Fire top Crew in season finale

Fire's Jalil Anibaba (left) and
Diego Chaves -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire wanted to end their season on a high note, and they did so by reaching the .500 mark for the first time since April 9.

Fire forward Diego Chaves scored his second game-winning goal in as many games and Fire defender Jalil Anibaba had two goals as Chicago topped the Columbus Crew, 3-2, on Saturday in front of a sellout crowd of 20,237 at Toyota Park.

The Fire completed the season with 9-9-16 mark (43 points), but Chicago missed the postseason for a second straight year and the third time in the team's 14-season history.

"Obviously we're disappointed not to be in the playoffs because that was our goal from the beginning," Klopas said. "But I feel very good at this point of the season where we are as a team. There's a lot to build from this."

As the Fire move into next season, the first major question is whether they will remove Klopas' interim tag and have him continue as the team's head coach.

"In the next couple weeks we're going to sit down as an organization and make the best decision going forward for the Fire," Klopas said. "But I've enjoyed every single second of my professional job, especially what I did now as the interim coach. I really enjoyed it with this group, because I've always believed in this group."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Fire reach U.S. Open Cup final

Dominic Oduro -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- It was not the smoothest of performances for the Chicago Fire. But the home side did its job on Tuesday in topping the USL Pro's Richmond Kickers, 2-1, in the semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at Toyota Park.

"It was a scrappy one, but we got it done," Fire defender Jalil Anibaba said.

Sebastian Grazzini netted a first-half penalty-kick goal and Dominic Oduro tallied a second-half game-winner as Chicago advanced to its sixth Open Cup final appearance. The Fire have won the Open Cup four previous times (1998, 2000, 2003 and 2006) and were the runners-up in 2004.

"Opportunities like this, you can't let them slip away," Fire interim head coach Frank Klopas said. "It was a special moment for the team, for our fans obviously, to put ourselves in this situation now in the final, to have an opportunity to win something. We knew what was at stake.

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Anibaba makes smooth 'D' switch

Fire defender Jalil Anibaba -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Chicago Fire interim head coach Frank Klopas made it clear following the team's 2-0 win over Toronto FC on Sunday where he prefers to play rookie defender Jalil Anibaba.

"I like him better as a center back," Klopas said of Anibaba, who opened the season as the Fire's regular right back. "He reads the game better there. For me, I think he can play both. But I see him as a better center back than on the right."

Anibaba's move to center back has been a smooth one, and that was evident when out of the blue he had to replace an injured Cory Gibbs in the opening minutes of a 1-1 draw against the Philadelphia Union on Aug. 3.

"In college, I was able to grow in that position more," Anibaba said. "When I made the transition to center back from attacking mid (where he played in his first two games at Santa Clara), it wasn't easy for me just because it takes time to get used to a new position. It's just a matter of me having more games underneath my belt at center back, and I've been able to transfer my experiences from college at center back to this level."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Floundering Fire confront Dynamo

Jalil Anibaba -- Getty Images

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire's current three-game losing streak is creeping into the realm of historic proportions if the team cannot turn things around Saturday when it hosts the Houston Dynamo at Toyota Park.

One more loss would put this stretch among only a handful of four-game Fire droughts, the most recent being a four-game skid in May of 2007.

"The mentality's always strong, but the confidence, we've lost a little bit of," Fire head coach Carlos de los Cobos said Friday following training.

The Fire (1-3-1, four points) have had to rely on some of their younger personnel to shoulder the load this season. Second-year goalkeeper Sean Johnson and 2011 first-round draft pick and defender Jalil Anibaba thrust themselves into starting roles. But both have been prone to some big mistakes in recent matches.

De los Cobos decided before last week's 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy to turn to 33-year-old goalkeeper Jon Conway, who will return to the starting lineup Saturday against Houston. De los Cobos said that Anibaba continues to maintain his starting right back role.

"I think patience is the key, for everybody," 12-year veteran Conway said. "A lot's expected of these young guys, but they are young guys. You've got to realize that being thrown into this sort of environment, this quick and as tough as it may be, sometimes it takes a little bit longer. For me, all I do is show up and train like I have for my whole career and just train hard, and maybe that translates over to them and they can take that from me. I have had a long run of things, fortunately, and maybe that helps them out with getting over what they have to get over."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Fire clear past smoke, Rapids

Fire's Jalil Anibaba -- Getty Images

In soccer circles, the home fans represent the 12th man on the pitch. From the Chicago Fire's standpoint, they had a partially direct impact toward the Fire's game-winning goal.

With the smoke still clearing from some previously lit flares close to the Colorado Rapids goal, Fire right defensive back Jalil Anibaba cracked a shot from more than 40 yards out, finding the back netting during Chicago's 2-1 victory over Colorado in a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup qualifying match on Wednesday at Bradley University's Shea Stadium in Peoria, Ill.

Anibaba's game-winning strike came in the 61st minute, giving the Fire a 2-1 advantage that held up over the final half hour. Anibaba's deep shot through the smoke appeared to cause a delayed reaction from Colorado goalkeeper Ian Joyce, who then scrambled to his left but could not get to the ball in time.

From Anibaba's view, though, the smokey environment was not taken into account on his decision to shoot from deep.

"To be honest, no, I wasn't thinking about that," Anibaba said. "I was just thinking about how much time and space I had. I got the ball played out wide, and I had a lot of time. My initial thought was to take the defender one-on-one, but I just focused on my strike and getting that on frame."

With the win, the Fire will face either the San Jose Earthquakes or Portland Timbers in the qualification finals. Gaston Puerari netted the Fire's other goal on Wednesday, and Andre Akpan scored for the defending MLS Cup champion Rapids.

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Fire's refurbished defense meshes

Fire rookie defender Jalil Anibaba -- ISI Photos

The Chicago Fire defense went through a complete makeover following last season, with a new scheme and a new cast of characters.

Veteran Cory Gibbs, Josip Mikulic and rookie Jalil Anibaba are the projected defensive starters from left to right within this year's new three-back system. And considering the lack of goals Chicago allowed during the preseason (the Fire allowed only one goal in three games at the recent Carolina Challenge Cup), it appears that things have meshed quickly within the back line.

"No one would have expected, the way it's been so far," Gibbs said. "But then again, this is preseason. The numbers that have happened aren't going to count for anything, and we just have to translate into the regular season."

Last year's rookie class eventually played some important roles for the Fire on the defensive side, with Sean Johnson earning the No. 1 goalkeeper spot and defender Steven Kinney establishing himself at right back.

But as Kinney recovers from an Achilles injury he suffered at the end of last season, 2011 first-round selection and University of North Carolina product Anibaba is quickly cementing his presence in the lineup.

"You never know what you're going to expect when a rookie comes in," Gibbs said. "College is a completely different game. But Jalil is an exception. He's a talented athlete, a talented figure on the field. And what makes him exceptionally great is that he wants to learn. Day-by-day he's progressing and he'll shoot right in. It's not something with him that's going to take time. It seems natural."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.