Chicago Fire News

Daniel Paladini scored his first goal of the exhibition season and Sean Johnson had his first action in goal as the Fire tipped Chivas USA 1-0 on Saturday for their third straight victory.

Chicago Fire original CJ Brown played in his last professional soccer game on October 23, 2010.

The Chicago Fire put their undefeated preseason streak to the test when they take on Chivas USA today at 2:00 PM CST.

Without a doubt, the book that Simon Kuper is most famous for is Soccernomics . Soccernomics takes a look at the analytical side of the sport; the statistics, the psychology, and the economics behind why certain trends and results in soccer are the way they are.

"The Fire missed goalie Sean Johnson while he was with the U.S. men's national team, but the club had little time to welcome him back.

"The visa process for foreign players to come to the United States can sometimes be a pesky one.

"The Dynamo have added another forward/midfielder to the roster, trading a conditional draft pick to the Colorado Rapids for Macoumba Kandji.

"Chris Wondolowski has been the best scorer in MLS over the past two years, netting 34 goals during that time.

Some readers might recall the blurb that was posted about the launch of the first episode of the Pitch Invasion podcast last month.

"Maybe Juninho is Portuguese for boomerang. Because the Galaxy midfielder of the same name, who left Major League Soccer to re-sign with his Brazilian club Sao Paulo two months ago, is returning after all.

"Dynamo backup goalkeeper Tyler Deric, who overcame alcohol problems to earn a contract with the club in 2009, was arrested late Saturday night and charged with assault on a public servant at a Houston bar.

"Al Jazeera's Paul Rhys speaks to the Egyptian national football team's American coach, Bob Bradley, about the tragedy at a match in Port Said on February 1 that left 74 people dead and more than a thousand injured.

The midfield. Currently viewed as the strength of the team. But is it really set right now? Let's break it down: This is clearly the strength of the midfield.

Video highlights, goal scorers, and Fire starters are after the break. The team has a recap with some quotes from Klopas up on the website.

Barcelona initially unconvinced that Leo Messi would succeed as a pro Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/20120206/barca-extract/#ixzz1lcWB85Rm "Editor's note: The following is an exclusive extract from Graham Hunter's new book, Barca: The Making of the Greatest Team in the World.

Chicago Fire midfielder Sebastian Grazzini, back right, collides with Real Club Deportivo Espana's Maynor Martinez in the first half Saturday of their game at Tad Gormley Stadium.

The Chicago Fire take on Honduran side Real Espaa in an international preseason friendly at New Orleans' Tad Gormley Stadium today, Saturday, February 4, at 5:00 p.m. CST.

The next stop for the Fire is New Orleans, where the team will play a match against Honduran side Real C.D. EspaA a. But as his team heads west, Fire coach Frank Klopas is enthusiastic about returning to Southwest Florida on a permanent basis for preseason training.

When Chicago Fire defender Cory Gibbs recently appeared on Windy City Live to promote the club's new sponsorship deal with Quaker Oats, the most astute of supporters may have noticed something different about his appearance: his jersey didn't have short sleeves.

Barouch did use his feet to make the score. More notes and video highlights on the game after the break.