Matchday 21: FC Dallas at Houston Dynamo
August 18th, 2007 . 2:37 pm . By: Jason Benfield
INTRODUCING HOUSTONUp until their recent three game road trip, Houston were the best team in MLS. The Dynamo had not lost in ten matches, and were steamrolling through the league. A valiant tie away to New England continued the strong run of form. However, when the Superliga started, Houston reverted to their form prior to the winning streak – a side that could dominate play for large stretches of a match, but struggle to finish chances. They eeked out results in the group stage of the tournament, but should have scored bags of goals. In the following two league matches, losses at RSL and at Colorado, Houston struggled to create chances as the injuries mounted. Houston have not won in four league games, and have fallen behind division leaders FC Dallas. In their last match against Pachuca on Tuesday, Houston showed signs of recovering their form. They dominated the game early and continued to apply pressure for large stretches of the match, even though they played most of the game a man down. They showed fantastic grit and dermination, leveling the game in the final minutes of regulation before finally succumbing in penalties. The Dynamo play in a 4-4-2 formation. They are at their best when playing with two holding midfielders and attacking through the wings. That alignment gives them the most consistent production; however, DeRosario forces them to play with a diamond midfield when he is available. In that formation, they tend to keep the ball inside where they do not pass as well. It is noteworthy that in the Colorado game, they attempted to play DeRosario on the left wing and not use the diamond formation, but he was not effective at all on the outside. In the Pachuca game, the Dynamo moved DeRo back to the middle, but he sat a lot deeper so that the wings could attack. With this look, they were off to a promising start before they had to alter things after the Ianni red card. THE GOALIESLongtime starter Pat Onstead leads the league in GAA and save percentage, but has lost a step and was very slow to react on the second Pachuca goal on Tuesday. Despite his strong statistical performance, he relies heavily on strong positioning and a great defense in front of him; his record is actually only one game over .500 for the season. His backup, Wells, has performed better when given a chance, and is undefeated in MLS play. The time is coming, perhaps next season, where Wells sends Onstead to the bench. Sala is still injured, so Burse will be in goal for the Dallas. Burse made some nice saves last weekend. The first goal took an awkward deflection off of Gbandi and the second was a penalty, so he was not at fault for either. He also played well against Colorado the week before. His athleticism is his strongest attribute. Advantage: Houston because of experience. THE DEFENSEThe Dynamo have the top rated defense in the league. Barrett, on the left, has been fantastic this season. He continuously joins the attack from the back and has the speed and fitness to recover from going forward. On the right, Waibel continues to get better with age, and this season has been much more involved in the attack than in the past. This was evident during the Pachuca match when he barely missed on two goal scoing opportunities. He can be beaten with pace, however, and is not the most atheltic player in the league. Robinson is the best center back. He is a very physical and skilled defender who relishes challenges against players that use their body. He is not afraid to commit a foul to send a strong message. He is one of the top defenders in the league. Cochrane normally starts as the second center back, and has been much improved this season, but is out with injury. Ianni will start in his place; the youngster, who started for the U-17 and U-20 US teams in the past, is coming into his own and will be a great player in the future. As he showed in the Pachuca game, however, he can commit stupid fouls and shows his youth at times. Houston do not have any depth to speak of; if any injuries occur, Mulrooney will be inserted as an outside back. For Dallas, the only starter they are missing is Serioux, who pulled his hamstring last weekend. Gbandi starts on the left; although he has been good this season, he had a difficult game against Columbus as the first goal deflected off of him and he committed an awful penalty on the second. The decision to tackle Hedjuk in the box after getting beaten badly was a step back to the form of years past. Moor continues to play well on the