Ask Chris

As promised by Luis Arroyave, who writes for the Chicago Tribune and covers the Fire for the length of the year, here is the second half of my answers to the questions from his blog. To check out the first half of the Q and A and learn more about the Fire throughout the year, you can Google "red card blog" or just follow the link above to his blog.

How would you describe Denis' coaching style? Is he upfront and open with his players? Did you see any rising tension between Denis and Frankowski before Tomaz vented to the media? - Fumar

Denis is a mix of all three head coaches he assisted with the Fire. From this year alone, it seems as if he likes to give the players some space to think on their own and to allow us to figure out things amongst ourselves before he feels the need to intervene. He works hard and takes his job seriously.

I feel like Denis is approachable. Tomasz had a tough year with us, so from that alone, I figured he wasn’t happy with anyone in a decision-making position.

Would you ever think of playing overseas? Preferably for Hearts of Midlothian in Scotland? - Liam

Playing overseas is something that could be an option throughout this year and into 2010. I would not close my door on any opportunities to continue to play this game.

Which of your teammates do you spend the most time with off the field? - Anonymous

I spend time with most of the players on the team that live in the city. This year, I’ve spent a lot of time with Stephen King, Nick Noble, Jon Busch and Justin Mapp

Best food...KU, Marycrest or VWK? I prefer none but if I had to choose, KU. - Mike

For those of you that didn’t go to UD, these are the dining halls on campus. I preferred KU my first year because it was the most convenient. VWK reminded me of soccer pre-season and that was the only time I’d eat there. Marycrest had a great candy section. After my first year, DiGiorno pizzas, pizza rolls, BW3’s, Milano’s and Papa John’s took priority.

Chris, You v. Luis, Wii Mario Kart, Rainbow Road... Who wins? - Mr. Goodbar

I would lap Luis, and the only thing he’d hit me with would be a blue shell.

Hey Chris, can you vote for me for employee of the month.....talk to Charles, I think he voted for Owen last month.........have a great Christmas...Jimmy - Janitorjim

We have employees of the month!? I'll submit a "write-in" ballot.

Chris, have you been offered an extension by the FIRE/MLS yet and Have any teams overseas spoken about your services?!?

Who from this years UIC squad would you think could help the FIRE the most in the coming years?!?

Does McBride smell like Irish Spring?!? - DJ

My agent is usually in talks with MLS regarding new contracts, and he’s also been busy speaking to teams interested from overseas.

UIC had a good team this year with some talented players. From what I saw, I think that the goalie Jovan could be a player who could do well eventually. The CM, Baggio, is comfortable and confident on the ball. I would like to see Pat McMahon play some more, because I liked the way he approached the games that I saw.

1. How do you get mentally ready for a game? 2. Who is your best friend on the team? 3. Are you happy with the fires performance in 2008? 4. Do you have any plans to play overseas> - Aaron

1. I prepare for the game all week mentally, so when it’s game day, I try to stay loose and keep my mind off of the game until about 3 hours before the game. That's when I start getting focused by listening to music and going over the things that I’ve been working on all week.

2. I’m good friends with a lot of the players on the team.

3. I thought we showed how great of a team we had at some stretches, but we failed in the end. Of course, a top 3 finish in the league and a loss in the Conference final is something to be proud of.

4. It's something that is always a consideration.

What do you think of my song I produced on my page (not fully done yet) www.myspace.com/warrenolay/ "Get Off Me." - Produced by me.

Second off, would you mind staying with the Fire even in your prime (like DeRo or even Landon for alittle bit) or are you planning to go to Europe? - Warren

I like the beat… it could use a banjo or fiddle though.

That is something I’d have to consider at that time.

Question 1: Who is your agent? Why haven't you been loaned out in Europe yet?

I work with a company based in Los Angeles. I think loan deals are pretty hard to do, and we haven't gotten any interest to do that.

Where do you think the USMNT should play Mexico when qualifiers resume? - Kelly

Anywhere that’s cold.

What was your favorite goal this season? Is it the obvious one, or something no one's mentioned? Do you expect to get much more time with the National Team? What is your least-favorite team to play? - Patrickhattrick

My favorite goal this year was Daniel Woolard’s against NYRB at the end of the season. The guy has been a complete pro since he was drafted and he’s worked hard to get in the lineup. He got injured on a horrific tackle in a friendly and that was his first minute on the field since that mid-summer injury. He deserved it.

I have planned on playing with the National Team since I was 10, so I probably won’t stop planning on that anytime soon.

