2012 Chicago Fire season

Chicago Fire Soccer Club

2012 season
Chairman	Andrew Hauptman
Head coach	Frank Klopas
Stadium	Toyota Park (capacity: 20,000)
MLS	6th overall (4th in the Eastern Conference)
MLS Cup Playoffs	Knockout round
U.S. Open Cup	Third round
Carolina Challenge Cup	Runners-up
Brimstone Cup	Winners
Top goalscorer	Chris Rolfe (8 goals)
Highest home attendance	20,533 vs Los Angeles Galaxy (July 8)
Lowest home attendance	10,489 vs Houston Dynamo (April 15)
Average home league attendance	16,407 (regular season)
Home colors Away colors
← 2011 2013 →

The 2012 Chicago Fire season was the club's 17th year of existence, as well as their 15th season in Major League Soccer and their 15th consecutive year in the top-flight of American soccer.

The Fire began the regular season with a 1–1 tie on March 17, 2012 when they were hosted by the expansion team Montreal Impact in their first Major League Soccer home game. The Men in Red concluded the regular season hosting D.C. United at the Toyota Park on October 27, 2012.

The Fire qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs for the twelfth time in their fifteen competitive seasons and for the first time since 2009. The team was eliminated from the playoffs after a 1–2 home loss to Houston Dynamo in the Knockout Round match on October 31, 2012.

At the end of the season, Chicago Fire's defender, Austin Berry, has been awarded the 2012 MLS Rookie of the Year Award, while the club's captain Logan Pause has won the 2012 MLS Fair Play Award.

Squad at the end of the season

As of October 31, 2012. Source: Chicago Fire Official Roster

No.	Name	Nationality	Position	Date of Birth (Aged)	Previous Club
Goalkeepers
1	Jay Nolly		GK	(1982-01-02)January 2, 1982 (aged 30)	Vancouver Whitecaps FC
25	Sean Johnson		GK	(1989-05-31)May 31, 1989 (aged 23)	Atlanta Blackhawks
70	Paolo Tornaghi		GK	(1988-06-21)June 21, 1988 (aged 24)	F.C. Internazionale Milano
Defenders
3	Dan Gargan		RB	(1982-12-14)December 14, 1982 (aged 29)	Toronto FC
5	Cory Gibbs		CB	(1980-01-14)January 14, 1980 (aged 32)	New England Revolution
6	Jalil Anibaba		CB	(1988-10-19)October 19, 1988 (aged 24)	Carolina Dynamo
13	Gonzalo Segares		LB	(1982-10-13)October 13, 1982 (aged 30)	Apollon Limassol
20	Tony Walls		RB	(1990-01-16)January 16, 1990 (aged 22)	University of Wisconsin–Green Bay
22	Austin Berry		CB	(1988-06-06)June 6, 1988 (aged 24)	Louisville Cardinals
23	Arne Friedrich		CB	(1979-05-29)May 29, 1979 (aged 33)	VfL Wolfsburg
28	Steven Kinney		RB	(1987-10-28)October 28, 1987 (aged 25)	Carolina Dynamo
99	Hunter Jumper		LB	(1989-02-28)February 28, 1989 (aged 23)	University of Virginia Cavaliers
Midfielders
4	Álvaro Fernández		M	(1985-10-11)October 11, 1985 (aged 27)	Seattle Sounders FC
11	Daniel Paladini		M	(1984-11-11)November 11, 1984 (aged 27)	Carolina RailHawks FC
12	Logan Pause		M	(1981-08-22)August 22, 1981 (aged 31)	North Carolina Tar Heels
15	Wells Thompson		M	(1983-11-25)November 25, 1983 (aged 28)	Colorado Rapids
17	Pável Pardo		M	(1976-07-26)July 26, 1976 (aged 36)	Club América
19	Corben Bone		M	(1988-09-16)September 16, 1988 (aged 24)	Carolina Dynamo
21	Michael Videira		M	(1986-01-06)January 6, 1986 (aged 26)	AC St. Louis
27	Victor Pineda		M	(1993-03-15)March 15, 1993 (aged 19)	Chicago Fire Academy
71	Alex		M	(1988-12-15)December 15, 1988 (aged 23)	FC Wohlen
Forwards
7	Sherjill MacDonald		F	(1984-11-20)November 20, 1984 (aged 27)	Beerschot AC
8	Dominic Oduro		F	(1985-08-13)August 13, 1985 (aged 27)	Houston Dynamo
10	Guillermo Franco		F	(1976-11-03)November 3, 1976 (aged 35)	Pachuca
14	Patrick Nyarko		F	(1986-01-15)January 15, 1986 (aged 26)	Virginia Tech Hokies
18	Chris Rolfe		F	(1983-01-17)January 17, 1983 (aged 29)	Aalborg BK
94	Kellen Gulley		F	(1994-04-06)April 6, 1994 (aged 18)	Chicago Fire Academy

