Three reasons behind the Chicago Fire's amazing turnaround

Don't look now, but there are signs of a bandwagon rolling in Bridgeview.

In an amazing turnaround, the Chicago Fire has gone from the worst team in Major League Soccer the past two seasons to one of the two best the first half of this year.

Fans are starting to notice and are showing their approval by returning to Toyota Park in force. A sellout for Saturday's home game against Vancouver Whitecaps FC (6 p.m., CSN-Plus) is within reach and would be the third this season.

Fortuitously, all of this is happening the year that MLS awarded the Fire the league All-Star Game, to be played Aug. 2 at Soldier Field.

Here are three reasons for the Fire's worst-to-near-first reversal of fortunes:

Leadership:

Leadership was AWOL the past couple seasons. It showed on the field, especially at the end of games when the Fire inevitably would turn a win into a draw or a draw into a demoralizing loss. It showed on the practice field. It showed in the locker room.

It was a problem that needed to be fixed, so somehow Fire general manager Nelson Rodriguez convinced the New York Red Bulls to trade midfielder Dax McCarty to Chicago for $400,000 in general allocation money, only half of it to be paid this season.

McCarty, now with the U.S. team for the next few weeks for the Gold Cup, has been everything the Fire hoped for and more. Gone are the days when the Fire would choke away a result in the final minutes. Now the determined McCarty, one of the league's best defensive midfielders, is on patrol and exhorting his teammates to finish out the game.

Then there's Bastian Schweinsteiger. Since his March 21 signing, the German superstar has earned acclaim for his passing ability, and brought leadership to the squad, as well as a sense of calm.

Few players in the Fire's 20-year history have had the kind of international resume Schweinsteiger brings. The 32-year-old has won a World Cup and played for the sport's best clubs. His teammates look up to him, and he hasn't disappointed, on or off the field.

And in an embarrassment of riches, three-time league champion Juninho often wears the captain's armband, though with McCarty and Schweinsteiger in the midfield he hasn't been starting much lately.

Firepower:

Ask any high school coach the difference between a good team and a great team and they'll tell you it's that one player who can consistently put the ball in the back of the other team's net.

The Fire learned that, too.

Rodriguez signed Nemanja Nikolic in the off-season, a player with a history of scoring goals wherever he's played. Nikolic is the league's scoring leader with 14 goals in 17 games, on pace to break the MLS single-season record. He's shown the keen ability not only to get shots but to finish them. It seems obvious, but it's critical to have someone with that innate ability to score.

David Accam's frustration from being the team's lone attacking threat his first two seasons in Chicago is gone. He has 10 goals and 6 assists, the first time the Fire has had two double-digit scorers in a season since 2003. And there's still half a season to play.

Changes in the back:

The final pieces of the puzzle involved two in-season changes that happened at the same time.

Veteran right back Michael Harrington was replaced for the May 6 game at Los Angeles by second-year homegrown player Drew Conner, a Cary native, and 11 days later by third-year pro Matt Polster when he recovered from a preseason knee injury. Conner and Polster showed better quickness and positioning, as well as an ability to get forward to join the attack. Polster has played his way into national team consideration.

Goalkeeper Jorge Bava, the worst of the off-season signings, was replaced by Matt Lampson, also on May 6. Lampson had a difficult time in his first season with the club in 2016, but he's playing with more confidence now. He has 5 shutouts in nine MLS games, though truthfully the defense in front of him is playing so well he hasn't been overworked.

The team's current nine-game unbeaten streak started when coach Veljko Paunovic made these defensive changes.

• Twitter@Orrin_Schwarz

Scouting report

Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Chicago Fire at Toyota Park, 6 p.m. Saturday

TV: Comcast SportsNet Plus

Scouting the Whitecaps: Vancouver (6-6-3, 21 points) is having a mediocre season. Cristian Techera and Fredy Montero lead the Whitecaps with 5 goals apiece. Look out for Techera on free kicks. Kendall Waston, one of the league's top defenders, is out following hand surgery and is one of eight players on the team injury report.

Scouting Chicago: The Fire (10-3-4, 34 points) will try to bounce back from Wednesday's disappointing overtime game at FC Cincinnati, in which the Fire was eliminated from the U.S. Open Cup in penalty kicks. The Fire will play without midfielder Dax McCarty and forward David Accam, both on international duty. Chicago is undefeated at Toyota Park this season and hasn't lost a league match since April 29.

Next: at Portland Timbers at Providence Park, Wednesday, 9:30 p.m.

— Orrin Schwarz