My least favorite team to play is our own reserve team, whom we play almost every week. Our reserves are the best in the league. They're always pushing us to make sure we're in form and working hard so they are ready to perform when they make it onto the game field.

When is Chris going to get to those questions from before, Luis? I'd like to make a bold statement: Chris's website stinks. On ice. No offense intended, but there is so much room for improvement there. First, get rid of the annoying dark background. Second, Stop making it so that it's just the box with the text pictures floating in the dark abyss of a background. Third, Please update your blog. - Pattrickhattrick

It took me over a week to answer your questions - sorry for the wait. I'll take your comments and talk them over with my web designer. More than likely, we'll leave it the way it is since we've only gotten positive feedback about it. Thank Luis for this blog update.

1.What do you like most about the city of Chicago? 2.What do you think of the state of the MLS? 3.What overseas team do you support? - Steve

1. The quality and variety of restaurants.

2. I feel like most teams are doing pretty well for themselves at this point, but because of the recession, the next few years may not be as profitable.

3. Unfortunately, I don’t have a favorite team, so I tend to support the teams who employ Americans. I'd like to see my friend Brad Guzan do well, so I'm behind Aston Villa at the moment.

A few years ago my friend told me he read you had done some sort of thing in Iceland. Is this true or was my friend just pulling my leg knowing about my obsession with the country? If it's true, what were you over there for? - Eiki

(i almost didn't ask this just because it's so random but after reading some of the other questions, i decided "what the heck?")

I think your friend got the better of you. I have never been to Iceland, but I hear it’s nice…

Just curious here, what do most Fire players do during the off season? Go back home? Train? Find a job...(since 1/2 the team make min. wage)? - John L.

Most of the Fire players leave Chicago for warmer weather, however, I’m not that smart. I take some time off for vacation(s) but usually stay around Chicago. I continue to exercise to some extent, and pick it up as the off-season progresses. The frequency of workouts, what I work on and the techniques all depend on how my body feels after the season.

Thanks for all the questions and interest! The winter must be tough without any GOOD soccer to watch, but at least those European leagues are still playing... Happy Holidays!

Muscle Activation Technique

Well, I've been a little wary of writing this blog for a while now, but now I think is a good time to address it. In 2007, I suffered a bad ankle sprain that kept me out of the lineup for a goof part of the summer. Upon my return, I felt pretty good, but there was still an uncomfortable feeling when I stressed my ankle. I felt a little unstable, so I continued to rehab with the same results. I rested in the off-season and went into pre-season accepting the idea that my ankle wouldn't feel as solid as it did prior to the injury.

Near the final whistle of the first game of 2008, I suffered another sprain in the opposite ankle that I injured in '07. This time, however, I did not "roll" my ankle. At this point, I was directed to talk to a Muscle Activation Technique trainer in Chicago. After a long chat (I can be difficult to persuade) I agreed to meet with Ralph Klisiewicz, a certified MAT trainer and personal fitness trainer. I explained to him my most recent injury and he made sense of it for me. I was still compensating from my left ankle injury a year ago which put unnecessary stress on my right ankle among other parts of my body. After one hour with Ralph, my ankle felt more stable.

The best part about this "rehab" or muscle activation is that all I had to do was lay on a massage table. I don't know all the scientific explanations behind this technique, so I won't even attempt to explain anymore of it. However, if you are interested you can read more by clicking this link.

I think this approach can help people of all ages. I think it can help an athlete achieve optimal efficiency from his/her body. As far as my experiences with rehabilitation goes, this seems to be the best way to recover from an injury. Also, anyone dealing with chronic pain can also be helped using this technique.

If you have any questions regarding this, I will be happy to honestly answer them - just send a message using the 'contact' link in the top, right corner of my homepage.

And thanks Ralph, for making this my most successful (and pain free) professional season to date!

Well, it's been about two weeks since my last post (or two months - who's counting though?), so I've had enough time to tally up the votes for different hairstyles. The polls are officially closed. The total number of votes cast were 174; a number computed after dismissing a few fraudulent voters who voted twice or cast their votes under the names of people no longer breathing. ACORN did not respond to our requests for interviews. The results are as follows:

Shorter w/ product 68%
Longer buzz 21%
Long hair college look 6%

*others receiving votes - skin head, hockey mullet, new-age soccer mullet and a mohawk

And the results have lead me to my current look. Thanks to everyone who voted.

