BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. – After a stellar rookie year in which he drew plaudits throughout MLS, Harry Shipp is determined to keep himself in Chicago Fire head coach Frank Yallop’s plans despite the influx of pricey attacking talent this offseason.
Yallop wasted little time revitalizing his underachieving roster during a busy winter in which a productive scouting trip to England and Scandinavia saw the likes of David Accam, Kennedy Igboananike and Shaun Maloney brought in on Designated Player contracts and Guly do Prado and Michael Stephens also added to provide further attacking and midfield options.
As such, competition for a place in the starting lineup is expected to be rife, but the 2014 Rookie of the Year candidate is confident his versatility will keep him to the fore of Yallop’s plans.
“I haven’t spoken to [Yallop] directly, but my philosophy is if I play well, I’m focused on doing little things and being versatile, I can play out wide, I can play higher up top. They see I can play deeper in the midfield,” the 23-year-old told reporters at the club’s PrivateBank Fire Pitch on Friday.
“So as long as I keep playing well, keep possession and keep things simple, I think I’ll find a place on the field somewhere.”
Shipp’s creative, incisive and direct style of play was one of the few positives of a disappointing 2014 for the Fire, and the Notre Dame product believes his sophomore year could be even better, especially with the opportunity to learn from the likes of Maloney, a player he has drawn comparisons with.
“For me personally, I think last year we struggled because we didn’t have a lot of guys that had the same philosophy in terms of attacking," Shipp conceded. "It was kind of all over the place.
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“But this year we’ve gotten guys like Shaun, we’ve got guys that play similarly, so for me I love that. They think similarly to I do so I kind of know where people like that are going to be on the field, so hopefully we’ll get a chance to play together and hopefully we can make good things happen going forward.”
And while there's added pressure on both himself and the club this season after yet another playoff-less campaign in 2014, the Fire's massive influx of players, 11 new names thus far, has brought with it a wave of optimism among both players and fans.
“It seems there’s a little bit of energy, positive energy,” Shipp said. “I think last year people didn’t really know which direction the season was going to turn in preseason, and I think this year there is a positive vibe. I think we know that we have the tools to have a really good season this year, both offensively and defensively, and there’s going to be a lot of competition, but I think people are embracing that.”
