Pappa nets hat trick, Fire topple RSL

Marco Pappa -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

The Chicago Fire garnered a signature win when they absolutely needed it. And most importantly for Chicago, the team now finds itself in a realistic position to catch a playoff spot with only four regular-season matches remaining.

The Fire won for the fifth time in their past six matches and were led by midfielder Marco Pappa's hat trick en route to a 3-0 victory against Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium in front of 20,762 at Sandy, Utah.

Pappa had been in a significant scoring funk, having failed to find the back of the net since June 26 against the New York Red Bulls.

Now Chicago (7-8-15, 36 points) is within three points of those Red Bulls, who currently hold the final wild card position with 39 points.

"That was great to see," Fire defender Dan Gargan said of Pappa's performance. "He's a player that we need, and when he's sticking the ball into the back of the net, that's phenomenal for us because that's just another weapon that we have. It's been coming. He comes to training every day and puts in extra sessions. He's such a talented player."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Grazzini likely out as Fire face RSL

Sebastian Grazzini -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

The Chicago Fire have won four of their five past matches, but they will likely have to continue pushing on without midfielder Sebastian Grazzini.

Grazzini, who injured his hamstring during the first half of Chicago's 3-2 win over the New England Revolution, is expected to miss Wednesday's match at Real Salt Lake.

The midseason acquisition had a goal and an assist before his departure. Fire interim head coach Frank Klopas told MLSSoccer.com this week that Grazzini would not play against Salt Lake, which is coming off its worst loss of the season, a 4-1 defeat at D.C. United. Grazzini is listed as questionable on the MLS Injury Report.

Klopas likely will return to Baggio Husidic in the midfield for the Fire (6-8-15, 33 points). Husidic replaced Grazzini during Sunday's win over the Revs, and it will be a tough task to match Grazzini's skill set and activity.

"Baggio came in and my message to him was he's got to get the ball and make those passes like Sebastian," Klopas said. "At first he was looking to get behind more and left a little bit of a gap."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Fire post league-high 10th draw

Cory Gibbs -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire and Real Salt Lake played Wednesday's match as though each side was waiting for one mistake to pounce on. But that never came to fruition for either side as the Fire and Salt Lake wound up in a scoreless draw in front of 14,972 at Toyota Park.

Chicago and RSL grinded out the match, which had some moments of back-and-forth play, but featured very little on either offensive third. Chicago had a 4-2 shots on goal advantage, and Salt Lake did not post a shot on goal in the second half.

"It was tough at first for us," Fire interim head coach Frank Klopas said. They're a team where their strength is in the middle of the field. I think we had a little bit of a hard time in the beginning. And I think when things settled a bit, we found the game a little bit better."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Nazarit suspended as Fire host RSL

Fire's Marco Pappa -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

Chicago Fire forward Cristian Nazarit will be suspended for two matches, according to a source. The MLS Disciplinary Committee is expected to suspend the Colombian forward for Chicago's matches against Real Salt Lake on Wednesday and the New York Red Bulls on Sunday.

The Fire (2-4-9) and Salt Lake (6-3-4) kick off at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Toyota Park. Midfielder Marco Pappa returns to the Fire after playing for Guatemala in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

Brown, RSL's No. 1 'D' meet Fire

C.J. Brown -- Getty Images

By Charlie Corr
ESPNChicago.com

The path leading up to former Chicago Fire defender C.J. Brown's MLS coaching debut came together quickly.

Following his retirement announcement toward the end of the 2010 season, Brown made it clear that he wanted to move on to the coaching side. Within a matter of months, he became an assistant coach for Real Salt Lake -- the team that ousted Chicago from the 2009 playoffs and went on to win its first MLS Cup under head coach Jason Kreis.

"This team has already been going in the right direction," said Brown, whose RSL team faces the Fire this Wednesday at Toyota Park. "By me coming in, I'm not making them better. It's my job to keep something flowing. Jason and the entire program have done it the right way. Our back line is a pretty comfortable group, working with each other."

Read more at ESPNChicago.com.

PREVIEW: FIRE AT REAL SALT LAKE

Following 2-week break, Chicago a bit healthier heading into Rio Tinto

Good health is a relative term for the Chicago Fire these days. A two-week break definitely provided some necessary healing, but there still is a long way to go as Chicago visits Real Salt Lake on Saturday at Rio Tinto Stadium (8 p.m. CST start, televised on Fox Soccer Channel).

