Houston Dynamo Battle Vancouver Whitecaps for Top Spot in the West
(image via Aldo Canale)
The Houston Dynamo are in Canada tonight for a top of the Western Conference clash against the Vancouver Whitecaps. The Dynamo picked up their fourth straight victory on Saturday, beating the LA Galaxy 1-0. Vancouver beat Seattle 2-0 in their last match on Sunday.
When: Wednesday, August 19 | 9:40 PM CT kickoff
Where: BC Place; Vancouver, British Columbia
TV/Stream: Apple TV
Rarefied Air
After Saturday’s win over the Galaxy, the Houston Dynamo went into first place in the Western Conference for about 24 hours. Vancouver won on Sunday to go back to the top spot and push Houston to second. Now the two teams meet with first place on the line. The last time the Dynamo sat in the top-two of a conference on August 19, like they do now, was 2017 when Houston led the Western Conference. The Dynamo have only finished atop their conference once in club history, way back in 2008. It’s been a great season for Houston, so far, but there is still a lot of work to do and some big achievements possible.
Stepping Up at Striker
It’s almost impossible to believe that the Dynamo are in second place in the Western Conference and have not had a goal scored in league play by a striker. Just think about that for a second. Ezequiel Ponce is now gone to Elche and Spain and all signs indicate Duncan McGuire will be given the chance to take over the number 9 role. Ben Olsen has even mentioned the possibility of Mateusz Bogusz or Ibrahim Aliyu (who had his suspension overturned for tonight’s match) playing as a nine. But, the Dynamo spent over a million dollars on McGuire and now he has the chance to repay them by finding his form from his days in Orlando and bagging some goals in orange.
Caps on Top
Vancouver went back into first place on Sunday with their win over Seattle but, it was their first victory in all competitions since July 8 and their first league win since May 23. The Whitecaps lost to the Dynamo in May at Shell Energy Stadium and will want to get some pay back for that result. One big change for Vancouver over these summer months has been the departure of Sebastian Berhalter to England. The USMNT midfielder is now at Middlesbrough and the Caps have struggled some to replace him. There is still plenty of talent on this team, however, and when they get things figured out in their midfield they will be poised to make another MLS Cup FInal run like they did last season.
Houston Dynamo FC – Out: Jimmy Maurer (head); Questionable: Felipe Andrade (lower body)
Vancouver Whitecaps FC – Out: Jeevan Badwal (concussion protocol), Kenji Cabrera (foot), Aleksa Cvetkovic (not due to injury), Belal Halbouni (knee), Kwasi Poku (hamstring), Ranko Veselinovic (knee), Brian White (hamstring)
Predicted Lineup