Player movement

Transfers

In

Date	Player	Position	Previous Club	Fee/Notes	Ref
December 5, 2011	Orr Barouch	F	Tigres de la UANL	Purchased rights after loan, terms not disclosed	[1]
December 5, 2011	Jay Nolly	GK	Vancouver Whitecaps FC	Acquired in exchange for a first round selection in the 2013 MLS Supplemental Draft	[2]
December 6, 2011	Logan Pause	M	Chicago Fire	Extended the contract through 2013, terms not disclosed	[3]
January 9, 2012	Rafael Robayo	M	Millonarios	Signed, terms not disclosed	[4]
January 11, 2012	Federico Puppo	M	Danubio F.C.	Signed, terms not disclosed	[5]
January 12, 2012	Austin Berry	D	University of Louisville	Selected ninth overall in 2012 MLS SuperDraft, signed with MLS	[6]
January 18, 2012	Pável Pardo	M	Chicago Fire	Re-signed for a two-year contract, terms not disclosed	[7]
January 24, 2012	Kheli Dube	F	New England Revolution	Signed on as free agent after being selected in Stage Two of the 2011 MLS Re-Entry Draft on December 12, 2011	[8]
March 6, 2012	Hunter Jumper	D	University of Virginia Cavaliers	Signed after being selected 28th overall in 2012 MLS SuperDraft, terms not disclosed	[9]
March 7, 2012	Arne Friedrich	D	VfL Wolfsburg	Signed, terms of the deal not disclosed	[10]
March 7, 2012	Paolo Tornaghi	GK	F.C. Internazionale Milano	Signed, terms of the deal not disclosed	[11]
March 15, 2012	Tony Walls	D	University of Wisconsin–Green Bay	Signed after being selected 47th overall in the 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft, terms not disclosed	[12]
April 5, 2012	Patrick Nyarko	F	Chicago Fire	Re-signed, terms and length not disclosed	[13]
April 17, 2012	Chris Rolfe	F	Aalborg BK	Reacquired, signed as a free agent, terms not disclosed	[14]
April 26, 2012	Alex Monteiro de Lima	M	FC Wohlen	Signed on a free transfer, terms not disclosed; was added to the roster upon the opening of the summer transfer window on June 27	[15]
July 24, 2012	Sherjill MacDonald	F	Beerschot AC	Signed as a Designated Player, terms not disclosed	[16]
July 27, 2012	Álvaro Fernández	M	Seattle Sounders FC	Acquired as a Designated Player in return for allocation money, terms not disclosed	[17]
September 10, 2012	Wells Thompson	M	Colorado Rapids	Acquired in exchange for a conditional draft pick, terms not disclosed	[18]
September 14, 2012	Guillermo Franco	F	Pachuca	Signed on a free transfer, terms not disclosed	[19]

