German import Bastian Schweinsteiger scored his second goal in three games with the Chicago Fire, helping his side to a 3-0 win over the New England Revolution. The Fire (3-1-2, 11 points) are now up to second place in the Eastern Conference, behind only their arch-rival Columbus Crew.
Chicago are now unbeaten in their last seven games (4-0-3) at home, dating back to 2015. Although the returns are very early, and the season quite young, the Bastian Schweinsteiger acquisition looks like it was a great deal for both sides.
The Fire have taken seven points from the three matches with their new splash hire, and Schweinsteiger has proved the doubters wrong. He’s 32, and although he’s retired from international play, it’s obvious he still has a lot left in the tank; for plenty of time to come.
“It wasn’t easy, especially the first match,” Schweinsteiger said of his first home stand with the team.
“But we still managed to get seven points, so that’s good. We still can improve, and we have to work on it, but it’s a better feeling now. I’m actually looking forward to the away matches.”
Now comes the adjustment to life on the road, where Schweinsteiger will have to deal with different time zones and longer trips, something that wasn’t an issue in Germany with Bayern Munich or England with Manchester United.
Fire Coach Veljko Paunovic is not surprised by how quickly Schweinsteiger has adapted to the MLS
“It took some time and it always takes time for everyone to adjust, but it’s everyday work, everyday communication, and everyday trying to be better,” Pauno said.
“And that’s our mentality now and something to build on and at this point the pieces are coming together better and better and they fit better.”
The pieces are starting to come together for the Fire, a club that finished 10th the past two seasons and ninth the year prior. It’s very early in 2017, but you can see substantial improvement has been made.
Two seasons ago, the Fire did not even win a single road game. Sure, they still have some substantial steps forward to make, but you can see how far they have come from that level. Schweinsteiger is a big reason why.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times and NBC Chicago.com, contributes to Chicago Tribune.com, Bold, WGN CLTV and KOZN.
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