Now to the good stuff - IT'S PLAYOFF TIME! We had the privilege of starting off this end-of-the-year tournament last Thursday night in Boston, while the other 3 games will be played today. It's a great testament to the hardwork, focus and discipline to be included in the top 8 teams in the league after 30 games. Starting on February 1st every year, each team focuses on a goal at the end of the year. That goal is to be 1 of 8 teams left standing come November. Sometimes it's not easy to stay focused on those hot summer days down in Texas or those afternoon games that reach 100 degrees at Toyota Park, but the team that is capable of doing that consistently tends to help their chances of making the playoffs. Just look at the 2 teams which finished last in the league this year (San Jose and the L.A. Galaxy - 33 points). They were only 6 points away from the last team included in the playoffs (New York - 39 points). That's only a difference of two wins over the course of 30 games. So that's how important some of those games are that may not seem to have significance at that time.

We finished 3rd out of 13 teams with 46 total points this season (13-10-7). However, the playoffs are a whole different story. Each team can forget what they did the previous 8 or 9 months, because once the playoffs start, suddenly everyone is equal again. Sure, some teams go into the playoffs on a hot or cold streak, which can help how they initially perform. Besides that, the slate is wiped clean. Now the league has 8 teams that believe they can win the MLS Cup. Everyone can see the prize at the end of the line, and it's only 4 games away. All 8 teams are thinking the same thing.

Speaking of the MLS Cup, MLS Commissioner Don Garber unveiled a new MLS Cup a few days ago. There's a short video of the event on MLSnet.com on the left side of the homepage under "Behind the Scenes Footage".

Keep sending in your questions as the playoffs continue through the 'contact' button on my homepage if you're interested in knowing more.

I think more people may care about my hairstyle than me playing soccer. Or maybe you all are more vocal about that than soccer! So I will explain the latest story in full detail here... Typically when my hair gets to a length where I get sick of dealing with it, I get the buzzers out and get rid of it. I tend to use a 1/4" or 1/2" inch guard - pretty standard. Wednesday afternoon, I reached my limit with my hair and figured it was time to take care of it. So, I spent a good 20 minutes buzzing most of it down to a 1/4". Before I touched up the edges or made sure the back was cleaned up, I decided to run back over my head a few times to make sure I got all the stray hairs that I missed the first time (HD tv has made this process much more time consuming). I'd looked in the mirror a few times and liked the transformation. I was listening to the radio and they were playing some good songs. I was feeling good... Then I heard the sound that changed my hairstyle - well my hair length at least. It was a quiet sound - barely audible or even noticeable at first. It was the sound of plastic on porcelain. As I made two more strokes on the back of my head with the buzzer I finally realized what that wonderful sound was. Ahhh yes. That's it. It was the 1/4" guard from my buzzers falling into the bathroom sink. I started to chuckle and immediately wished my friends were there to witness it, because I know they all would have found it hilarious. I slowly lifted my hand to the back of my head (hoping that the slower I went the less chance my hair would be gone?) to feel for the bald spot. It all felt the same to me - maybe no damage was done! Could it be?! (I find it interesting that I can convince myself of one thing no matter how obvious it is that it's not true. My girlfriend would probably use a different word in that sentence other than "interesting"). Like before, I SLOWLY walked to the bedroom to get my camera in order to see the back of my head. After a few poorly aimed photos, I realized that I had indeed created a pale rectangle on the back of my head (see image above). And that's how I got my new look.

Since I am not computer savvy enough to figure out how to put one of those convenient polls on my blog, I will do this one the old-fashioned way. Feel free to send your answers via the 'contact' button at the top of the page, leave them under this post or make a sign and bring it to a game. The question is: What hairstyle is your favorite? You can write in your own answer if you want, but here are a few options to start you off:
-Skinhead
-Longer buzz w/ or w/out natural rat tail
-Shorter - pretty boy with product
-1990 Bowl cut
-1994 "pineapple" (buzzed head minus the bangs)
-Long hair, grunge college kid
-Mullet?

Let me know and I'll get back with the results in a week or two. The post below has a few visuals to help you make your opinion.

Our win Saturday night in Boston increased our MLS unbeaten streak to seven. Those three points had even more significance, because it brought us to second place in the league and one point behind the Revolution. That was also the first time that we've swept the Revolution in the regular season since I've been on the Fire. We did it impressively, outscoring them 9-1 in those three games. Right now it's something to strengthen our confidence, but we'll need to take care of business in November for it to really mean something. However, I know how much our fans love being able to say that we took care of New England three times this year, so celebrate it! Our reserve team also finished the regular season 2-0 against their reserve team with an aggregate score of 6-1 (so it's actually 5-0 on the season, but who's counting?).

