Breakfast Links - July 24, 2023

(image via Houston Dash)

It’s a sad Monday as none of the Houston teams managed to win this weekend. Hopefully we can cheer you up this morning with some Breakfast Links!

Houston

Three games and three losses, albeit two in penalty kicks, for the Houston teams. Let’s start with the Dynamo who opened the weekend Friday night in Leagues Cup. They traveled to Orlando, which was always going to be a tough game. The Dynamo went up 1-0 in the first half through a really soft penalty that was converted by Amine Bassi. To open the second half, goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell passed the ball right to Duncan McGuire to level the score at one. There were no other goals throughout the game. In Leagues Cup, if the game ends in a draw, then it is settled in a penalty shootout where the loser still gets a point, and the winner gets two. Hector Herrera failed to convert his penalty and Tarbell made no saves, so the Dynamo only managed a point in this one. Orlando have been in great form lately, so this was a solid performance.

While the Dynamo had a good performance, we can’t say the same for the Dash as they lost 3-1 to Kansas City. This game was in the Challenge Cup so there was some rotation with the lineup. Madelyn Desiano scored an early goal to put the Dash up one. This was her first goal with the Dash. Kristen Hamilton then scored an unanswered hat trick to put to put Kansas City up 3-1 and see out the game. The Dash now sit six points behind Kansas City in the group, making it very unlikely they will progress.

Houston Dynamo 2 also lost their game in a shootout like the Dynamo. This shootout came after a 1-1 draw at home to Minnesota. Minnesota scored in the first half off a penalty. The Dynamo answered back with a strong near post finish from Papa Ndoye. Juan Camilo Mosquera received a red card for Minnesota, but the Dynamo could not capitalize on the opportunity. Charles Auguste missed the final penalty in the shootout, so Dynamo 2 only earned one point on the night.

Leagues Cup

There is no MLS action for a while, so we will be updating y’all on Leagues Cup. The big game happened on Friday night where Inter Miami hosted Cruz Azul. Nobody cared or watched the first half of this game, knowing Messi was on the bench, but when he was subbed on early in the second half everyone tuned in to see how he would play. Unsurprisingly, he was brilliant and scored a late free kick to give Miami all three points.

Saturday night saw Montreal blow a huge lead in the dying moments against Pumas. Montreal impressively went up two goals in the first half through All-Star midfielder Mathieu Choiniere and Bryce Duke. They held the lead until the 88th minute when Gabriel Fernandez got one back. Shortly after yet another goal from Pumas was scored by Emanuel Montejano. Montreal managed to win the game on penalties but will be so disappointed they didn’t pull off all three points.

Sunday night, we saw the wildest game so far with Cincinnati hosting Sporting Kansas City to a 3-3 draw. Kansas City went up 2-0 within the first 15 minutes of the game. Alan Pulido then went and headbutted Yerson Mosquera to receive a straight red card. Cincinnati answered with two goals of their own to level the score. Gadi Kinda then put away a penalty to restore the lead for Kansas City. Deep into stoppage time Cincinnati earned a penalty to level the match right at the end. Cincinnati went on to win in penalties.

Around the World

Summertime means summer friendlies being played in the United States. Manchester United dominated Arsenal in New Jersey 2-0. Brighton and Chelsea played out a crazy 4-3 Chelsea win. Newcastle and Aston Villa also played out a wild game ending in a 3-3 draw. Wednesday night will see Manchester United play against Real Madrid in Houston!

The United States Women’s National Team kicked off their World Cup campaign with a 3-0 win against Vietnam. It was business as usual for this team as they managed to create chances with ease. Sophia Smith scored two goals in the first half to cement a strong lead. Lindsey Horan put in the third goal to put the game out of reach for Vietnam. Not the greatest night finishing wise, but you can never complain with a 3-0 win, no matter who you play.

Saturday saw two hard fought wins for both England and Denmark. Both teams won only 1-0 in tough games. England dominated the possession battle, but struggled to create as many clear chances as they would like. It was a different story for Denmark as there was little to no chances at all for both Denmark and China. Amalie Vangsgaard managed to find the winning goal for Denmark right at the end of the game.