The 2018-2019 offseason is officially here for the Chicago Fire.
The Fire ended a disappointing 2018 MLS campaign with a scoreless draw against the playoff-bound DC United Sunday at Toyota Park.
The game itself was void of the excitement that comes with MLS Decision Day. The eliminated home side was superior for most of the game against a DC team that featured all the players that have led their rise from the depths of the Eastern Conference to an unlikely early postseason berth, such as Wayne Rooney, Luciano Acosta, Paul Arriola, Bill Hamid, Russell Canouse, to name a few.
Once referee Nima Saghafi blew the final whistle at a cold, rainy Toyota Park, the questions about the future of the team, specifically players and coaching staff, quickly moved to the forefront of the conversation.
Head coach Veljko Paunovic is among those whose future will be decided in the coming weeks as his contract is set to expire. After declaring his confidence about remaining in charge, the Serbian was coy when asked about his future after the match.
“Right now, I’m not ready to talk nor have an answer,” said Paunovic.
“We’ll see what happens in the coming weeks and if I can give a better answer.”
Paunovic did provide some analysis, in retrospect, about what his team lacked throughout this underwhelming 2018 season.
“We lacked consistency, we lacked faith during the difficult moments. When we had difficult moments, we often had doubts and those doubts don’t help,” said Paunovic.
“I think our confidence broke at some point. The spirit of the group never broke and I’m very happy with the job done by the coaching staff. But our confidence did break and it affects the next game, our progress and the results.”
The Fire now face a crucial offseason with key decision to be made, as most of the roster and staff are out of contract or have options to be exercised, most notably Paunovic and Bastian Schweinsteiger, in addition to a possible solution to the conflict between the front office and the supporters groups.