After coming out of their SuperLiga group on top with two wins and a tie, the Houston Dynamo are hoping they can carry some of that momentum into their game this weekend against the Columbus Crew.
“The team’s feeling better about our performances, and that leads to confidence, which always helps,” said midfielder Brad Davis. “We were in a bit of a rut in MLS, and we stuck together, and I think we put together some good performances. … Hopefully we can take that to Columbus and put together a good result.”
Houston has shockingly failed to defeat an MLS opponent since May 22. However, the Dynamo's performances in league play prior to SuperLiga were dramatic improvements compared to their showing in three consecutive league defeats earlier in the year.
“Leading into SuperLiga, we were putting some good performances together,” noted Dynamo goalkeeper Pat Onstad. “Over the last six games, four have been very good, and two have been pretty good. We have finally gotten the performances in the right direction, and now it is about getting results.”
Those performances include two wins against Pachuca and Puebla and a tie against Chivas USA in SuperLiga. While Houston had success against two teams from Mexico, they are well aware that the MLS game is a different animal.
“We played some decent teams and got results, but it is a different style of play,” noted Bobby Boswell. “A lot of teams in the league try to destroy more than create, but obviously we want to carry this into the regular season and make the playoffs.”
Regardless of the style differences, Dynamo players are hopeful that the momentum and, more importantly, the confidence the team has obtained in its last several performances will carry over against Columbus.
“This is something that can help keep us going,” said Dominic Oduro. “It gives us some momentum. Hopefully we get it going into the next game against Columbus.”
“We control our own destiny, and we get to decide our future based on our performance,” said Boswell. “It is an important game for us, since Columbus is a great team, especially at home.”
Dwain Capodiceis a contributor to MLSsoccer.com. Questions or comments can be sent via email to dwaincapodice@gmail.com.
