Fire and Red Bulls Rumble in Big Apple Saturday

BRIDGEVIEW, IL (August 31, 2007) – The Chicago Fire (7-9-5, 26 pts.) will be in a New York state of mind Saturday night as they face the Red Bulls (10-9-3, 33 pts.) at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Chicago has seen their offense ignite with two goals in each of the team’s past three games, including a 2-0 shutout win over the Kansas City Wizards last Saturday at TOYOTA PARK. New York look to rebound after losing back-to-back away games at D.C. United (Aug. 22) and the New England Revolution (Aug. 25), yet have won in three of their past four league matches at home. Kick-off for Saturday’s match is 6:30 p.m. CT and will be televised live on Comcast SportsNet and broadcast over the airwaves locally on Chicagoland radio station WRTO-AM 1200 (Spanish).

Chicago Fire @ New York Red Bulls :: Fire Match # 22 MLS Match # 140

Saturday, September 1 @ 6:30 p.m. CT :: Giants Stadium – East Rutherford, N.J.

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Satellite: VYVX Conf # 2366951 Directv: 785 DishNet: 465

Audio: WRTO-1200 AM (Oscar Guzman, “Batata” DaSilva, Enrique “Tico” Fernandez)

Game Guide: http://www.sportssystems.com/novell/efx%5Cfax%5CMLS%5C06704Z01.pdf

Chicago Fire/AthletiCo "Recovery Room” :: August 31

Barrett, Chad – Cervical sprain – PROBABLE

Curtin, Jeff – R groin strain – PROBABLE

Curtin, Jim – R shoulder labral tear – OUT FOR SEASON

Mapp, Justin – R ankle sprain – OUT

Pickens, Matt – R groin strain – PROBABLE

Russolillo, Jordan – R hip labrum tear – OUT FOR SEASON

Telesford, Osei – L groin strain – OUT

Fire History vs. Red Bulls/MetroStars

The Fire and Red Bulls will face each other for the second time this season, with the “Men in Red” hoping to avenge an earlier 3-0 loss at Giants Stadium on May 24, their second-worst defeat of the 2007 campaign. Taking the 2006 season series with 2-1-1 mark, the Fire collected a pair of three point results at TOYOTA PARK, officially opening up the club’s Bridgeview home with a 2-0 triumph on June 25 before holding on for a 2-1 victory on Sept. 3, yet came away with a 1-1 draw on May 13 and a loss on Sept. 30 in the Big Apple. This year’s results have set the Fire’s all-time regular season mark in MLS play against the New York franchise to 15-9-5, which includes a 7-6-2 mark at Giants Stadium. The Fire and Red Bulls/MetroStars have met three times in postseason play, with Chicago taking both games at home (9/26/00, 10/06/00) and losing once at the Meadowlands (9/30/00).

New York to Date

First year New York Red Bulls boss Bruce Arena has led a renewed Red Bulls franchise that began its 2007 campaign with a sparkling 3-0-1 record in April, a span of time that saw the side not let in a single goal. For the month of May, New York tied Salt Lake 3-3 (5/5), lost 1-0 to the Colorado Rapids (5/13) and won twice in convincing fashion over the Columbus Crew 4-0 (5/19) and the Fire 3-0 (5/24). With a goal and two assists in win over Columbus, newly-acquired forward Juan Pablo Angel was awarded the Player of the Week award for Week 7. New York cooled off throughout the months of June and July, a span that produced just a 3-6-1 mark in league play. New York continued their up-and-down form into August, winning big in a 3-0 victory over Toronto FC (8/12) and in a 5-4 goal-fest over the Los Angeles Galaxy (8/21) in which forward Jozy Altidore was awarded MLS’ Player of the Week for his two-goal performance. Yet the Red Bulls are looking to rebound after losing back-to-back away games at D.C. United (8/22) and the New England Revolution (8/25), and have won in three of their past four league matches in the Big Apple.

The Blanco Effect

Since the addition of Cuauhtémoc Blanco to their roster, the Chicago Fire are unbeaten in four of the team’s past five games, posting a 3-1-1 record. The forward has recorded two goals and four assists in just five league matches, helping Chicago earn 10 out of a possible 15 points. Blanco has been the Fire’s leading scorer over the last five league games and of the nine goals scored since his arrival, “Temo” has been a key player in seven.

Quick Kicks vs. New York

• The “Men in Red” will wear non-traditional red tops, white shorts, and red socks for Saturday’s game at New York.

• The Chicago Fire Reserves (0-4-2, 2 pts.) hope to notch a season-first victory this Sunday as they face the Red Bulls Reserves (3-1-0, 9 pts.). In the Fire Reserves’ previous match, the squad suffered a 4-0 defeat to the Real Salt Lake Reserves on Aug. 19 in Park City, Utah. The Reserves June 10 clash at home versus the Chivas USA Reserves has been postponed indefinitely.

• Chicago goalkeeper Jon Busch earned his first Fire win and shutout of the 2007 season against the Wizards on Aug. 25.

• The Fire own a 3-6-1 mark in regular season road games contested in 2007.

• Fire midfielder Chris Armas celebrated his 35th birthday this Monday, Aug. 27, while defender Wilman Conde celebrated his 25th birthday this Wednesday, Aug. 29.

• Forward Chad Barrett’s team-leading fifth goal last Saturday matches his career-high set during the Fire’s 2006 campaign.

• Chicago’s all-time regular season record in MLS play against the New York-area franchise is 15-9-5, including a 7-6-2 mark at Giants Stadium.

• Chicago leads the season series against New York in goals (45), shots (445), shots on goal (211), offsides (91), and corner kicks (166).

• Not one player on the Fire’s current roster has ever suited up for the New York franchise.

• Defender Gonzalo Segares will once again be available to play for the Fire after sitting out last Saturday’s game versus Kansas City with a one-game suspension due to yellow card accumulation. The Costa Rica native has missed just that one game so far throughout the 2007 season, tying defender C.J. Brown for the team lead of 20 games started.

• Caution Watch – Chad Barrett (3c), C.J. Brown (7c), Calen Carr (4c), Jeff Curtin (3c, 1e), Diego Gutierrez (7c, 1e), Logan Pause (1c), Dasan Robinson (3c), Gonzalo Segares (4c, 1e), Bakary Soumare (4c, 1e).