2008 Chicago Fire season

The 2008 Chicago Fire season was the club's 13th year of existence, as well as their 11th season in Major League Soccer and 11th consecutive year in the top-flight of American soccer. It began with a 3-1 away win over Real Salt Lake on March 29, 2008 and ended with a 2-1 loss to Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference Final on November 13, 2008. Denis Hamlett made his debut as the Chicago Fire coach after being promoted.

Chicago Fire S.C.

2008 season
Chairman	Andrew Hauptman
Manager	Denis Hamlett
MLS	3rd overall (2nd in Eastern Conference)
MLS Cup Playoffs	Conference Final
U.S. Open Cup	Quarterfinals
Brimstone Cup	Runners-up
Top goalscorer	Chris Rolfe (9) +(1 in playoffs)[1]
Average home league attendance	17,052[2]
Home colors Away colors

Current roster

Squad

• Players in bold have had senior international caps for their respective national squads.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 0 GK  USA Tyler Kettering 1 GK  USA Jon Busch 2 DF  USA C.J. Brown (Vice-captain) 3 FW  USA Calen Carr 4 MF  MLI Bakary Soumare 5 MF  USA Brian Plotkin 6 DF  USA Brandon Prideaux 7 MF  USA Logan Pause 8 MF  USA Diego Gutiérrez 9 FW  POL Tomasz Frankowski 10 MF  MEX Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Captain) 11 MF  USA John Thorrington 12 FW  GHA Patrick Nyarko 16 MF  GUA Marco Pappa 17 FW  USA Chris Rolfe

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 MF  USA Mike Banner 20 FW  USA Brian McBride 21 MF  USA Justin Mapp 22 DF  COL Wilman Conde 23 MF  PAR Líder Mármol 24 DF  USA Daniel Woolard 25 DF  CRC Gonzalo Segares 26 FW  CRC Andy Herron 28 GK  USA Nick Noble 29 MF  USA Peter Lowry 32 DF  USA Dasan Robinson 33 MF  USA Stephen King 34 DF  USA Austin Washington 36 MF  USA Kai Kasiguran

Transfers

In

• Patrick Nyarko Drafted 7th overall in 2008 MLS Superdraft
• Dominic Cervi Drafted 12th overall in 2008 MLS Superdraft
• Peter Lowry Drafted 26th overall in 2008 MLS Superdraft
• Dwight Barnett Drafted 38th overall in 2008 MLS Superdraft
• Stephen King Drafted 40th overall in 2008 MLS Superdraft
• Austin Washington Drafted 54th overall in 2008 MLS Superdraft
• Andy Herron Rights acquired from Columbus Crew for 4th round pick in the 2010 Superdraft
• Tomasz Frankowski Signed from Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Brandon Prideaux Acquired in waiver draft from Colorado Rapids
• Líder Mármol Signed as free agent.
• Brian McBride Free agent

Out

• Matt Pickens To Queens Park Rangers
• Ivan Guerrero Lost to San Jose Earthquakes in the Expansion Draft
• Jim Curtin Traded to Chivas USA
• Chris Armas Retired
• Paulo Wanchope Retired
• Jeff Curtin Waived, later signed with D.C. United
• Osei Telesford Waived, later signed with Puerto Rico Islanders
• Chad Barrett Traded to Toronto FC in Brian McBride deal
• Brian Plotkin Waived, later signed with Columbus Crew

Club

Management

Other information

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Last updated on June 5, 2008.

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		MLS Season
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
0	GK		Tyler Kettering	0	0	0	0
1	GK		Jon Busch	30	0	30	0
2	DF		C.J. Brown	3	0	3	0
3	FW		Calen Carr	9	2	9	2
4	MF		Bakary Soumare	28	0	28	0
6	DF		Brandon Prideaux	27	0	27	0
7	MF		Logan Pause	27	0	27	0
8	MF		Diego Gutiérrez	20	0	20	0
9	FW		Tomasz Frankowski	17	2	17	2
10	MF		Cuauhtémoc Blanco	27	7	27	7
11	MF		John Thorrington	23	5	23	5
12	FW		Patrick Nyarko	9	1	9	1
16	MF		Marco Pappa	6	0	6	0
17	FW		Chris Rolfe	26	10	26	10
18	MF		Mike Banner	11	0	11	0
20	FW		Brian McBride	11	5	11	5
21	MF		Justin Mapp	30	2	30	2
22	DF		Wilman Conde	22	1	22	1
23	DF		Lider Marmol	2	0	2	0
24	DF		Daniel Woolard	8	1	8	1
25	DF		Gonzalo Segares	23	2	23	2
26	FW		Andy Herron	17	0	17	0
28	GK		Nick Noble	0	0	0	0
29	MF		Peter Lowry	0	0	0	0
32	DF		Dasan Robinson	2	0	2	0
33	MF		Stephen King	20	2	20	2
34	DF		Austin Washington	1	0	1	0
36	MF		Kai Kasiguran	0	0	0	0

