Wondering how the recent moves of Chris Rolfe and Bakary Soumare to Europe will impact Brian McBride's offseason decision? Well, I asked the 37-year-old McBride - who is in the last year of his contract with the Fire - just that question after the Fire's practice last Thursday. Here is what the Arlington Heights native had to say.

The Fire and Real Salt Lake are set to clash tomorrow night for their second meeting of the season. The Fire was victorious in the first matchup between the two teams, getting a goal from Patrick Nyarko to defeat RSL 1-0 on August 1st at Toyota Park. What's the main difference between tomorrow's match and the teams' first meeting?

Hey everybody, wanted to pass along a few bits of MLS news before Friday comes to a close and the weekend really gets going. Two pretty big names in North American soccer made the move from Europe to MLS today as U.S. National Team defender Heath Pearce joined FC Dallas and Canadian National Team star midfielder Julian DeGuzman -- formerly of La Liga's Deportivo La Coruña -- returned to his hometown to join Toronto FC as the club's first ever Designated Player.

I was at the Fire's practice session today and picked up a few tidbits of info from the training session. Here they are......

With only five regular season games left in their season, every remaining match is critical for the Chicago Fire. Some matches, however, are more important than others and this Sunday's battle at Toyota Park against the defending champion Columbus Crew (2 p.m. on My50/Telefutura) certainly fits that description.

The Fire had it all to fight for on Sunday afternoon against the Columbus Crew. First place in the East, a shot at the Supporter's Shield, home field advantage in the playoffs, you name it and the Fire had it in their grasp this afternoon at Toyota Park but in the end it all slipped away as the two sides played to a very controversial 2-2 draw.

Here are a few notes from today's high-intensity Fire training session... McBride Back in Action - Injured forward Brian McBride (torn labrum) was back on the training field today, participating in his first "full go" practice since having surgery in mid-July. McBride, who isn't listed on the Fire's injury report this week, looked good in practice and didn't seem to be inhibited by the injury whatsoever.

According to a Goal.com report, Fire forward Chris Rolfe is set to leave Chicago in January to join Danish Club Aalborg (or Aab, as they are more commonly known) on a free transfer. "I'm very excited, as I think Aalborg is as well," Rolfe told Goal.com. "It's a new opportunity and something I've always wanted to do.

Despite the fact that nearly all of the top European leagues have the weekend off, today is still a big day in the world of soccer, as important World Cup Qualifiers are taking place across the globe. There are also three MLS matches scheduled for today, with the most high-profile game between Toronto and Colorado.

Now, I know some of you may take a break from soccer on this first Sunday of the NFL season, but if you still have the urge to watch some of the 'beautiful game' then today isn't a bad day to watch.Some of today's better games include Fulham-Everton (10 a.m. on FSC), Genoa-Napoli (1:30 p.m. on FSC), New England-Chivas USA (2 p.

I'll be heading out to the Fire's practice tomorrow and I was wondering if there was anything in particular you guys wanted to know/wanted me to ask. Feel free to post any questions you would like to see posed to Denis Hamlett or any player and (if they are reasonable) I'll try and get them answered for you.

With the September 15th roster freeze deadline rapidly approaching, many of us had been wondering what the Fire was planning to do with the roster spot left vacant by the departure of Bakary Soumare. Would the Fire fill it? Would they stand pat? Well, we got our question answered late last night, when the Fire announced that they had signed 21-year-old defender David Myrie.

There are a full slate of good soccer matches on the plate for today as the European leagues start to round out of the beginning of the year and MLS continues to inch towards the close of the 2009 season.Some matches that I might be checking out include Barcelona v. Atletico Madrid (3 p.m. GolTV) and Seattle v.

Just a few quick updates on the injury situations of Gonzalo Segares and John Thorrington to keep your day moving along... Gonzalo Segares - Segares, who has been out with a sprained left MCL since August 9th, told me last week that he was targeting this Saturday's game against Toronto FC for his return and it appears that he will be available right on schedule.

Here's an interview I did with Fire defender Dasan Robinson after yesterday's training session. The 25-year-old Robinson - who has made 9 appearances in all competitions for the Fire this year - talked pretty candidly about a variety of subjects in the interview. Some of the topics he and I touched on included his re-emergence (and red card) in the Colorado game, the ups and downs of his Fire career, and the team's chances this season.

Here are a few notes from today's Fire practice out at Toyota Park... McBride update - Forward Brian McBride once again took part in full training with the squad today and he looked good, showing no signs of pain in his surgically repaired right shoulder and saying that he feels like he can play in Saturday's game at Real Salt Lake.

At first glance, one would guess that Chris Rolfe's impending move from the Fire to Danish club Aalborg was motivated by a couple of things: 1) the motivation to play in a league with more exposure/higher quality of play and 2) the desire to earn a little more money in a career in which players have a short earning lifespan.

The Fire entered this weekend one point behind the Columbus Crew for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. Now, the weekend is over and the Fire has lost ground in the race for the top spot in the East, as they currently sit three points behind the league leading Crew - who pulled off an improbable 2-1 victory over the Houston Dynamo yesterday.

Hey everybody, it's a busy afternoon for me so here's a few quick links to get you through the day. Here's a brief interview the Chicago Fire media relations people did with new acquisition David Myrie. Not a whole lot there, but worth checking out.MLS announced yesterday that the league will take a break during the Group Stage of next year's World Cup (June 10-25) and that all 16 teams (remember Philadelphia is coming in next season.

