Previewing Houston Dynamo at Vancouver Whitecaps with The Third Sub
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
The Houston Dynamo are in Canada for the first time this season to take on the Vancouver Whitecaps tonight. We talked to our friends from The Third Sub to get some insight on the Caps ahead of tonight’s match.
Vancouver have been similar to the Dynamo this season where they’re very good at home but not so good on the road. What are some of the reasons for the Caps inconsistencies?
This has been a running problem in Vancouver for years now. I think that in the past, the Whitecaps set up so defensively on the road that it often limited their opportunities to go get three points. This season, playing a more ball-dominant style, I think they are still figuring out how to dictate play in road matches. They have put in some really good performances away from home, but often have been let down by individual errors and squad rotation.
Julian Gressel looks to be a focal point of the Vancouver offense this season. How do the Caps use Gressel so effectively?
Moving Gressel to a central midfield role was a big risk taken by Vanni Sartini this offseason, but it appears to be paying off. Making the switch has maintained Gressel’s playmaking potential but also covered up some of his defensive deficiencies. He’s actually quite a good defender in tight quarters, but much less so in space and he’s being asked to do that a lot less of that this year. If Vancouver’s strikers could find a bit more consistency, his numbers could be even better.
Vancouver doesn’t have as many big names as some clubs. Who are some under the radar type guys that Dynamo fans should be paying attention to?
Ryan Gauld and Julian Gressel are probably the standout names, but Pedro Vite is a young attacking midfielder with a lot of potential who has been playing well in recent weeks. The 21-year-old Ecuadorian has two goals in his last three matches in MLS play and showed some real flashes of his potential near the end of last season as well.
Ali Ahmed would be another name to watch out for, the Young Canadian wide player was the first to make the jump from MLS Next Pro to the first team, but unfortunately, he suffered a concussion in the Canadian Championship, so he won’t be available for this one. Simon Becher, a draft pick from last year, started his MLS career on a historic goal-scoring pace in very limited minutes, and is a poaching threat off the bench. Andres Cubas is a classic number 6 and is probably one of the more underrated players in MLS. When he’s on his game, Vancouver is hard to beat.
The Whitecaps look to have a pretty set back 4. How has their defense been this season with a new goalkeeper as well?
Vancouver started off the year completely unable to defend set pieces, but once that was sorted out, they have been rock solid at the back. This team concedes very little from open play and when they are scored on, it’s usually down to an error rather than a system breakdown. Tristan Blackmon, who was picked up from LAFC a couple of years ago has turned into a very steady CB for Vancouver, and Yohei Takaoka in goal has come over from the J League and hit the ground running about as well as anyone could have expected. Takaoka is very comfortable with the ball at his feet, so that has made a big difference in terms of being able to maintain possession and keep things calm at the back.
How is the health of the roster and do you expect anyone to be unavailable tonight?
As mentioned, Ali Ahmed is out with a concussion and Vancouver is coming off a series of very congested match weeks with Canadian Championship duties. All things considered though; the squad is almost 100% fit.
Predicted lineup and prediction for the match?
Takaoka
Raposo-Veselinovic-Blackmon-Brown
Gressel-Cubas-Schopf
Vite-Gauld
White
I think this is a classic scenario where two teams are very evenly matched and the home-field advantage will probably tip the scales, so I’ll say 2-1 Vancouver.
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We want to thank The Third Sub for their time and wish our friends in Vancouver the best of luck tonight.
