Fri Jun 6 19:29:02 2008

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Fire return from bye to host rival D.C. United

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Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Eastern Conference rivals the Chicago Fire and D.C. United square off at Toyota Park on Saturday night in their second meeting of the season in Major League Soccer action.

The Fire came away from RFK Stadium with a 2-0 victory on May 8 in the first meeting between the clubs.

The Fire (6-2-1) are coming off a bye week after trouncing the New York Red Bulls 5-1 on the road in their last league fixture.

"It was a good day for us," Chicago coach Denis Hamlett said. "Our guys came in with the right mentality. It's always good when you can go on the road and score five goals. We wanted to play our game. The best way to do that is right from the start. We tried to set the tone early and impose our will on them. It doesn't matter if you are home or away, you want to get them on their heels.

"Getting that first goal is always key."

Getting the first and then the next four before allowing New York to get on the board was also key to the Fire's last win.

"... In my 10 years, I would have to really think about scoring like this," Hamlett said. "It was just a good performance from the beginning. The mindset was good, guys competed, and it just an overall good performance."

D.C. United (3-7-1) is on a two game unbeaten streak after struggling at the start of the season. Even though the team is still last in the Eastern table, there is reason for optimism because of improved play as of late.

The club had it's game with Houston at RFK Stadium postponed because of the field conditions after heavy rain on Wednesday, meaning it's last league fixture was a 2-2 draw at New England, which leads the Eastern Conference.

"I thought we outplayed them [in the first half]," D.C. coach Tom Soehn said of the draw with the Revs. "We created so many quality opportunities. But like I said, you have to finish even more of those. We could have been up two, three at the half - you have to put those chances away. The good part is that we're creating those quality chances right now and every game I'm seeing it get better and better."