Today's another busy day in the world of soccer as there are several very high quality matches going on, even as I type this entry.Some of the more marquee matchups include Manchester United v. Manchester City (7:30 a.m. on Setanta Sports), Chelsea v. Tottenham (10 a.m. on FSC) and of course Fire v.

It was announced yesterday that former Fire midfielder Chris Armas -- who played with the club from its inception in 1998 through 2007 -- will be inducted into the "Ring of Fire" Hall of Fame prior to Fire's October 22nd game against Chivas USA. "As someone who once shared the pitch with Chris, I can say that he exemplifies the Fire's motto of Honor, Tradition and Passion," said Fire technical director and 2004 Ring of Fire inductee, Frank Klopas.

(Apologies for the lack of a picture...the website I use for photos appears to be down -- at least for my computer) When Peter Lowry netted twice for the Fire in Sunday's 2-2 draw with Columbus, you couldn't blame the midfielder for wanting to soak it all in. After all, it's not too often that the 24-year-old Lowry gets a start, let alone scores two goals.

We're only an hour away from kickoff here at Toyota Park so it's a little past time I get the Matchday post up. As always, I'll be checking in from the press box with the lineups/other observations as soon as they become available. Otherwise, feel free to share your thoughts on the match in the comments section below.

Playing without injured attackers Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Chris Rolfe, the Fire played to what they called a "disappointing" 2-2 draw with Toronto FC at Toyota Park tonight. The second place Fire, who has now tied three matches in a row, fall five points behind the league leading Columbus with the result - effectively eliminating them from the race for the Supporter's Shield.

With just 3 regular season games remaining before he leaves MLS to join Danish club Aalborg, Fire midfielder/forward Chris Rolfe is taking in every moment of his last few weeks with Chicago. "Knowing that my games at Toyota Park are numbered for now makes it something that I definitely want to take full advantage of," said the 26-year-old Rolfe prior to Saturday's game against Toronto FC.

Hey everybody, kind of a slow news day for the Fire (so far anyway...) so I'm taking a little break from writing and simply sharing some links today. I'll be back to the grind tomorrow with a Fire Practice Report though, so keep an eye out for that.Steve Davis of ESPN Soccernet writes about the somewhat surprising fact that tickets are still available for Saturday's World Cup Qualifier between the U.

Just a reminder that I'm heading out to the Toyota Park Training Field to catch the Fire's practice today. I should have a full report up around 1:30 or 2....

Here's a little interview I did with Fire defender Brandon Prideaux after last Wednesday's training session. The 33-year-old Prideaux is retiring at the end of 2009 to become an assistant coach at his alma-mater, the University of Washington. Our conversation touched on a lot of topics; including his future plans, his infamous MLS record, and the 2009 Fire season.

After getting a well-deserved week off to rest their legs, the Fire came into tonight's match against Real Salt Lake ready to start the final two months of the season with yet another road win. And while at times it looked like the Fire would be able to pick up all three points at Rio Tinto Stadium, in the end it wasn't to be, and the two teams played to a 1-1 tie.

Hey everybody, it's a busy afternoon for me so here's a few quick links to get you through the day. Here's a brief interview the Chicago Fire media relations people did with new acquisition David Myrie. Not a whole lot there, but worth checking out.MLS announced yesterday that the league will take a break during the Group Stage of next year's World Cup (June 10-25) and that all 16 teams (remember Philadelphia is coming in next season.

Hey everybody, it's a busy afternoon for me so here's a few quick links to get you through the day. Here's a brief interview the Chicago Fire media relations people did with new acquisition David Myrie. Not a whole lot there, but worth checking out.MLS announced yesterday that the league will take a break during the Group Stage of next year's World Cup (June 10-25) and that all 16 teams (remember Philadelphia is coming in next season.

It's shaping up to be a light news day in the world of the Chicago Fire so without anything too new to report on, I thought I would share a few links with you guys to keep your Wednesday rolling along... Here's a little write-up from ESPNChicago.com's Scott Powers detailing Chris Rolfe's upcoming transfer.

Hey everybody, I'll be talking with Denis Hamlett at around 1 p.m. today so I'll be able to post an update at around 2-2:30. You can feel free to post any questions you would like to see Hamlett answer at the bottom of this thread -- I'll try and take a look at them if I can.Check back at 2:30 for the Mid-Week Update.

Here are a few quick notes that are making news in the world of the Fire/MLS today. Better late than never right? Injury Updates: A few Fire players have been struggling with injuries for the past couple weeks and while some of them could return this Saturday against Toronto, the news isn't very good for others.

As if facing a desperate Toronto FC team that just happens to be loaded with attacking options isn't enough, the Fire will be playing Saturday night's game at Toyota Park without two of their best - as both Cuauhtemoc Blanco and John Thorrington have been ruled out of this weekend's match. But despite the absence of the playmaking Blanco and the stalwart Thorrington, the Fire (who beat TFC 2-0 on May 16th) is confident that they will be able to walk away from the match with all three points - keeping pace with first place Columbus in the process.

Filling in for injured playmaker Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Fire midfielder Justin Mapp had some big shoes to fill when the Fire hosted Toronto FC on Saturday night. And while the Fire disappointed with a 2-2 tie that effectively knocked them out of the race for the Supporter's Shield, Mapp was a bright spot, looking dangerous and providing an assist in the draw.

I'll be interviewing Denis Hamlett tomorrow and thought I'd open up the floor for you guys to pose some questions. Just so you know, I'll be asking Denis about all the standard stuff (i.e. Galaxy preview questions, injury updates etc.) so feel free to throw out any off-the-wall questions you may have.