Center defensive back Wilman Conde could be in the starting lineup as he continues to play through hamstring problems. And then there is the speedy recovery process of target man Brian McBride (pictured).

McBride no longer is on the injury report following shoulder surgery and he is in full practice mode. Whether Fire head coach Denis Hamlett brings McBride in remains to be seen.

The disappointing statistic is that McBride still is the team leader with six goals, an obvious sign that Chicago (10-6-8) has had its share of scoring setbacks. The Fire have been shut out twice in the past three games.

And yet this game could be an opportune moment to stay on the Columbus Crew's heels, or even surpass them in the race for first in the Eastern Conference.

Columbus leads with 39 points and Chicago is right behind with 38, though the Fire have played 24 games to the Crew's 23. The Crew have a daunting task this weekend, though, when they host the Western Conference-leading Houston Dynamo on Sunday.

The Fire's concern clearly rests on Real Salt Lake (9-9-6), which has posted back-to-back shutout victories against Chivas USA and the Kansas City Wizards.

The Fire still have a large defensive crew missing (Gonzalo Segares, Daniel Woolard and Tim Ward), and heading into Saturday, that Chicago defensive line and goalkeeper Jon Busch will be tested quite often against a Real offense that generates a bunch of shots. RSL has outscored its opponents 28-10 at home, leading to a 7-1-4 record at Rio Tinto.

The Fire are road warriors this season at 6-2-4, but playing in the thin air, still battling some shorthanded setbacks defensively and Real's home dominance could all certainly play huge factors against Chicago in this one. Real Salt Lake 2, Chicago Fire 1

PREVIEW: REAL SALT LAKE AT FIRE

Full defense is back as Chicago tries to climb back into 1st

Now that the CONCACAF Gold Cup is finished, the MLS contingent playing in the tournament is now back to the main day job.

Chicago Fire midfielder Logan Pause (pictured) is back from the U.S. Men's National Team and he and the Fire hope to win their second straight home game when they host Real Salt Lake at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Toyota Park (televised on My50).

Chicago will be slightly shorthanded with the absence of midfielder John Thorrington, who was ejected during the Fire's scoreless draw against host Seattle Sounders FC last week. But the remainder of the team is available and looks to continue filling the long-term void of injured forward Brian McBride.

The Fire are 1-0-1 so far without him, and they face a team that they have had great success against in the past. Chicago is 2-0-2 against Real at home, 4-1-3 overall.

Chicago had an undefeated July that concluded with a hard-fought scoreless draw against Seattle Sounders FC at Qwest Field. Holding the Sounders scoreless was a strong feat, and the Fire extended their streak to 284 minutes without allowing a goal.

The 2008 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, Jon Busch, has posted three straight clean sheets, posting shutouts against Seattle, the San Jose Earthquakes and Columbus Crew last month.

Real Salt Lake is coming off a hot-and-cold match against FC Dallas. Real fell behind, 2-0, at halftime and then posted four second-half goals for a 4-2 victory.

Real head coach Jason Kreis will not be on the sidelines for this week or next week against Seattle. He received a one-game suspension from an ejection and was suspended for another game following an outburst with officials during the Dallas game. Kreis also was fined $3,500. This is his third suspension this season, and the MLS disciplinary committee laid down the law for Kreis' latest actions.

SlideTackles.net prediction: The full squad is back, the injury report is empty (other than McBride obviously). And Chicago has a good opportunity to work its way into first place again in the Eastern Conference. The Fire are only one point behind the current East point leaders, the Columbus Crew, who have a difficult road test against the Colorado Rapids this weekend.

I'm eager to see if this is the start of a dominant change at home. You have three All-Stars (Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Wilman Conde and Bakary Soumare) coming off the Everton match. You have two Gold Cup participants (Gonzalo Segares and Logan Pause) who have been playing some good international competition. Can all of that translate into some crisp play on the field?

This is one of the few times during the season where everyone is here. Following Wednesday's SuperLiga final against Tigres, Blanco and Segares will head to World Cup qualifying for Mexico and Costa Rica, respectively. It's time to take advantage of the current situation. Chicago Fire 2, Real Salt Lake 0