Twin Cities Test: Dynamo Look to Bounce Back Against Minnesota

(image via Houston Dynamo FC)

The Houston Dynamo return from a short break for a midweek visit to the Twin Cities and a meeting with Minnesota United. The Dynamo are coming off a 3-1 loss to CF Montreal at Shell Energy Stadium in their last match. Minnesota also lost their last match, losing 4-2 to San Diego at home on June 14. Houston beat Minnesota 2-0 when the teams met earlier this season at Shell Energy Stadium.

When: Wednesday, June 25 | 7:40 PM CT kickoff

Where: Allianz Field; St. Paul, Minnesota

TV/Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV

Radio: TUDN Deportes 93.3 FM

Changes Coming

After the loss to Montreal, Ben Olsen hinted at changes to the lineup. Olsen reiterated this week that the team has good depth and players back from injury now, meaning we could see some changes to the starting eleven. Erik Sviatchenko may not be ready to start just yet but there could be new faces in the team that takes the field tonight. Does that include Toyosi Oulsanya, Duane Holmes, or Lawrence Ennali getting starts? Could Artur, the captain, be sent to the bench? Will there be a different back four? Whatever Olsen and the staff do, they need to find out who the best eleven is and find it out soon.

Summer of Soccer

The FIFA Club World Cup and Concacaf Gold Cup are ongoing but the Dynamo are also embarking on their own summer of soccer. Tonight’s match is the first of seven league matches in the next five weeks. After that, the Leagues Cup begins with Houston playing three matches against LigaMX opposition. The Dynamo are currently outside of the playoff picture, but only just. Plenty points are still on offer and even with a tough list of fixtures in July, Houston will be looking to climb the Western Conference table and get themselves back into the top nine.

Minnesota Might

Before losing their last match, Minnesota United had gone five matches across all competitions without a loss. They’ve climbed to third place in the Western Conference, five points behind leaders Vancouver. With the Gold Cup still in action, Minnesota will be missing some key players, including goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair and leading scorer Tani Oluwaseyi. Even without some starters out of the lineup, players like Kevlin Yeboah, who has five goals this season, will slot in and keep this Minnesota team at a high level.

Houston Dynamo FCOut: Jack McGlynn (international duty), Nelson Quiñones (knee), Andrew Tarbell (knee)

Minnesota United FC Out: Carlos Harvey (international duty), Tani Oluwaseyi (international duty), Joseph Rosales (international duty), Dayne St. Clair (international duty), Sam Shashoua (leg)

Predicted Lineup

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