Dynamo look for first win in Seattle against depleted Sounders: What to watch for
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
The Houston Dynamo are in the Pacific Northwest in search of their first win against Seattle as they take on a depleted Sounders team. The Dynamo are looking to rebound after last week’s 3-0 loss in Austin. Seattle drew 0-0 at home against Orlando last Saturday.
When: Saturday, July 1 | 9:39 PM CT kickoff
Where: Lumen Field; Seattle, Washington
TV/Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
Radio: TUDN Deportes Houston 93.3 FM (Spanish)
Winless in Seattle
The Dynamo have still yet to win in Seattle in their history. The Sounders are missing a number of key players tonight, giving Houston the best chance perhaps, that they have ever had to come home from Washington with three points. Dynamo head coach Ben Olsen said on Friday that the team is as ready as ever. “We’ve had a full week of training, which was nice,” Olsen said. “It’s the first time in a month-and-a-half where we could get back to a regular Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday build up. That was nice because we could work on some things that we’ve needed to push and get back to some of the principles that have given us success up until this point, so that's been good. We had a long, good flight yesterday. We got here with no real issues, and we’re ready to go against a very good team in a tough place to play.”
Clash of styles
Tonight’s matchup will be a clash of styles between Seattle’s ball-dominant possession based tactic against a Houston team who likes to play without the ball and be very defensive. The Dynamo are going to have to be wary of when they do retake possession of the ball and make their chances count. “Obviously, transition moments come into play,” Olsen said in his weekly press conference. “They're going to have the ball. We need to be careful. We have to understand that they will have possession. They have really good players that are comfortable on the ball, and the midfielders are asgood as anybody in the league. But within that and allowing them at times to have the ball, we still have to make them uncomfortable, and it's got to be a balance. Then in transition, any team that has possession on you, it opens up transition moments and making sure we have the right team out there and are making the right decisions when those opportunities come. We need to be ruthless in those moments. If not, then we get a little possession of our own. Those are just decisions that that the players have to make within the game.”
Sounders drawing blanks
Seattle comes into this match winless in their last five matches. They’ve been held scoreless in four of those five. Tonight, they’ll once again be missing a good chunk of their offensive firepower. Jordan Morris and Cristian Roldan are with the USMNT, leaving Nicolas Lodeiro and Raul Ruidiaz, who should return for this match, to shoulder the burden. The Dynamo defense has been solid all season, last week notwithstanding, and they will once again be the key to winning points.
Availability Report
Houston Dynamo - Out: Ifunanyachi Achara (knee), Teenage Hadebe (leg), Tate Schmitt (knee), Coco Carrasquilla (international duty)
Seattle Sounders FC – Out: Xavier Arreaga (Right Quad Strain), Ethan Dobbelaere (Right Hamstring Strain), Sota Kitahara (Right Quad Strain), Jordan Morris (International Duty, United States), Jackson Ragen (Suspension, Yellow Card Accumulation), Alex Roldan (International Duty, El Salvador), Cristian Roldan (International Duty -United States)
Predicted Lineup
