Remember Arsene Wenger stated how he nearly signed the likes Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mpabbe? Well, everyone’s favorite President and General Manager Nelson Rodriguez has a similar tale to tell.

Here’s a list of the more notable players that N-Rod almost got to play for the Fire Red, enough to fill up a five-a-side soccer match.

Fernando Torres

If I had a dollar for every time the Fire was linked with Torres, I’d have a couple of dollars— probably enough to buy some Ice Cream Nachos. At one point or another, Torres was reportedly in “advance negotiations” with the club. In the end, the Atletico Madrid legend signed with Japanese side Sagan Tosu. If you are wondering how’s he doing over there, he has only scored one league goal and his new team is in the relegation zone. Womp Womp.

Iker Casillas

Like Torres, Casillas was heavily linked with the Fire for quite some time. The 36-year-old Real Madrid legend was apparently tired of rotting on the FC Porto bench was interested in trading the sights of Porto to the wonderful surroundings of Bridgeview. However as the 2017/2018 season progressed he became their starting goalkeeper once more and signed a one-year extension with the club. At the end of the season, he added another medal to his large collection as San Iker and co. won the league.

Juan Quintero

According to the Chicago Tribune, the Fire and Quintero was close to tying the knot. They’ve agreed to personal terms and conditions, but the front office were apparently too cheap to pay FC Porto the transfer fee. The Fire apparently then offered to get him on loan for the time being, but FC Porto wasn’t biting. Quintero later joined Argentine club River Plate on a one-year loan with a $5 million buyout clause. He later featured in the 2018 World Cup Colombian squad where he scored a goal in their 2-1 defeat against Japan.

Hector Moreno

In the dying hours of the summer transfer window, the Fire was linked to the Mexican international. The details are a bit sketchy as no one really knows if the Fire had a chance to sign Moreno. Some thought it was just propaganda from the front office to show that the Fire was still relevant. Or perhaps the Fire did have a shot on signing him. Whatever the case may be, Moreono would of have added some much needed quality to the Fire’s backline. Oh well, maybe next time.

Jakub Blaszczykowski

Kuba was linked with the Fire a few times throughout these past two years. First reported in 2016, then again last year during the Fire’s winning streak, and once more during the start of the preseaon last year. However it appears that Kuba has his heart set in staying in Europe.

Substitutes:

Lee Nguyen

Which of these players would you of have liked to play for the Fire? Let us know in the comments below.