Dynamo welcome Loons to town: What to watch for
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
The Houston Dynamo are home for the second straight match as they welcome Minnesota United to Shell Energy Stadium tonight. This will be the third meeting this year between the Dynamo and Loons. Houston eliminated Minnesota from the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup in the Round of 16. Minnesota won the league match between the two, at Allianz Field on May 17. The Dynamo are coming off a 2-2 draw against Sporting Kansas City over the weekend. Minnesota was beaten 4-1 at home by Austin FC Saturday.
When: Wednesday, July 12 | 7:39 PM CT kickoff
Where: Shell Energy Stadium; Houston, Texas
TV/Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
Radio: ESPN 97.5 FM (English), TUDN Deportes Houston 93.3 FM (Spanish)
Starting better
The Dynamo have conceded the first goal in their last three games. Ivan Franco’s last-minute equalizer saved Houston from losing all three of those matches, and the team knows they need to start matches better. In their last win, the Dynamo scored twice in the first five minutes en route to a 4-1 victory against San Jose. Head coach Ben Olsen knows his team needs to get off on the right foot to get back into the win column. “We just need to get a better start and have a better mentality for a full 90 minutes,” Olsen said on Monday, “while making sure we don't have some of the momentary lapses that we had in this last game that ended up costing us some points.”
Resiliency
If there’s one word to describe this Dynamo team, it’s resilient. Speaking to players in the locker room after Saturday’s match, they all commented about how the team never gives up and the resiliency they have in the group, as evidenced by stoppage time goals in each half of the draw with SKC. Forward Nelson Quiñónes further reiterated that mantra in speaking to the media Monday. “That (Saturday’s result) will make us stronger and hopefully lead to points on the road as well,” Quiñónes said. “I believe that if we can pull off a result like that, salvage a point, then we will enter the next match with confidence. That shows that this team never backs down and you can see the confidence in the group.”
Pukki party
Former Norwich City striker Teemu Pukki has joined Minnesota and made his debut off the bench over the weekend. The Finland international scored 88 goals and added 29 assists in his five seasons at Norwich and looks to be in in line for his first MLS start tonight. Emanuel Reynoso has returned from suspension, giving Minnesota their MVP-level playmaker back in the midfield. With Reynoso and Pukki linking up, along with pacey winger Bongi Hlongwane, Minnesota’s attack looks ready to spring to life. Loon fans are really hoping that’s the case as Minnesota is second to last in the Western Conference with just 22 goals scored this season. The Houston defense will hope they don’t find their form until they leave town. “It's a very good group,” Olsen said about Minnesota. “They’ve had two big-time additions, one with (FW Teemu) Pukki, who is a world-class striker, and then (MF Emanuel) Reynoso is back. So, it is almost as if they have two new attacking pieces for us to deal with. We need to make sure we deal with them and be extremely active as we have the ball. Make sure we have them in transition and then find them in the dangerous opportunities that they get into. It’s not easy. They have high-level players and a hard-working team. It's tough to break down. We’re looking forward to it. We're looking forward to responding and will try to get three points at home.”
Availability Report
Houston Dynamo - Out: Ifunanyachi Achara (knee), Teenage Hadebe (leg), Tate Schmitt (knee), Coco Carrasquilla (international duty), Andrew Tarbell (concussion protocol), Sebastian Ferreira (suspension)
Minnesota United – Out: Robin Lod (knee), Ryen Jiba (knee), Kemar Lawrence (international duty); Questionable: Franco Fragapane (thigh), Sang Bin Jeong (thigh), Emmanuel Iwe (thigh)
Predicted Lineup