Out

Date	Player	Position	Destination Club	Fee/Notes	Ref
December 2, 2011	Alec Dufty	GK	None	Placed on Re-Entry list, was not selected in the Re-Entry Draft, became a free agent	[20]
December 7, 2011	Cristian Nazarit	F	Deportivo Cali	Released	[21]
December 7, 2011	Gabriel Ferrari	F	None	Released	[21]
December 12, 2011	Jon Conway	GK	Los Angeles Galaxy	Selected by Los Angeles Galaxy in the Re-Entry Draft; retired on January 10, 2012	[22]
December 12, 2011	Baggio Husidić	M	Hammarby IF	Selected by Colorado Rapids in the Re-Entry Draft, declined and signed with the Swedish Hammarby IF	[22]
January 15, 2012	Diego Cháves	F	C.D. Palestino	Out of contract, signed with the Chilean C.D. Palestino	[23]
January 23, 2012	Mike Banner	M	None	Waived	[24]
January 26, 2012	Josip Mikulić	D	None	Returned to Croatia due to family issues	[25]
January 26, 2012	Yamith Cuesta	D	UB Conquense	Loan expired, loan agreement is not presently allowing to re-sign	[25]
January 30, 2012	Wilman Conde	D	New York Red Bulls	Free transfer after MLS rights were acquired by New York Red Bulls for allocation money	[26]
March 11, 2012	Pari Pantazopoulos	D	None	Waived	[27]
June 26, 2012	Kheli Dube	F	None	Waived	[28]
June 27, 2012	Kwame Watson-Siriboe	D	Real Salt Lake	Traded to Real Salt Lake in exchange for 4th round pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft	[29]
August 30, 2012	Marco Pappa	M	SC Heerenveen	Transferred effective immediately, terms not disclosed; previously announced on Aug 13 Pappa would be transferred at the end of the MLS 2012 season	[30]

• The following players selected by Chicago Fire in either the 2012 MLS SuperDraft or 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft were released during the pre-season trials: FW Evans Frimpong, Supplemental Draft round 1; GK Karl Woszczynski, Supplemental Draft round 1; MF Justin Chavez, Supplemental Draft round 4. FW Lucky Mkosana, SuperDraft round 2, entered the season but ultimately was not signed by the club.

Loans

In

Date	Player	Position	Loaned From	Fee/Notes	Ref

Out

Date	Player	Position	Loaned To	Fee/Notes	Ref
July 24, 2012	Federico Puppo	F	Defensor Sporting	For the remainder of the season; terms not disclosed	[31]
July 26, 2012	Rafael Robayo	M	Millonarios	For the remainder of the season; terms not disclosed	[32]
August 17, 2012	Sebastián Grazzini	M	Atlético de Rafaela	For the remainder of the season; terms not disclosed	[33]
September 13, 2012	Orr Barouch	F	Bnei Yehuda	For the remainder of the season; terms not disclosed	[34]

Club staff

Position	Staff
Head Coach	Frank Klopas
Assistant Coaches	Leo Percovich Mike Matkovich
Goalkeeper Coach	Aron Hyde
Strength & Conditioning Coach	Tony Jouaux
Vice President of Soccer Operations	Guillermo Petrei
Director of Soccer & Team Development	Paul Cadwell
Director of Team Operations	Ron Stern
Head Equipment Manager	Charles Raycroft
Assistant Equipment Manager	Allan Araujo
Head Athletic Trainer	Bo Leonard, MS, ATC, PES-NASM
Assistant Athletic Trainer	Matt Zalewski, ATC
Massage Therapist	Jake Bronowski, LMT
Team Medical Director	Dr. Gilberto Munoz

Standings

Eastern Conference Table

Pos	Team	Pts	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Qualification or relegation
1	Sporting Kansas City !Sporting Kansas City (E1)	63	34	18	7	9	42	27	+15	2012 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals
2	D.C. United !D.C. United	58	34	17	10	7	53	43	+10
3	New York Red Bulls !New York Red Bulls	57	34	16	9	9	57	46	+11
4	Chicago Fire !Chicago Fire	57	34	17	11	6	46	41	+5	2012 MLS Cup Knockout Round
5	Houston Dynamo !Houston Dynamo	53	34	14	9	11	48	41	+7
6	Columbus Crew !Columbus Crew	52	34	15	12	7	44	44	0
7	Montreal Impact !Montreal Impact	42	34	12	16	6	45	51	−6
8	Philadelphia Union !Philadelphia Union	36	34	10	18	6	37	45	−8
9	New England Revolution !New England Revolution	35	34	9	17	8	39	44	−5
10	Toronto FC !Toronto FC	23	34	5	21	8	36	62	−26

Updated to matches played on 18:04 EDT October 28, 2012. Source: MLSSoccer.com
Notation Key:

