Dynamo vs Real Salt Lake: Highlights, stats, and quotes
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
The Houston Dynamo stayed unbeaten at Shell Energy Stadium after a 0-0 draw against Real Salt Lake Saturday night. Houston has yet to concede a goal at home this season. Brazilian defender Micael made his first MLS start and helped the defense keep up their unbeatable start.
MATCH SUMMARY
Houston Dynamo FC 0 – 0 Real Salt Lake
Saturday, May 6, 2023
Venue: Shell Energy Stadium - Houston, Texas
Referee: Lukasz Szpala
Assistants: Kevin Klingler, Andrew Bigelow
Fourth Official: Adam Wienckowski
VAR: Kevin Terry, Jr.
Attendance: 13,793
Weather: 85 degrees, partly cloudy
SCORING SUMMARY
None
DISCIPLINE SUMMARY
RSL: Justen Glad (caution; foul) 43’
HOU: Franco Escobar (caution; foul) 57’
RSL: Bryan Oviedo (caution; foul) 83’
HOU: Nelson Quiñónes (caution; foul) 90+1’
LINEUPS & STATS
Houston Dynamo FC: Steve Clark; Franco Escobar (Brad Smith 88’), Ethan Bartlow, Micael, Daniel Steres; Artur, Héctor Herrera (c), Adalberto Carrasquilla; Iván Franco (Sebastian Ferreira 69’), Corey Baird, Amine Bassi (Nelson Quiñónes 81’)
Unused Substitutes: Andrew Tarbell, Griffin Dorsey, Chase Gasper, Thor Ulfarsson, Brooklyn Raines, Luis Caicedo
Total shots: 16 (Adalberto Carrasquilla and Amine Bassi tied with 3)
Shots on goal: 4 (four players tied with 1
Fouls: 8 (Artur and Adalberto Carrasquilla tied with 2)
Offside: 2 (Franco Escobar and Sebastian Ferreira tied with 1)
Corner kicks: 4
Saves: 5 (Steve Clark 5)
Real Salt Lake: Zac MacMath; Bryan Oviedo, Brayan Vera, Justen Glad ©, Andrew Brody; Jefferson Savarino (Diego Luna 84’), Braian Ojeda, Scott Caldwell (Emeka Eneli 45’), Maikel Chang (Andrés Gómez 62’); Bertin Jacquesson (Danny Musovski, 70’), Rubio Rubín (Damir Kreilach 69’)
Unused substitutes: Gavin Beavers, Delentz Pierre, Ilijah Paul, Moses Nyeman
Total shots: 13 (Jefferson Savarino 4)
Shots on goal: 5 (five players tied with 1)
Fouls: 12 (Justen Glad 3)
Offside: 0
Corner kicks: 9
Saves: 4 (Zac MacMath 4)
HOUSTON DYNAMO HEAD COACH BEN OLSEN
On the game:
“It’s a point. We continue to move forward in that department. We didn’t lose, and we had another shutout at home. Those are the positives. The things we need to work on are the things we need to work on. We continue to not reward ourselves in the final third in some of the actions that can result in goals because they are out there. There’s plenty out there. Salt Lake is going to say the same thing because they had plenty of actions that could have ended up with them getting on the score sheet. It was the first sort of hot day, and you could feel that both teams were dealing with a little of the elements. We’ve not conditioned enough into the elements to take advantage of that because I think both teams in a transition game like that struggle to have a real structure, particularly in the last 15 or 20 minutes where it just became a track meet. We had plenty of opportunities there to see out the game. It's an exhale. It’s a quality pass. It’s the right decision, away from finishing out a bunch of plays, and we just have to start rewarding ourselves for all the hard work we are doing. Steve Clark was very good. He was certainly at a high level today defensively. It was pretty sound in the back four. Micael dos Santos (DF) came in to fill some big shoes tonight. I know you all heard about (DF) Teenage (Hadebe). It’s a big miss for us. For us to put in a player that’s only played a half in this league and still put up a shutout at home is really impressive. I’m proud of him. That was a big step for Micael, so I’m happy for him.”
On the defensive performance of the team to earn a fifth shutout at home:
“What I’m proud of is that (DF) Franco Escobar is playing left back and (DF) Daniel Steres is playing right back. We have (DF) Tate (Schmitt) going out. Brad Smith (DF) finally coming back in. We didn't have Brad Smith for a while. Now (DF) Teenage (Hadebe) goes down. I’m happy (DF) Ethan (Bartlow) is evolving to a real center back in this league. Watching the resiliency back there and the adaptation or the growth of some of these players is very rewarding. (MF) Artur is a big part of it. He’s been very solid and cleans up a lot. It’s always the collective, and I know that’s cliche, but it is a group effort. Everybody is doing their part, and today we could have given up a few again, but that’s every game in the MLS. It could have gone either way tonight. We certainly had plenty of chances with enough dead ball situations and corner kicks that we were dangerous on, but one of these days we are going to reward ourselves and put in two or three. Until that happens, we have to continue to be strong in the defensive end.”
On preparations for Wednesday’s US Open Cup match with the short turn around:
“I don’t know. It’s Wednesday, it’s Saturday, it’s Wednesday, it’s Saturday, so mentally and physically it's really important for us to recover and do the extra physical things. Get the massage, get the treatments over the next couple of weeks so we are able to have the right selection and be deep. Hopefully (DF) Erik (Sviatchenko) comes back in the mix in the next week. (FW) (Aliyu) Ibrahim is going to be available very shortly. He is actually here. He’s here now, so he’s in Houston which is nice to see. He’ll be able to get some minutes. I don’t anticipate it being the exact same team on Wednesday. We are going to have to manage minutes. It’s going to be an opportunity for guys to go in there and build their minutes and also show us that they need to be on Saturday against Seattle.”
HOUSTON DYNAMO MIDFIELDER ADALBERTO CARRASQUILLA (TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH)
On the game:
“This was a very complicated game, especially when you look at the weather. It was very hot, right. The most important thing is that we did not lose at home. That is monumental. We have to keep getting better and earning points.”
On the number of games this month:
“The way the team rotates and manages the depth will be very important, we will have a lot of midweek games during this stretch. I believe we have a good team that is still coming together. We will do our part to prepare for this difficult stretch and approach it with a good attitude to ensure we do what’s needed to get positive results.”
On the goals for the team this season:
“We set big goals for the season. The club has made the effort to bring in good players and we are adapting to each other right now. We feel we are taking the next step as a group and that will come as we play more games together this season. The key is to pick up points along the way to reach our goal.”
HOUSTON DYNAMO FORWARD IVAN FRANCO (TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH)
On the game:
“This nil-nil draw had a few positives as well. We could not finish in the final third. Outside of that, the effort from the team and all of the chances we created, that is a step in the right direction.”
On the team’s defensive play:
“It is very important for us to ensure we do not concede a goal. That is a big accomplishment by everyone on the field tonight, everyone from the starters to those that came off the bench as well. That was very good and shows the growth of the group.”
On the number of games this month:
“Yes, a lot of soccer games. Which we enjoy, we want to put on a spectacle and give the fans something to cheer for, that is important. We want to leave a mark on the club and to do that we have to be really focused and bought in on the goals we have set for the year.”
