Houston Dynamo player ratings at Portland Timbers

(image via Houston Dynamo FC)

The Houston Dynamo put on an impressive display in Portland, but only came away with a point in a 2-2 draw. Let’s take a look at how everyone performed.

Starters

Andrew Tarbell-6

This might have been Andrew’s last chance to impress before Steve Clark returns to the lineup and he was just ok. He only made one save in the match and conceded two goals. Neither goal was on Andrew. It was just a nothing performance from Andrew Tarbell.

Franco Escobar-7

Franco Escobar is back and looking healthy playing in his natural right back position. He had more of a role going forward as he was in Griffin Dorsey’s normal role. Defensively, he was incredible against one of the toughest forwards in the league with Jonathan Rodriguez until a bad giveaway found him out of position leading to Portland’s opening goal. He made five tackles, keeping his tackles per 90 among the highest in Major League Soccer.

Ethan Bartlow-7

Ethan Barlow was rewarded with another start and made another good impression. He made multiple huge blocks and distributed the ball nicely out of the back. He may have been able to put in a better block on the pass from Rodriguez on the first Portland goal.

Micael-5

Micael had a fairly weak game for his high standard set this season. His aerial ability on the second goal was not great, which is usually a strength of his. To be fair to him, the ball from Evander was incredible and difficult to deal with.

Daniel Steres-8

It’s rare this season to see Steres not get a high score as he continues to lead by example with veteran performances week in and week out. He was incredibly active on the ball and was a huge part of the possession play. His defensive work was solid as always, taking Santiago Moreno out of the game for large portions.

Artur-8

Artur was back to his best in a match where the Dynamo needed him to put in a massive shift. He made five tackles and kept Evander quiet for parts of the game. Evander will make his mark on the game eventually, but it took until a set piece for him to get his first goal involvement.

Hector Herrera-9 (MOTM)

It is safe to say Hector is officially back, going 90 minutes for the third straight game. He made over 100 touches on the ball and had one of his finest assists in a Dynamo jersey. He also put in the set piece to create the opening goal. Defensively, he put in a massive shift with three tackles and two interceptions.

Amine Bassi-4

Amine Bassi was extremely quiet in this game, not even making more than 60 touches. His chance creating ability was nowhere to be found for large parts of the game. He looked a bit tired as well and can use this weekend off for sure.

Coco Carrasquilla-8

Coco finally got his first MLS goal of the season in style, combining brilliantly with Herrera. Coco did a lot well with little of the ball, which is something we aren’t used to seeing from such a ball dominant player. His defensive work was also massive against a strong Portland midfield.

Latif Blessing-3

Overall, a really poor night from Blessing who never truly got into the game. He barely had a sniff of the ball and made no real positive impact on the game. He also had a really weak giveaway in the first half leading to a good chance for Portland.

Sebastian Kowalczyk-7

Kowalczyk is really finding his footing at the striker position, putting away a classic poacher’s goal early into the match. He is looking a lot more comfortable transitioning between the deeper positions and leading the line. He nearly had a second goal if Aliyu was not offside.

Substitutes

Aliyu Ibrahim-4

Like Blessing, Aliyu just didn’t get much of an opportunity to make a big mark on this game. They rarely attacked down the left side, leaving him with little touches of the ball. He was caught offside on the near winning goal. That was just unfortunate, not really anything to criticize Aliyu for in that moment.

Brooklyn Raines, Griffin Dorsey, and Erik Sviatchenko-N/A

All three players were brought on late to preserve the road point. None of them saw enough minutes to earn a rating.

Head Coach

Ben Olsen-7

Ben Olsen’s side put in a good display in a building that is historically difficult to earn points in. Yes, it is disappointing to drop points with the lead twice, but it’s hard to get upset with earning any points on the road in your conference. There is lots to build on from these last two games over this long weekend off.