(E1) = Eastern Conference champion

Western Conference Table

Pos	Team	Pts	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Qualification or relegation
1	San Jose Earthquakes !San Jose Earthquakes (SS) (W1)	66	34	19	6	9	72	43	+29	2012 MLS Cup Conference Semifinals
2	Real Salt Lake !Real Salt Lake	57	34	17	11	6	46	35	+11
3	Seattle Sounders FC !Seattle Sounders FC	56	34	15	8	11	51	33	+18
4	LA Galaxy !LA Galaxy	54	34	16	12	6	59	47	+12	2012 MLS Cup Knockout Round
5	Vancouver Whitecaps FC !Vancouver Whitecaps FC	43	34	11	13	10	35	41	−6
6	FC Dallas !FC Dallas	39	34	9	13	12	42	47	−5
7	Colorado Rapids !Colorado Rapids	37	34	11	19	4	44	50	−6
8	Portland Timbers !Portland Timbers	34	34	8	16	10	34	56	−22
9	Chivas USA !Chivas USA	30	34	7	18	9	24	58	−34

Updated to matches played on October 28, 2012. Source: MLSSoccer.com
Notation Key:

(SS) = Supporters Shield winner

(W1) = Western Conference champion

Overall Table

Pos	Team	Pts	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	GD	Qualification or relegation
1	San Jose Earthquakes !San Jose Earthquakes (SS)	66	34	19	6	9	72	43	+29	2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League 1
2	Sporting Kansas City !Sporting Kansas City	63	34	18	7	9	42	27	+15
3	D.C. United !D.C. United	58	34	17	10	7	53	43	+10
4	New York Red Bulls !New York Red Bulls	57	34	16	9	9	57	46	+11
5	Real Salt Lake !Real Salt Lake	57	34	17	11	6	46	35	+11
6	Chicago Fire !Chicago Fire	57	34	17	11	6	46	41	+5
7	Seattle Sounders FC !Seattle Sounders FC	56	34	15	8	11	51	33	+18
8	LA Galaxy !LA Galaxy	54	34	16	12	6	59	47	+12	2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League 1
9	Houston Dynamo !Houston Dynamo	53	34	14	9	11	48	41	+7
10	Columbus Crew !Columbus Crew	52	34	15	12	7	44	44	0
11	Vancouver Whitecaps FC !Vancouver Whitecaps FC	43	34	11	13	10	35	41	−6
12	Montreal Impact !Montreal Impact	42	34	12	16	6	45	51	−6
13	FC Dallas !FC Dallas	39	34	9	13	12	42	47	−5
14	Colorado Rapids !Colorado Rapids	37	34	11	19	4	44	50	−6
15	Philadelphia Union !Philadelphia Union	36	34	10	18	6	37	45	−8
16	New England Revolution !New England Revolution	35	34	9	17	8	39	44	−5
17	Portland Timbers !Portland Timbers	34	34	8	16	10	34	56	−22
18	Chivas USA !Chivas USA	30	34	7	18	9	24	58	−34
19	Toronto FC !Toronto FC	23	34	5	21	8	36	62	−26	2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League 2

Updated to matches played on October 28, 2012. Source: MLSSoccer.com
Notation Key:

(SS) = Supporters Shield winner

¹The highest ranked U.S.-based MLS club qualifies to the 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League (placed in Pot A). The other U.S. representatives in the 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League are:

• Winner of the 2012 MLS Cup (Pot A)
• Runner-up of the 2012 MLS Cup (Pot B)
• Winner of the 2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (Pot B)

²Toronto FC qualified for the 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League as winners of the 2012 Canadian Championship.

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
34	57	17	11	6	46	41	+5	11	3	3	27	18	+9	6	8	3	19	23	−4

Last updated: October 27, 2012
Source: MLSsoccer.com standings
Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference

Results by round

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	31	32	33	34
Ground	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H
Result	T	W	L	T	W	L	W	T	W	L	W	L	L	W	W	W	T	L	W	L	T	W	W	W	L	W	W	W	W	L	L	W	L	T
Conference	3	3	7	7	4	4	5	4	4	4	4	4	5	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	5	5	4	3	4	3	2	2	2	3	3	2	3	4
Overall	11	10	13	15	12	12	11	11	9	9	7	9	10	9	8	6	7	8	7	7	10	7	6	5	6	6	4	3	3	4	4	3	6	6

Last updated: October 27, 2012.
Source: MLS conference standings and MLS Supporters' Shield standings
Ground: A = Away; H = Home. Result: T = Tie; L = Loss; W = Win; P = Postponed.