It was good to see Gonzalo and Wilman score... it's about time they helped us forwards out! Gonzalo's goal is up for goal of the week. You can vote for him at www.mlsnet.com. It was also good to see Taylor Twellman back in the lineup for New England. He made his first start of the season and got his second goal of the year Saturday night. He's a player that I respect and who makes the league better, so I was happy to see him out there.

Here are a few quick notes about former Fire players. Floyd Franks is entertaining opportunities in Denmark right now, but I haven't heard if he's signed yet. Chad scored his first goal for Toronto in their 1-0 win Saturday (he's also up for goal of the week so we'll see where your loyalty stands!). Nate Jaqua is back in MLS playing with Houston again. The Chicago Fire still have the rights to Matt Pickens, but don't expect much out of that situation.

The Superliga final is being played tonight between the New England Revolution and the Houston Dynamo. The Superliga is a tournament of 8 teams, 4 from both the MLS and the Mexican Primera Division. The teams are split into two, four team groups until each team has played the others in their respective group. The two teams with the best records from each group move onto the semi-finals with the winners reaching the final. The tournament lasts for nearly a month in the middle of the MLS season, but during pre-season for the Mexican clubs. The bright side to all of this - the champion gets $1,000,000 prize.

Well, I guess I should be more specific. If a Mexican team wins the tournament, then the champion gets a million dollars. However, if an MLS team wins the championship, then the champion only gets $150,000 and the owner(s) get $850,000 because, according to MLS commissioner Don Garber, "...they (the owners) have to incur the costs of putting on the games. We're producing some of these games and they have to fly the clubs from Mexico".

Mr. Garber is correct in saying, "those players (on the championship team) are getting a darned good payday for... five games." However, at our club, we spread our championship bonus money amongst our staff and our players. Therefore, we would split the $150,000 between, at least, 37 people - possibly more. That means that each team member would receive about $4,054 before taxes. After taxes, they'd each receive about $2,878 or $575 per game. There are men's amateur teams in Chicago that will pay you as well as that. On top of that, Chicago's average salary, excluding Cuauhtemoc Blanco, is around $73,493. If you divide that by our 30 game season, you get a figure of $2,449 and after taxes that becomes approximately $1,739 per game.

So the grand prize for winning this prestigious, million-dollar tournament is a hefty $2,878 per player or 1/3rd of the average payout per game during the regular season, according to our team's salaries. In all reality, it would be a nice bonus, but then you realize that 85% of that is going to a different recipient. It just seems a little lop-sided. What would the owner of the championship team walk away with? Well, the average attendance for a game in this year's Superliga is 13,227. That's a good amount of revenue considering the final game's average ticket price is $37. Add to that, some other standard revenues like parking, concessions and merchandise sales and it doesn't seem all that "risky".

Also, remember that by adding extra games, especially in the summer, the risk for injuries increases. You don't have to look far to see how one of these mid-season tournaments had a terrible impact on one of our players this year. The competition is a great idea and it's something that I would be excited to be involved with. However, when you look at the figures, it just feels like our players are being taken advantage of. Maybe I have a biased opinion, but that's the way I see it.

Our team has parted ways with two quality guys/players in the past week: Chad Barrett and Brian Plotkin. Both of them are friends of mine, as most, if not all, of their teammates would say. This is one of the more difficult parts of professional sports in my opinion. Our daily activities, our work together to attain goals, our locker room experience and all the emotions that go along with that make most teammates more than just teammates. So when a teammate, or two in this case, are dismissed, it allows me to refocus on how important my teammates are in my daily life.

Chad and I came to the Fire in the same draft class, 2005. The first thing that I noticed was how hard his shot was. My next thought - never get in front of it! Over the course of the next 3 1/2 years, Chad and I challenged each other almost everyday, which in turn led us both to become better players. We didn't get too many chances to play together as forwards, but the few chances we got, we had fun. Chad worked hard everyday for the team and was always proud to wear the Fire logo. I wish him the best of luck in Toronto, and maybe more importantly, luck in dealing with the turf!

Plotty has been with the team for 2 1/2 years, but I've known him for about 5 years. He spent some time with the Chicago Fire PDL team when I was still playing for them. At that time, he was a Chicago club soccer legend and a huge part of IU's national championship soccer program - something I could only dream of. Despite being a well-known soccer name, Plot was always friendly and a good guy to be around. That hasn't changed. I could always count on at least 12 high fives from him each day at practice (come on Skins...). I'm excited for Brian and what the future holds for him. He's got the chance for a fresh start and new challenges. Goodluck Skins-a-lot.

