Are you smarter than Paul Mariner?: Round 27

The Reds return home to BMO this weekend and they will welcome back a familiar face. The Chicago Fire’s signing of Robert Earnshaw was announced on last Friday. Defenders should know what Earnshaw brings to the table after seeing him all of last season, should they make a mental error and the Welshman finds himself with an open opportunity at goal he will likely capitalize. It will be interesting to see how the young TFC centreback pairing deal with the duo of Earnshaw and Mike Magee.

Bringing in Earnshaw was a sign that the Fire management finally saw a need to score more goals. It’s been over two months, nine matches since Chicago last score more than one goal in a match. A loss to Seattle on June 7 was the last time the Fire attack netted twice. Even with their scoring woes Chicago has managed to stay relevant in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. In their last three matches the Fire have managed to pick up four points against Eastern teams ahead of them in the standings, a win against New York and a draw in Columbus. A loss to the lowly Impact on the weekend will be looked back on as a big three points dropped and could serve as a big motivator to get back on track.

For TFC this match begins a big run of matches against teams currently below them in the standings that will be gunning for their playoff spot. The next five fixtures look like this Chicago (H), New England (H), Philadelphia (A), Philadelphia (H) and Chicago (A). A positive run of games and TFC can really create some separation between themselves and the competition. After two loses to Sporting KC and a loss to DC, Nelsen will need to rally the troops after their long road trip and get them to impose their will on the opposition to stake their claim as the next best in the East.

The Reds look to be good for the win on paper but that is often when they come out flat. Will this weekend be anything different? Post your predictions below or tweet your predictions to me, @Stouffvillain to ensure that your entry is accurately logged. As always 2 points for the correct result, 1 point for the correct TFC score and 1 point for the correct opponent score. Here are the up to date results.