Match Results

  Win   Tie   Loss

Pre-season

Kickoff times are in CST.

Major League Soccer

Kickoff times are in CDT.

MLS Cup Playoffs

Kickoff times are in CDT.

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

Kickoff times are in CDT.

International friendlies

Kickoff times are in CDT.

Recognition

Kits

Home

Away

Away special

Type	Shirt	Shorts	Socks	First appearance / Info
Home	Red / White lettering	Red	Red
Away	Navy / White lettering	Navy	Navy
Away Special[35]	Navy / Pink lettering	Navy	Pink	MLS, October 27 against D.C. United

Leading scorers

Rank	Scorer	Goals	Assists
1	Chris Rolfe	8	3
2	Marco Pappa	6	5
3	Dominic Oduro	6	3
4	Patrick Nyarko	4	7
5	Sherjill MacDonald	4	4
6	Gonzalo Segares	3	1
7	Austin Berry	3	0
8	Sebastián Grazzini	2	5
9	Daniel Paladini	2	2
10	Álvaro Fernández	2	1
11	Alex	2	0
12	Pável Pardo	1	4
13	Jalil Anibaba	1	1
14	Arne Friedrich	1	0
	Logan Pause	1	0
16	Sean Johnson	0	1
	Federico Puppo	0	1
	Dan Gargan	0	1

Updated to match played on October 27, 2012.
Source: MLSsoccer.com statistics - 2012 Chicago Fire

MLS Team of the Week

Week	Player	Position	Report
3	Marco Pappa	MF	Report
7	Patrick Nyarko	FW	Report
9	Austin Berry	DF	Report
	Marco Pappa	MF
16	Sean Johnson	GK	Report
17	Sean Johnson	GK	Report
	Arne Friedrich	DF
19	Austin Berry	DF	Report
23	Arne Friedrich	DF	Report
	Chris Rolfe	FW
24	Chris Rolfe	FW	Report
26	Arne Friedrich	DF	Report
	Patrick Nyarko	MF
28	Jalil Anibaba	FW	Report
	Álvaro Fernández	MF
	Frank Klopas	Coach
29	Chris Rolfe	FW	Report
31	Arne Friedrich	DF	Report
	Sherjill MacDonald	FW
33	Patrick Nyarko	MF	Report

MLS Player of the Week

Week	Player	Report
28	Sean Johnson	POTW

MLS Save of the Week

Week	Player	Save	Report
4	Paolo Tornaghi	65'	SOTW
10	Sean Johnson	43'	SOTW
21	Sean Johnson	59'	SOTW

MLS Goal of the Week

Week	Player	Goal	Report
8	Marco Pappa	89'	GOTW

MLS Fair Play Award

Chicago Fire's midfielder and captain, Logan Pause, has been awarded the league's 2012 Fair Play Award. Over the course of 32 matches played this season, Pause has accumulated only 11 fouls and no yellow or red cards.^[36]

MLS Rookie of the Year

Chicago Fire's defender Austin Berry, selected number nine overall in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft, has been awarded the league's 2012 Rookie of the Year Award. Berry has started in 28 games and scored three goals, one in his debut match. Berry collected the most votes in all three categories: players, media and club management.^[37]

Miscellany

Allocation ranking

Chicago is in the #9 position in the MLS Allocation Ranking. The allocation ranking is the mechanism used to determine which MLS club has first priority to acquire a U.S. National Team player who signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the league after having gone to a club abroad for a transfer fee. A ranking can be traded, provided that part of the compensation received in return is another club’s ranking.^[38]

International roster slots

Chicago has 8 MLS International Roster Slots for use in the 2012 season. Each club in Major League Soccer is allocated 8 international roster spots. No slot trades involving Chicago have been reported.

Future draft pick trades

Future picks acquired: *2014 MLS SuperDraft round 4 pick from Real Salt Lake.
Future picks traded: *2013 MLS Supplemental Draft round 1 pick to Vancouver Whitecaps FC. At the time of the trade, this pick was equivalent to a round 3 SuperDraft selection.

MLS rights to other players

It is believed Chicago maintains the MLS rights to Carlos Bocanegra and Fredrik Ljungberg, as each of these players declined contract offers by the club and signed overseas on free transfers.

References