Competitions

Overall

Competition	Started round	Current position / round	Final position / round	First match	Last match
MLS	—	—		March 29, 2008

Updated to match played July 21, 2009
Source: Competitions

Major League Soccer

Standings

Eastern Conference
Pos	Club	Pts	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD
1	Columbus Crew	57	30	17	7	6	50	36	+14
2	Chicago Fire	46	30	13	10	7	44	33	+11
3	New England Revolution	43	30	12	11	7	40	43	–3
4	Kansas City Wizards	42	30	11	10	9	37	39	–2
5	New York Red Bulls	39	30	10	11	9	42	48	–6
6	D.C. United	37	30	11	15	4	43	51	–8
7	Toronto FC	35	30	9	13	8	34	43	–9

	2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
	2008 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card)

Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	D	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Columbus Crew (SS, E1)	30	17	7	6	50	36	+14	57	2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage ^2
2	Houston Dynamo (W1)	30	13	5	12	45	32	+13	51
3	Chicago Fire	30	13	10	7	44	33	+11	46	2009 North American SuperLiga ^4
4	Chivas USA	30	12	11	7	40	41	−1	43
5	New England Revolution	30	12	11	7	40	43	−3	43
6	Kansas City Wizards	30	11	10	9	37	39	−2	42
7	Real Salt Lake	30	10	10	10	40	39	+1	40	2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
8	New York Red Bulls	30	10	11	9	42	48	−6	39	2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round ^3
9	Colorado Rapids	30	11	14	5	44	45	−1	38
10	D.C. United	30	11	15	4	43	51	−8	37	2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round ^3
11	FC Dallas	30	8	10	12	45	41	+4	36
12	Toronto FC	30	9	13	8	34	43	−9	35
13	LA Galaxy	30	8	13	9	55	62	−7	33
14	San Jose Earthquakes	30	8	13	9	32	38	−6	33

Source:

(SS) = Supporters Shield winner; (E1) = Eastern Conference champion; (W1) = Western Conference champion

• ^Note 1 - Toronto FC cannot qualify for the U.S. Open Cup, as it is a Canadian-based team.
  If they had qualified for an automatic berth into the U.S. Open Cup, the next highest placed team not already qualified would have qualified.
• ^Note 2 - Toronto FC cannot qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League through MLS. Rather, they can qualify through the Canadian Soccer Championship.
  If they had qualified for the Champions League through MLS, then the highest placed team not already qualified would have qualified.
• ^Note 3 - The winner of the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield (Columbus Crew) qualified for the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage. As they also won MLS 2008, the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield runner-up (Houston Dynamo) also entered the Group Stage. The runner-up of MLS Cup 2008 (New York Red Bulls) and the winner of the 2008 U.S. Open Cup (D.C. United) qualified for the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round.
• ^Note 4 - SuperLiga 2009 berths are awarded to the top 4 finishing teams from MLS who do not qualify for Champions League (Chicago, New England, Chivas USA and Kansas City).

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	Pts	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD
30	46	13	10	7	44	33	+11	7	5	3	23	17	+6	6	5	4	21	16	+5

Last updated: July 21, 2009
Source: Major League Soccer
Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
Ground	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H
Result	T	W	W	L	W	W	W	L	W	L	L	L	T	T	W	T	T	W	W	L	W	L	W	L	L	W	T	T	L	W

Source: Chicago Fire
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; L = Loss; T = Tie

Matches

  Win   Tie   Loss

MLS regular season

Real Salt Lake v Chicago Fire

March 29, 2008	Real Salt Lake	1–1	Chicago Fire	Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
	Joy  51' Soumare  71' (o.g.) Findley  80' Beckerman  87'	Report	Pause  89' Blanco  92+'	Stadium: Rice-Eccles Stadium Attendance: 20,272 Referee: Terry Vaughn

Chicago Fire v New England Revolution

April 3, 2008	Chicago Fire	4–0	New England Revolution	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
	Barrett  4' Mapp  17' Frankowski  22' Blanco  37' (pen.) Frankowski  39' Barrett  50' Gutierrez  89'	Report	Larentowicz  7' Joseph  7' Mansally  23'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 15,553 Referee: Baldomero Toledo

San Jose Earthquakes v Chicago Fire

April 12, 2008	San Jose Earthquakes	0–1	Chicago Fire	Oakland, California, United States
	Cochrane  65' Riley  94+'	Report	Barrett  19' Soumare  55'	Stadium: McAfee Coliseum Attendance: 20,038 Referee: Kevin Stott

Chicago Fire v Kansas City Wizards

April 20, 2008	Chicago Fire	0–1	Kansas City Wizards	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
	Prideaux  46'	Report	Jewsbury  4' Harrington  57' Trujillo  76'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 17,121 Referee: Jair Marrufo

