Next up is an all-Eastern Conference clash between league leaders, DC United and 7th placed Chicago Fire at Audi Field with a valuable three points up for grabs for both teams here on Wednesday night.
Whether the glass is half-full or half-empty depends upon your personal outlook as DC United head into this encounter having failed to win any of their last 3 matches in the MLS following draws with Toronto 0-0 and a 1-1 draw with New England Revolution, as well as a 2-1 loss at Houston Dynamo.
On the flip-side, these last three matches were all away from home and DC United have actually lost just 1 of their last 5 matches overall, so the leaders of the Eastern Conference will still be reasonably confident they can return to winning ways here.
Home form has been a little up and down since the start of this campaign as DC United captured back-to-back wins over Atlanta United 2-0 and Real Salt Lake 5-0, but then went 3 matches without a win on home turf which included defeats to Los Angeles and New York City.
The hosts have since recovered with wins against Columbus Crew and Sporting Kansas, with former Manchester United star, Wayne Rooney (8 goals) contributing the bulk of the goals to date.
Chicago Fire sit in 7th place but level on points with 8th placed Toronto. The visitors head over to DC United having suffered just 1 defeat out of their last 5 matches overall, but have gained just 2 wins from their last 7 matches overall.
Wins against New England Revolution 5-0 and a 2-0 home win over Minnesota United were welcome victories, but it should be noted that both were recorded at their SeatGeek Stadium in Illinois, where they’ve won all 4 of their league wins to date.
Switch to results away from home though, and you’ll find that Chicago Fire have resembled more of an ember on their travels as they’re still without an away win so far this season, and their 6 away matches have earned them just 2 points out of a possible 24 on offer.
Draws at Toronto and Los Angeles are meagre returns, whilst also suffering defeats at LA Galaxy, New York City, Montreal Impact and a heavy 4-1 loss at San Jose Earthquakes.
The bigger picture paints an even worse picture for Chicago as they’ve now gone 18 away matches without a win, so DC United look set for another victory here.