their rhythm as a formidable opponent. Even then, Chicago Fire haven’t been in great form and are struggling to hit their mark as a quality opposition but given this is football, anything could happen.
New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire Team news
New York Red Bulls
There’s a reason why the New York Red Bulls and their boss Sandro Schwarz are sitting pretty at the top of the table because they have no major injury concerns. Captain Emil Forsberg was one of two injury concerns last time out but he is fully fit and ready to go. The other one, midfielder Cory Burke, will be out until the start of May after a groin injury.
Chicago Fire
Unlike his counterpart, Frank Klopas isn’t so lucky as he has a few injury issues although that doesn’t seem to have made a big difference to the team. Yet even then, they are without Chase Gasper and Andrew Gutman with both left-backs out for an undisclosed amount of time. Star Xherdan Shaqiri is fully fit though and it is a bright spot for the Fire especially given the form he is in.
New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire predicted lineups
New York Red Bulls
Given their incredible form, NYRB boss Sandro Schwarz has no reason to change things up and thus expects their team to remain similar to the one that he fielded against Cincinnati.
Predicted XI: Carlos Coronel; Dylan Nealis, Andres Reyes, Sean Nealis, Kyle Duncan; Dennis Gjengaar, Frankie Amaya, Peter Stroud, Emil Forsberg; Lewis Morgan, Dante Vanzeir
Chicago Fire
A two-game winless run and things changed last time around as Frank Klopas rotated things around and they walked away with a 2-1 win against Houston. Expect the team to be similar to that.
Predicted XI: Chris Brady; Allan Arigoni, Tobias Salquist, Rafael Czichos, Jonathan Dean; Kellyn Acosta, Gaston Gimenez; Maren Haile-Selassie, Fabian Herbers, Brian Gutierrez; Hugo Cuypers
New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire head-to-head
Played: 73; New York Red Bulls: 23, Chicago Fire: 35, Draw: 15
Last five games:
New York Red Bulls 0-1 Chicago Fire (MLS)
Chicago Fire 1-1 New York Red Bulls (MLS)
New York Red Bulls 3-3 Chicago Fire (MLS)
Chicago Fire 1-2 New York Red Bulls (MLS)
New York Red Bulls 0-1 Chicago Fire (MLS)
New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire prediction
The Red Bulls seem to hold the upper hand against Chicago Fire, suggesting they’re likely to leverage that advantage. Meanwhile, Chicago Fire can’t afford to settle for anything less than a win, so it’s likely that they’ll be actively seeking a win which could go against them.
Prediction: New York Red Bulls 2-1 Chicago Fire
New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire betting tips
Betting Tips:
Both teams to score: Yes
Over 2.5 goals: Yes
Odds:
New York Red Bulls: 1.61
Draw: 4.00
Chicago Fire: 6.00
New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire timings and telecast
- Red Bull Arena – April 14 – 10:30 p.m. ET
- India: MLS Season Pass
- United Kingdom: MLS Season Pass
- US: Apple TV.
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