Houston Dynamo at Nashville SC: Highlights, stats, and quotes
(image via Houston Dynamo FC)
The Houston Dynamo gave up an early goal and then had to play over 80 minutes a man down in a 3-1 loss to Nashville SC on Saturday night.
MATCH SUMMARY
Nashville SC 3-1 Houston Dynamo FC
Saturday, September 27, 2025
Venue: GEODIS Park - Nashville, Tennessee
Referee: Sergii Boiko
Assistants: Adam Wienckowski, Stephen McGonagle
Fourth Official: Sergii Demianchuk
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero
Attendance: 27,763
Weather: 77 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY
NSH: Hany Mukhtar (Alex Muyl) 2’
HOU: Júnior Urso (Lawrence Ennali) 40’
NSH: Sam Surridge (Daniel Lovitz) 48’
NSH: Andy Najar (unassisted) 50’
DISCIPLINE SUMMARY
HOU: Erik Sviatchenko (ejection; foul) 9’
NSH: Andy Nájar (caution; foul) 13’
NSH: Patrick Yazbek (caution; foul) 38’
LINEUPS & STATS
Nashville SC: Joe Willis; Daniel Lovitz, Jeisson Palacios, Jack Maher, Andy Najar (Josh Bauer 57’); Patrick Yazbek (Bryan Acosta 57’), Alex Muyl, Edvard Tagseth; Hany Mukhtar (c) (Tyler Boyd 77’), Jacob Shaffelburg (Walker Zimmerman 87’), Sam Surridge (Teal Bunbury 77’)
Unused substitutes: Tate Schmitt, Gaston Brugman, Josh Bauer, Ethan O'Brien, Brian Schwake
Total shots: 18
Shots on goal: 7
Fouls: 18
Offside: 1
Corner kicks: 5
Saves: 3
Houston Dynamo FC: Jonathan Bond; Felipe Andrade, Ethan Bartlow (Sergio Santos 84’), Erik Sviatchenko, Griffin Dorsey; Júnior Urso (Amine Bassi 69’), Artur (C) (Sebastian Kowalczyk 84’), Jack McGlynn; Lawrence Ennali, Ezequiel Ponce (Duane Holmes 70’), Ondřej Lingr (Femi Awodesu 15’)
Unused Substitutes: Jimmy Maurer, Antônio Carlos, Gabe Segal, Diadié Samassékou
Total shots: 8
Shots on goal: 4
Fouls: 9
Offside: 0
Corner kicks: 3
Saves: 4
HOUSTON DYNAMO HEAD COACH BEN OLSEN
On the result:
“It was a naive start from us, and before we knew it, the game was set up for us to not have success. We talked about the energy we needed in this match. There’s great energy in this building. They have great fans, and it wasn’t the start we needed. That’s the bad news. The good news is that they worked really hard to get back into it.”
On the team’s response after going down early:
“They worked their tails off. We were fairly well-organized, and I felt we frustrated them at times. That's what you look for. You look for set pieces or a breakout, and we did a good job of that. And then, there’s such a gut punch after you collect yourselves and you get a breather at halftime – to go out and be passive again and give up an early goal in the second half. That's tough. You can never win an away game if you start two halves in a bad way. They worked hard. The players worked hard. That part, I cannot complain about for a second this year. Every one of my players will give everything – everybody. This is what they do. They're not quitting.”
On how to make sure players stay motivated for the postseason:
“You win. If we get six points, we can be in the postseason still. But we have to be honest: not if we do what we did tonight, right? That won't happen. We won't get six points if we are as naive as we were from the start of this game. It's a disappointing start, but there's optimism. There's always optimism. We'll show up Tuesday, and we'll be ready for San Diego, and then we'll be ready for KC.
HOUSTON DYNAMO MIDFIELDER JUNIOR URSO
On the result:
“It was a frustrating night for us because of the early red card. That makes it hard. When we scored, we're thinking ‘Okay, we are back.’ And then, at the start of the second half, they scored, so, we were frustrated. I still believe in this team. We have to believe. We have to dream. So, let's do our job before the opportunity. And then when the opportunity comes, we’ll be ready.”
On scoring his first goal for the club:
“Yeah, I was training hard to have an opportunity like that – to shoot from outside the box. I was playing well last game. I played well and I was waiting for the opportunity to score my goal. And I was happy to get the opportunity all alone there. I’m happy for the goal, but if I could exchange it for some points, for sure I would.”
On the next two matches and fighting for the postseason:
“We have two more games and, of course, we have to earn six points. We still believe. We still dream. We will play until the last whistle. So, let's believe in this team, and believe in our staff because they work hard for us. Let's keep our mentality until the last whistle.”
