Fire’s Nyarko ready to adjust his game
Chris Rolfe’s arrival in Chicago could affect Patrick Nyarko the most, and Nyarko is OK with that.
Now in his fifth Fire season, Nyarko has earned a reputation for telling reporters what he really thinks, and for doing whatever he can to help the Fire (2-1-2, 8 points) win.
If that means giving up his role as a starting forward to the newly reacquired Rolfe and becoming a substitute, so be it.
If that means moving back to an outside midfielder role, which he has played much of his time in Chicago, so be it.
Nyarko doesn’t know what his role will be yet, and coach Frank Klopas doesn’t seem to have decided yet either, in part because it appears a sprained ankle will keep Rolfe, a forward, sidelined when the Fire hosts Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday (7:30 p.m., Ch. 5.2).
Rolfe didn’t train with his teammates Wednesday, and Klopas said the swelling is down but Rolfe is still in pain.
“It’s up to the coaches to make that decision,” said Nyarko, calling himself lucky to be versatile. “Chris is a great player and I’m the most excited guy on the team, I would say, for him to come back, because he’s going to help us tremendously. When we get him fit, he needs to play. ...
“I’ve played a little bit of midfield and I can slide back. Whatever the case might be. I’m just ready to help this team win games. “
Even if it means coming off the bench?
“I’ll be fine with it,” the 26-year-old Ghanaian said without a hint of hesitation. “We keep preaching it’s a team sport, it’s a team game, and we just need to look for our opportunities. We’ll see how that goes, but I’ll have no hard feelings. It’s a team.”
Don’t believe his team-first attitude? Check his stats. The game-winning goal he scored Saturday at Toronto was just his eighth goal in 101 MLS matches against 22 assists.
And there are few forwards in professional soccer who take their defensive duties as seriously as the speedy Nyarko.
“We watch video every day and Frank tells us it starts from the forwards,” Nyarko said. “I make an effort to cover my ground and get back and defend when I can.”
“He finds ways to be positive,” Klopas said. “Whether he’s getting it done on the offensive side or not, he’ll come back. He helps from a defensive standpoint. He’s got the ability now depending on how the game goes, like even in the Toronto game, where I shifted him out wide because we had problems late in the game with their wide attacks. He gives you the flexibility. He’s just a team player.”
For now Nyarko is just focused on earning the Fire’s first victory against Seattle.
“I’ve thought about it for a while and pretty much all the time, why can’t we beat this team,” Nyarko said. “They’re very organized and it’s extremely difficult to beat them up there, but on Saturday it’s a different crowd and we’re playing on our own ground and we have to dictate the pace of the game. We have to make them know what we feel when we play on their home turf. We know our crowd is going to be behind us. We need to stick to the game plan and stay concentrated for 90 minutes.”
Summer signing in April:
The Fire announced Thursday it signed on a free transfer Brazilian midfielder Alex Monteiro De Lima from Swiss club FC Wohlen. Alex, 23, who was on trial with the Fire for part of preseason, will join the club when the summer transfer window opens June 27. He probably will back up playmaker Sebastian Grazzini.
“Alex is a special player,” Fire coach Frank Klopas said in a club statement. “After having the opportunity to see him play for Wohlen last year, Alex joined us for part of our preseason, where he showed the ability to contribute.”
The Fire has not yet signed draft pick Lucky Mkosana, who continues to train with the club. A decision on Mkosana is expected soon.
Follow Orrin’s soccer reports on Twitter @orrinsoccer.