Chicago Fire v Colorado Rapids

April 26, 2008	Chicago Fire	2–1	Colorado Rapids	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
	Segares  45' Thorrington  53' Thorrington  84' Gutierrez  88'	Report	Gomez  45' Gomez  64' Gray  66' McManus  86'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 14,251 Referee: Tim Weyland

New England Revolution v Chicago Fire

May 3, 2008	New England Revolution	0–3	Chicago Fire	Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States
		Report	Rolfe  29' Thorrington  50' King  76'	Stadium: Gillette Stadium Attendance: 10,858 Referee: Jair Marrufo

D.C. United v Chicago Fire

May 8, 2008	D.C. United	0–2	Chicago Fire	Washington, D.C., United States
	Burch  30' Dyachenko  40' Namoff  73'	Report	Mapp  38' Blanco  62' Prideaux  77' Thorrington  92'	Stadium: RFK Stadium Attendance: 18,605 Referee: Terry Vaughn

Chicago Fire v Houston Dynamo

May 17, 2008	Chicago Fire	1–2	Houston Dynamo	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
	Carr 28' Segares  92' Blanco  95'	Report	De Rosario  17' Clark  48' De Rosario  58' Boswell  82'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 17,183 Referee: Paul Ward

New York Red Bulls v Chicago Fire

May 25, 2008	New York Red Bulls	1–5	Chicago Fire	East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States
	Angel  68' Altidore 74'	Report	Barrett 8' Rolfe 48' Blanco 55' Barrett 60' Segares 62' Soumare  68'	Stadium: Giants Stadium Attendance: 14,754 Referee: Ricardo Salazar

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June 7, 2008

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June 15, 2008

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June 19, 2008

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June 28, 2008

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July 5, 2008

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July 12, 2008

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July 19, 2008

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July 27, 2008

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August 2, 2008

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August 31, 2008

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September 6, 2008

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September 21, 2008

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September 25, 2008

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October 5, 2008

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Chicago Fire v Columbus Crew

October 12, 2008	Chicago Fire	2–2	Columbus Crew	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
	McBride  13',  79'	Report, Report	Gaven  59' Busch  45' Schelotto  61' Carroll  86'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 14,994 Referee: Shane Moody

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October 18, 2008

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October 23, 2008

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U.S. Open Cup

Chicago Fire v Columbus Crew

June 10, 2008 MLS Qualifier	Chicago Fire	3–2 (AET)	Columbus Crew	Peoria, Illinois, United States
19:00 CDT	King  10' Herron  65' Prideaux  82' Herron  116'	Report	Ekpo  63' Garey  67' Zayner  79' Rogers  100'	Stadium: Shea Stadium Attendance: 3,829 Referee: Tony Russo

Chicago Fire v Cleveland City Stars (USL-2)

July 1, 2008 Third Round	Chicago Fire	4–1	Cleveland City Stars (USL-2)	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
19:30 CDT	Banner  13' Carr  23' Barrett  26' Marmol  57' Banner  73'	Report	McClung 61' Stewart  78'	Stadium: Toyota Park Referee: Hidajet Tica

D.C. United v Chicago Fire

July 8, 2008 Quarterfinals	D.C. United	2–1 (AET)	Chicago Fire	Germantown, Maryland, United States
19:30 EDT	Doe  52' Doe  77' Moreno  89' Namoff  99' Fred  107' Burch  108'	Report	Woolard  36' Soumare  48' Pause  78' Thorrington  81' Blanco  108'	Stadium: Maryland SoccerPlex Attendance: 4,118 Referee: Shane Moody

Friendlies

Chicago Fire v Wisła Kraków

May 21, 2008	Chicago Fire	0–0	Wisła Kraków	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
19:30 CDT	Robinson  20' Conde  75' Brown  78' Woolard  81'	Report	Cléber  51' Cantoro  54' Díaz  55'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 14,040 Referee: Mark Kadlecik

Chicago Fire v Everton F.C.

July 30, 2008	Chicago Fire	2–0	Everton F.C.	Bridgeview, Illinois, United States
19:30 CDT	Rolfe  42' Frankowski  70'	Report	Baxter  45' Gosling  81' Vaughan  92+'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 9,125 Referee: Landis Wiley

Veracruz v Chicago Fire

August 24, 2008	Veracruz	3–1	Chicago Fire	Veracruz, Veracruz, Mexico
	Leyva  41' Olivera  44' Seccafien  55' Marmol  71' (o.g.)	Report	Blanco  16' Robinson  18'	Stadium: Estadio Luis de la Fuente

References

1. "MLSSoccer.com 2008 Stats".
2. "USA Major League Soccer - Attendance - 2008". ESPN Soccernet. Retrieved July 21, 2009.