Houston Dynamo player ratings vs Austin

(image via Houston Dynamo FC)

The Dynamo got themselves another win at home against Austin winning 2-1. Let’s take a look at how everyone performed.

Starters

Steve Clark-6

Saturday was a very average game for Steve Clark. There was not too much he could have done about the goal being that it was an inch perfect header from Gyasi Zardes. Overall, the Dynamo did not need anything special from Clark to get a result.

Micael-6

Playing left back instead of center back, he looked a bit lost at times. He grew into the game as it went on, but his first half display was poor. He was way too passive defensively letting Austin overload their right side and allowing a free cross to score the opener.

Ethan Bartlow-5

Not the greatest game from Ethan. The second half was much better than the first. For the goal he was caught ball watching, allowing Zardes a free header.

Daniel Steres-5

Like Bartlow, he wasn’t great in the first half at all. He was also caught half asleep for the goal, not realizing Bartlow was letting Zardes free in the box. He did manage to pick up an assist on the goal, but that was just pure luck.

Franco Escobar-7

As always, Escobar was a defensive force completing shutting down Emiliano Rigoni for the entire game. He was also very solid going forward supporting the attack.

Artur-8

Artur was back to his best as the midfield completely dominated the game, especially in the second half. He was making so many plays defensively while also getting Herrera as involved as he could with a solid passing game.

Hector Herrera-9

One of Herrera’s most impressive performances this season. He was everywhere offensively and defensively and got himself a goal to change the complexion of the game before the half.

Coco Carrasquilla-6

Another usual Coco performance where he plays incredibly well without the ball, but once he does get on the ball, he lacks the ability to do much with it. Multiple times he was involved in great buildup, only to fail with the final pass or shot.

Amine Bassi-8

We finally saw Bassi get on the ball more and take over this offense as the lead playmaker. He was incredible, finding himself in pockets of space and immediately getting his head up to supply Aliyu’s runs. He played in the ball to Aliyu to see the Dynamo score their first goal.

Corey Baird-7

Another incredible shift from Corey where he covers that entire side of the field. He was playing a ton of defense to help out Micael, who was out of position. He was not the most involved going forward but was able to do enough for the team to get the result.

Aliyu Ibrahim-8

Aliyu continues to show why he commanded that price tag. He was incredible off the ball making constant runs in behind the back line. Having a guy making these intelligent runs opens up the field so much more for guys like Bassi and Herrera to dominate a game. One of these runs led to the rebound that got Herrera his goal.

Substitutes

Nelson Quinones-6

Another good display from Quinones coming off the bench. He played with a ton of energy and got back to help the team defensively when needed. There were not too many opportunities to add to the scoring, but overall, a good display.

Thor Ulfarsson-5

A little bit of an invisible performance from Thor as he only saw six touches. He did manage to get a shot on target and worked hard for the team in his limited minutes.

Ivan Franco-7

Ivan Franco finally found himself on the score sheet, getting the winner off a scrappy play to earn the Dynamo all three points. The finish was great, but the ball falling to him was quite lucky. No complaints here, the Dynamo will take those important three points.

Head Coach

Ben Olsen-8

Ben set up his team in more of a narrower shape. This allowed the midfield to really step up and dominate this game. This shape was not working well early on, but he adjusted and had the Dynamo playing some great soccer in moments of this game. As always, he got his team to fight for their lives on the field and earn another three points.