right side. Goodson pulled himself even with Toja in the team MVP race with his winner last weekend. The lanky central defender has been outstanding all season. Pitchkolan will come in for Seriuox in the middle. He is inexperienced and a bit clumsy, but has performed well this season when called upon. Advantage: Push. Goodson has been better than Robinson and Moor better than Waibel, but Ianni is better than Pitch and Barrett is in better form than Gbandi. THE MIDFIELDThe only fixture right now for Houston is that Mullan is the starter on the right. He has had a great season, and has been perhaps the top winger in the league. He uses his speed to get behind players and is a threat when he passes or shoots. Clark should return from injury to play in the holding spot. He is still not a consistent passer, but has great athleticism. Mulrooney has started a lot in the central midfield, but with the return of Clark and the lack of depth at the back, will probably be relegated to a substitute role. DeRosario was pushed back into the central midfield for the Pachuca game, and will probably take the same position against Dallas. He will probably serve as more of a true central midfielder than in the past. He scores great goals, but his passing has not been very strong this season. Davis and Holden are normally the two top options on the left, but both are out with injury. Ashe, Jaqua, and DeRosario are all options that have been used in that spot recently, although Ashe only as a sub. Jaqua will probably get the nod; he has the work rate to do it, but does not possess the speed to get in behind the defense. Dallas will not have a full strength midfield either. Toja is out with injury, and Saragosa is out through suspension. Ricchetti will continue to be the anchor of the midfield, and with Toja out his presence becomes even more important. We know that Dax will stay in the starting lineup, but which role he plays remains to be seen. He gives the ball away quite a bit, but makes up for it with his energy, and is tied for third in the league with six assists. He will either play in a more defensive position or in the attacking position we have seen him start at recently. Because the game is on the road and Morrow will want experience on the field, I believe Dax will get another start at attacking midfield, while Rhine comes in at Saragosa’s spot. Rhine had a fantastic game in the Hoops’ last important match on the road, at DC United. His experience, energy, and ability to join the attack will be important against Houston. Advantage: Houston. Mullan, DeRosario, and Clark are all top tier players, while FCD is missing league MVP candidate Toja. THE ATTACKChing and Ngwenya have established themselves as the top scoring option for the Dynamo. Both players are tied for seventh in the league with six goals apiece. Ngwenya got off to a fantastic start after coming over from Columbus, but has slowed down a bit and now leads the league in offside. He does not make quick decisions on the ball, but is very strong and has good speed. Ching has been in and out all season through national team call ups and injury, but played the full match against Pachuca and should be ready to go. He is a great finisher and provides a strong presence in the box. Ruiz will start in the middle for Dallas, and had a very nice goal against Columbus the last time out. He was much more active in the match, having another goal called back for offside in the first half. He may be coming out of his funk. Alvarez has become a fixture on the right. It is hard to believe that he is only 22, but he is really coming into his own and has become perhaps the most important attacking player for Dallas. On the left, Oduro has dropped off a bit and was was benched in favor of Thompson last weekend. Abe was not effective, however, and was replaced by Dominic at the half. Ricardinho will most likely start against Houston. He came on in the last match at attacking midfield and looked good. Once Cooper comes back, he may be used more often at that position, but until then, his spot is probably on the wing. He has great moves like Alvarez, with more speed, but it has yet to be seen if his finishing is at that level. Advantage: Dallas. Ching is better than Ruiz, but Alvarez has been more effective recently than Ngwenya, and Ricardinho is no slouch as the FCD third option. POSSIBLE LINEUPSFC Dallas We have Ricardinho starting over Oduro on the wing, although fitness may force him to come off the bench. There is also a chance we could see Ricardinho at attacking midfield, pushing McCarty into Rhine’s spot.
