The Chicago Fire welcome the Philadelphia Union on Sunday evening as both Eastern Conference rivals continue the search for their first win of the 2015 MLS season.

Chicago are win-less in their first three, having only scored one goal, and are still missing their talisman striker through long term injury. It's safe to say it's not been a good start to the season for the Fire. Few thought things could get worse following the form last season that saw them crowned the “draw kings,” but despite a great deal of overhaul having occurred in preseason bringing promise, the rot continues. Alejandro Moreno was spot on with his assessment of the match as a “must win” for Chicago on ESPN FC earlier in the week. The Fire have to look no further than the 2014 Montreal Impact to see what a slow start to the season can earn them and they'll be looking to avoid a fate similar to the Canadians.

Philadelphia too have suffered a relatively poor start to the season and are looking for their first win following two controversial draws against Colorado and Salt Lake, as well as an unfortunate red card for promising young midfielder Zach Pfeffer in a loss to FC Dallas. However, despite the poor start, the Union has played well at times and will hope to take advantage of Chicago's struggles up front when the two face off on Sunday night.

The two faced off three times last season, drawing all three matches, while Philadelphia hold the slight edge all time in the series with a 5-4-4 record. If history is any indication, this game will be tight, but for the sake of the fans (and the teams' record); hopefully this game will be an attacking one.

Both teams are missing key players through a combination of injuries, suspension, and international call ups. With the injured players being primarily offensive in nature, hopefully the game won't suffer as a result. Andre Blake remains a long term absence for the Union, joined by C.J. Sapong, Christian Maidana and Sheanon Williams who remain out following injuries in their first three games. Joined by them are duo Eric Bird and Connor Casey who have picked up injuries within the last week or so.

For Chicago, Mike Magee and Patrick Nyarko remain long term absences having picked up major injuries prior to the start of the season. They're joined by the injured Razvan Cocis and duo David Accam and Shaun Maloney who miss out through international duty.

With Harry Shipp's quality on set pieces, Philadelphia will look to cut out silly fouls around the box, particularly from Maurice Edu, as well as provided extra cover for the offensive minded Fabinho. Going forward, Vincent Nogueira will be expected to provide service to the ever hard working Fernando Aristeguieta who's found the back of the net twice this season. The Union will also hope Andrew Wenger can find some space, having been systematically double-teamed and shut down in previous games this season. Injuries could see the Union switch formation, with 18 year old Eric Ayuk slotting in out wide, having impressed in last week's game, and Le Toux partnering Aristeguieta up front. However, Union head coach Jim Curtin expressed his intention to play Nogueira in the attacking midfielder role, a sign the Union may stick to a 4-2-3-1.

Defensively for Chicago, center back pairing Jeff Larentowicz and Adailton will have to make sure they communicate throughout the game if they want to keep Aristeguieta off the score sheet, and Palmer and Jones would do well to follow Philadelphia's previous opponents to double-team Andrew Wenger. Going forward, Chicago will hope Quincy Amarikwa can dip into the form that saw him finish 2014 as Chicago's top scorer, with some help from 2014 rookie of the year nominee, Harry Shipp.

Harry Shipp, scorer of Chicago's only goal this season remains their key player following the absence of striker Accam and playmaker Maloney. Shipp will likely have to play a duel role in midfielder, as he's expected to give assists and add to his tally of goals. The second year midfielder saw a great deal of responsibility thrust upon him last season as the primary set-piece taker for the Fire, and he'll look to cause the Union problems from static situations, as they've already conceded several this season from set-pieces.

As for Philadelphia, Nogueira will be the key man in midfield for the Union, as he's expected to slot in at attacking midfielder for the injured Maidana and suspended Pfeffer, with Michael Lahoud expected to take his spot right in front of the back four.

Predicted lineups:

CHICAGO: (4-1-4-1) Johnson; Gehrig, Larentowicz, Adailton, Palmer; Polster; Stephens, Watson, Shipp, Jones; Amarikwa

PHILADELPHIA: (4-2-3-1) M'Bohli; Gaddis, White, Vitoria, Fabinho; Edu, Lahoud; Wenger, Nogueira, Le Toux; Aristeguieta