For the primary time in eight seasons, Chicago Hearth FC is playoff sure, and so they’ll go into their ultimate sport of the season with postseason seeding at stake.
As issues stand coming into “Resolution Day,” which is able to come on Saturday with each MLS crew in motion, the Hearth have 52 factors on the season and are in eighth place within the standings.
That positioning is vital as a result of the Hearth are only one level behind Orlando and two factors behind Nashville, and if they’ll bounce both a kind of groups, they’ll keep away from a Wild Card Match, a one-game playoff to find out who makes it into the primary full spherical of the MLS playoffs.
The Hearth have certified for the postseason for the primary time because the 2017 season, having made the playoff subject simply as soon as within the final 12 seasons previous to this season.
This season underneath new head coach Gregg Berhalter, the Hearth have put collectively a robust conclusion to the marketing campaign, going 4-1-1 of their final six matches to punch their ticket into the playoffs.
Their scoring assault has been paced by a robust season from Hugo Cuypers, who leads the crew with 17 objectives and is sixth within the league in that class. Philip Zinckernagel is second on the membership with 14 objectives in 31 MLS video games this season, and he additionally leads the crew with 15 assists in these video games, tied for third within the league in that class.
Chicago has the second-best offense in the whole league this season, with 66 objectives on the marketing campaign, behind solely Inter Miami, with their offensive punch fueled by league-leading scorer Lionel Messi.
The Hearth might doubtlessly meet Miami within the first spherical of the postseason if they’ll leapfrog Nashville or Orlando, however there’s additionally a risk they may face the Philadelphia Union, presently the league’s prime crew.
The Hearth will face the New England Revolution on Saturday at 5 p.m. at Gilette Stadium in Foxboro. Nashville can be going through Miami at dwelling, whereas Orlando can be on the street taking up Toronto FC.
If the Hearth can’t get above eighth place, they’d tackle the Columbus Crew in a wild card match, with home-field benefit nonetheless undecided heading into the ultimate week of the season.
In accordance to the league, these wild card matches will happen on Wednesday, October 22. The eighth and ninth-seeded groups in every convention will play a winner-take-all match, with the winner advancing to the primary spherical of the MLS playoffs to face the top-seeded crew of their convention.
These matches will get underway subsequent weekend, and can proceed by November 9. In accordance with MLS guidelines, the primary spherical is a best-of-three match collection between the highest eight seeds within the postseason.
After that, the playoffs develop into a single-elimination format, with the convention semifinals, the convention finals, and the MLS Cup winner-take-all affairs.