Houston Dynamo
WHEN DALLAS ATTACKSIn the last match against Houston, Dallas played Saragosa and Ricchetti together in the middle. Houston came out and played very compact defensively, and Dallas was unwilling to move an extra player into the attack. The result was a very slow match with few chances on goal. This game should be different. Clark will match the energy of Dax, but Rhine will provide the extra attacking option in the middle of the field; this will keep the Houston central defenders from helping on the outside. Robinson loves to match up against Ruiz, but in the last games, Cochrane was allowed to slide outside and help if one of the wingers came down the line, especially on the right side of the defense. Alvarez has a tough match up against Barrett, but Ricardinho has a really good opportunity to do well against Waibel. If Ricardinho can find the ball, he can use his athleticism and speed to break the defense down. If Ianni slides outside to help, it will open up space for Rhine to fill if he joins the attack. Dallas should be more successful in breaking down the Houston defense. WHEN HOUSTON ATTACKSIn the first match up this season, Goodson exited early with an injury; he is the backbone of the defensive line and his importance cannot be disregarded. In the second, with Goodson playing, Houston were not able to create many opportunities. Goodson can cover for Pitch if he gets beat in the run of play. That said, both Ching and Ngwenya will give Pitch a lot of problems if they are served balls in the box. Moor should be okay with Jaqua, but the biggest match up is Gbandi against Mullan. If Gbandi struggles as much as he did at times last weekend, it could be a long day for the Dallas defense. Another key is that Dallas has struggled once again at times this season defending set pieces. With Jaqua, Ching, and Ngwenya on offense, and Robinson and Ianni out of the back, Houston have several players who are effective in that regard. If Dallas gives up a lot of corners or fouls near the box, they will have a hard time keeping a clean sheet. FINAL ANALYSISBoth of these teams show the heart of a champion and are now front runners to win the MLS Cup this season. Houston showed a great desire to compete and win against Pachuca after falling down a man 11 minutes into the match and battling back to score a late equalizer. Dallas displayed an amazing determination against the Crew last week, rebounding from a lackluster first half to grab the game winner in injury time despite playing a man down. These amazing displays illustrate the way both teams have come together and fight as one. Dallas leads the division and has a game in hand, so it is extremely important for Houston to win on Sunday. They came out with energy and emotion for the Pachuca game, and should come out with a similar passionate display in this match. Houston have an advantage head to head thus far this season, so expect them to come out playing with confidence as well. However, don’t discount the fact that the first game was heavily influenced by the Goodson injury. Additionally, Gbandi, Ruiz, Ricardinho and Alvarez were not available for the game in Houston. The game may very well come down to which winger wins their respective match up: Mullan vs Gbandi and Ricardinho vs Waibel. I think Dallas have the advantage. Additionally, FCD are unbeaten in their last 6 MLS matches, while Houston is winless in four, so they are in a better run of form. FC Dallas scores early in the second half and Houston runs out of steam as the run continues and the Hoops to take control of the Western Conference. FCD 2, Houston 1 18 Comments Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI Leave a comment | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Great analysis, these teams are very close but not having Toja FCD may not be at their best and it’s in Houston. A draw would work for me but 3 points would send a huge message about who runs MLS this season.
nit-picky here… its Onstad. but great write up
I think Cory Ashe could be the X-factor for Houston. That guy makes me nervous every time he takes the Pitch against the Hoops. I have been impressed every time I have seen him play and I don’t understand why they don’t use him more. He reminds me of Chelsea’s Shaun Wright-Phillips.
Good write up, but I’m w/ Tex here…with four starters out, I’d take an ugly nil-nil result there.
Agree with Skeeter, Cory Ashe is very dangerous.. I don’t know that he’s very refined technically yet, but he has a lot of pace, energy and tons of determination… I’m also confused as to why Houston haven’t used him more.
b/c Ashe’s 1st touch is terrible. He has tons of speed, but doesn’t link up well with others.
Ashe has speed and has some good moves, but has not been as effective lately as he was earlier in the season. From what I understand, he was given the start in an open cup match and didn’t perform that well over the full game. He is best used as a sub to inject energy at the end of a game, when the space opens up.
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I think FCD’s weak Superliga performance says it all. Houston lost there last 2 MLS games but beat DC United and America in Superliga. And FCD, couldnt edge out the Galaxy w/o Beckham.
Houston 2, FCD 1
Well.. you would have that it was Dallas who had played the tough mid-week game, not Houston… based upon the lack of energy shown tonight. I know it was hot/humid/nasty etc.. but Houston did ok with it..