Those losses, however, have brought two new players into the Fire organization.
Marco Pappa made his debut in our win against Everton Wednesday night at Toyota Park. Brian McBride, as most of you have heard, will be joining us when his stint with the Olympic team in Beijing concludes. Both players should be able to help improve are team and to help us move towards an MLS Cup.

For those of you that have read the recaps regarding the Everton friendly, the red card tackle by a player by the name of Vaughan (I'll have to check that once I get the internet back) in the closing seconds of the game was horrible. It was completely uncalled for and one of the worst tackles I've seen live. The result of the thoughtless "tackle" could have been much worse had Vaughan's two feet connected with Daniel Woolard's knee directly instead of slightly above it. However, Daniel will be out for a while with some serious injuries caused by a foolish play. Other than that, it was another great opportunity to play a quality team. I'd also like to wish them luck in their upcoming season in the English Premier League.

You ask, I answer...

Nick from Peoria, IL sent,

Chris - thanks for coming out to Peoria to play the Open Cup game verse the Crew. The Fire looked good and the game was exciting. How was the trip? What did you think about the support you received from the fans?

I enjoyed the trip to Peoria. The drive was no more than 2 1/2 hours - just long enough for us to watch a movie with a little extra free time (we watched a movie from 1981 with Bill Murray and John Candy that did a great job showing the generation gap between the younger players and John Busch - I mean the older players). We first went to Shea Stadium on the campus of Bradley University the morning of the game for a light practice. We were surprised by a large group of kids who had shown up to watch some of our practice and to get autographs, whom I'm guessing were on campus for a soccer camp. When we came back for the game that evening, the field had been watered and the grass had been trimmed to a nice level. By kickoff, the stands were filled and the surrounding standing areas were also occupied. A large group of our front office staff were in attendance, also, which was great to see. I've got to think that the sun was an issue for the fans sitting across from the benches in first half. I was playing on that side and trying to look across the field was difficult at times because of the level of the sun. It was hard to decipher who was on what team, which may have been apparent by my passes? Beats me, I couldn't see... In short, the trip went well, the people were friendly, the hotel food was bad, the field was great, the support was tremendous and we won!

Michelle from Dallas sent,

Hey Chris! What is your favorite place to play other than in Chicago?

I'd have to say, as most of you would guess, that my favorite place to play on the road is Columbus. I enjoy knowing that my family and friends are in attendance. That gives me an extra boost during the game. Another place that I don't mind playing at is D.C. I enjoy their field because it tends to be a quick, low-cut surface that is softer than most of the other fields in MLS. Recently, my brother has been able to make the games there, which like I said above, is always nice.

Rico from Los Angeles sent,

Chris, it was cool watching the U.S. National team play England, Spain and Argentina. I thought you would've helped the team. Were you mad that you didn't get to play those games?

It was great seeing the national team face up against those three teams. I believe that most kids growing up who play soccer fantasize about playing against teams of the that caliber. Of course I would have loved to have played in those games, but I'm not mad that I wasn't included. The coach chose the best team available to him, and whether I'm in that group or not, I will still be excited for the national team as a whole and the players involved. I'm very happy with the way things are going with the Fire and the fact that I've been able to play a role in our success so far.

Dave from Dayton sent,

Will you be watching the European Championship? Who is your choice to be crowned champions?

So far I've been able to catch quite a few games. I have been looking forward to this tournament since 2004. That summer, I was living in Romeoville, IL with a bunch of other professional soccer hopefuls while playing for the Chicago Fire Reserves PDL team. We didn't train until 8 or 9 at night, so we had all day to sit around and watch the games. Picture a decent two bedroom apartment with nothing more than a couch (from Goodwill) and a small tv sitting on a wooden table (from the dumpster) in the living room. Add to that a bunch of college kids including Drew Moor, Vedad Ibisevic, Danny O'Rourke, Dasan Robinson, Brad Guzan among others, eating microwave meals and/or fast food on the ground. All of June everyone was stuck to the television in our poorly furnished apartment just to watch those games. The tournament was exciting that year, but watching the games in that setting definitely added to the enjoyment, somehow.

This year I have to go with The Netherlands. Van Nistelrooy will do the creating up top and Van Der Sar will keep things tight in the back. If they get out of their group, I think they will have a good chance at winning the tournament. I also make a point of watching Portugal, Spain and Germany. Other than that, I'm not too up-to-date on my European soccer!

If any of you have questions that you'd like answered or anything you'd like to know about myself, the Fire or soccer in general, continue to utilize the "contact" tab in the upper right corner of the homepage.