Shorthanded Herons to face Lewandowski, Chicago as MLS season resumes | OneFootball

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When the Chicago Fire and Inter Miami kick off tonight, it will have been 57 days since the Herons played together. During that time, the Beautiful Game gave us an exciting, exhilarating, impactful World Cup tournament eventually won by Spain, 1-0, in a dominant showing against Argentina and Inter Miami players Lionel Messi and Rodrigo De Paul.

World Cup 2026 wasn't without blemishes: the U.S. government's treatment of some nations' coaches, players, staff and fans; "dynamically" inflated prices by FIFA and many of the businesses in host cities; and inconsistent officiating, especially the use of VAR. Still, the first 48-team World Cup pleasantly surpassed all my expectations. Some stakeholders already are calling for a 64-team field as soon as 2030 -- please pray to the soccer gods that doesn't happen; there CAN be too much of a good thing.

But, while the World Cup was thoroughly enjoyable and provided an abundance of soccer goodness over the past two months, I've missed watching the Herons.

Tonight, the boys are back; well, some of them. Eight players are listed "out" for the Herons' match against Chicago, scheduled to kickoff at 6:30 p.m. CDT at Nu Stadium. World Cup runners-up Messi and De Paul, winger Tadeo Allende, center backs Maximiliano Falcón and Gonzalo Luján , and defensive midfielder David Ayala headline the Herons' availability report, released Tuesday. Midfielders Santiago Morales (U.S. Youth National Team U-19s) and Alexander Shaw (USYNT U-18s) are listed as returning from international duty. The other players are recovering from a variety of injuries.

According to multiple reports, an agreement between FIFA and its players' union ensures players can take up to 21 days off after the season and Miami has notified Major League Soccer that Messi and De Paul will not be available for the MLS All-Star Game on July 29. It's unclear when the designated players will return to training with Las Garzas. Messi and former Heron Jordi Alba served a one-match suspension last year for not participating, but MLS is expected to excuse Messi and De Paul because of the FIFA agreement.

It's always interesting to watch the Herons play without Messi. Here's what interim coach Guillermo Hoyos' lineup might look like tonight: GK Dayne St. Claire; CBs Micael dos Santos and Noah Allen; WBs Ian Fray and Sergio Reguilón; DM Yannick Bright; CMs Telasco Segovia and David Ruiz; Ws Luis Suárez and Mateo Silvetti; S Germán Berterame.

Chicago will enter tonight's match hoping to see what newcomer Robert Lewandoski -- the superstar Polish striker who has featured for Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich in Germany and Barcelona in Spain -- can bring to the Fire. Lewandoski, 37, is among his generation's top scorers, notching 629 goals (and 159 assists) in 869 career matches.

Former Chicago Fire striker Hugo Cuypers, recently traded to CF Monterrey, leads MLS with 13 goals. | Harry Figiel/ISI Photos/GettyImages

Fire fans were excited about the fireworks -- sorry -- that Lewandoski and MLS leading scorer Hugo Cuypers would bring to the Chicago attack but, alas, those hopes were extinguished -- oof -- when the club sent Cuypers to Mexican side CF Monterrey for a total deal worth $8 million. Cuypers had 13 goals and 2 assists for the Fire in 2026, 42 and 6 since arriving in the Windy City in 2024.

Tonight's match could have Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup playoff ramifications for both teams; Inter Miami (9-2-4, 31 points) is second in the Eastern Conference, five points behind Supporters' Shield front-runner Nashville SC (11-1-3, 36 pts.) Chicago (8-4-2, 26 pts.) is third, five points behind the Herons with a game in hand. The teams will play Sept. 9 in Chicago with each vying for a favorable playoff position; it would be nice if the Herons could pad their cushion at home.

Win or lose, it's good to have club football back on center stage. Let's go, Herons!