Umm passing the ball.. We stunk! Couldn’t hold onto possession to save our lives.
But Ray did come up awesome. Well played by him.
Well Cory ashe was no factor as he has been all season so enough of that.
Goodson was clearly FCD’s MOTM again but he was the only one who played up to standard for Dallas. Houston’s goal looked to be offsides on the initial pass but with Pitch, Ray and Richetti in good positions it shouldn’t been a goal. On the other end video clearly shows Dom being tripped and should have been awarded a PK but we are in houston and got no calls.
Bottom line, we were outplayed and didn’t deserve a point but with proper officating woul have taken something from the game.
BTW, Burse was over his head yesterday and was lucky not to give up more goals.
Hank, I don’t disagree with you about the goal, but I give Gbandi a share of the blame, too. He gave way too much room on the cross. He almost always does. I’m also surprised to see you critical of Burse. A week ago, you were saying he should replace Sala for the rest of the season. Not that I don’t agree that he looked overwhelmed. He did — especially on the one play where he misjudged the ball’s bounce and a snake-bitten Ngwenya couldn’t put it in the net.
Goodson played great. But I think all the boys need a rest. They’ve played a long, hard stretch and the off week will do them good, especially Ricchetti.
I don’t remember saying Burse should play the rest of the season but he’s done well. He’s inconsistent like we should expect from a young player but appears to have the tools to be very good. I still think we need Sala if we are going to win hardware this year.
Ray was not the problem yesterday but more control of the box would have made it a much calmer game.
Maybe I misunderstood you. If so, apologies. I would think you’d want Sala in there, if only to ease Goodson’s responsibilities a bit in the box and give him more latitude do his thing. If there’s a GK and CB who seem to like each other and understand each other more on the field than Sala and Goodson, I haven’t seen it in this league. I just like the bite and agressiveness those two have together. Together, they have a bada**, been-through-the-wringer-and-tougher-for-it mentality. It makes the game fun to watch.
Now, admit that Gbandi allowed too much space on the cross and all our differences will be settled, my friend.
There was far too big of a gap between the attacking players and the defenders. Rhine really needed to provide that link, but he struggled.
Ricardinho also did much worse than expected in his first start; but that is what you get from every 19 year old in MLS history – inconsistancy.
I don’t believe inconsistancy is the right word to describe Burse’s issue (problem?). I think his youthfulnes and lack of a “voice” is a better description. He simply does not have the ability to bark commands at his mates…yet.
It’s a hard place to tell the anchor of your defense where you want him if you’re aren’t sure where you need to be.
That said, I think Burse has done remarkably well for us and has shown that youthful vigor and determination can make up for the lack of wisdom and respect that experience brings. His sheer athleticisim has saved his lack of positioning several times…and there are a couple of saves I’m still in awe of.
I just don’t want to rely on youthful vigor and determination alone, come playoffs.
I agree with the above, Ray has done well given that this was his 3rd-4th (?) game. I think Goodson is having to do too much covering for others AND providing almost all the communication to the backline and the GK. He’s played with 3 other cb’s, 2 rb’s, 2 lb’s and 3 keepers so far and it will be difficult for the defense to be consistent until for put the same group out regularly. The situation is only compounded when the replacements are fairly inexperienced.
All that said I’m rather proud of what the guys and Morrow have produced thus far. I basically saying to win somethings this year we need a healthy team so we can play our best 11 most of the time.
To add my 2p on Ricardinho…the kid can back his yellow kicks, has brillant individual skill, and tons of heart. He just doesn’t understand his role on the squad which, like Burse, is a youth issue (lack of consistency is just a lazy explanation).
I can’t remember which game, but Rico wanted to take a free kick just outside the box and Dax seemed to have to explain the situation. I remember Toja saying something to calm the young buck as well.
If I haven’t totally fabricated this memory…you gotta love a kid that has that much confidence to demand the kick with so few minutes.
I will say that Rico makes a great hour mark sub. The speed at which he dances warms my heart.