The Houston Dynamo and Chivas de Guadalajara played to a scoreless draw in a friendly match played at BBVA Compass Stadium on Sunday night.
The Dynamo had their first big chance of the night in the 13th minute of play. Eric Alexander found Ricardo Clark alone in the middle of the field after the Chivas center backs were pulled out of position. Clark charged forward unimpeded, but mishit his shot from the top of the box with only the goalkeeper in front of him.
Mauro Manotas forced a save from Antonio Rodriguez in the 37th minute as he latched onto a diagonal ball into the box and took his shot first time. The resulting corner kick found Jalil Anibaba at the back post, where he headed the ball towards goal. Clark flicked it along and over the goalkeeper, but it was cleared off the goal line by a Chivas defender.
Chivas earned a free kick just outside the penalty box in the 44th minute. Edwin Hernandez's low shot snuck through a crowd in the box and was saved by Joe Willis, and the spilled rebound didn't amount to anything but a follow-up attempt over the bar.
The second half saw the Chivas debut of Mexican national team striker Alan Pulido. Pulido was a handful for the Dynamo defense around the 18-yard box, but wasn't able to seriously test second half goalkeeper Calle Brown. Brown was tested in the 84th minute when Jose Vazquez lined up a hard shot from the edge of the penalty area, but the Dynamo keeper slapped the shot over the crossbar.
In addition to Brown, who saw his first non-preseason action for the first team, the match was the Dynamo debut for defender Keyner Brown and midfielders Yair Arboleda and José Escalante. All three summer additions started the game, with Escalante exiting in the 87th minute while Brown and Arboleda went the full 90.
Chivas Guadalajara vs. Houston Dynamo
Friendly Match
September 4, 2016—BBVA Compass Stadium—Houston, Texas
Attendance: 14,872
Scoring Summary:
None.
Houston Dynamo: Joe Willis (Calle Brown 45); Jail Anibaba, Keyner Brown, Raúl Rodríguez (Damarcus Beasley 71), Sheanon Williams (Rob Lovejoy 45); Collen Warner (Alex Lima 45); Jose Escalante (Christian Lucatero 87), Ricardo Clark(C) (Cristian Maidana 45), Eric Alexander (Zach Steinberger 82), Yair Arboleda; Mauro Manotas
Unused Substitutes: None.
TOTAL SHOTS: 7; SHOTS ON GOAL: 3; FOULS: 11; OFFSIDES: N/A; CORNER KICKS: 3; SAVES: 3
Chivas Guadalajara: Antonio Rodriguez (Rodolfo Cota 45); Miguel Basulto (Jair Pereira 45, Oswaldo Alanis 83), Miguel Ponce, Carlos Villanueva (Jesus Sanchez 47), Edwin Herndez (Hedgardo Marin 45); Josue Lazaro (Jose Vazquez 45), Nestor Calderon (Michael Perez 45); Edson Torres (Eduardo Lopez 45); Mauro Contreras (Isaac Brizuela 45), Alejandro Zendejas (Alan Pulido 45); Marco Bueno (Michelle Benitez 36, Carlos Cisneros 62)
Unused Substitutes: Carlos Salcido, Miguel Jimenez
TOTAL SHOTS: 11; SHOTS ON GOAL: 5; FOULS: 10; OFFSIDES: N/A; CORNER KICKS: 1; SAVES: 3
Misconduct Summary:
HOU: Jose Escalante (caution) 31
HOU: Sheanon Williams (caution) 35
HOU: Raul Rodriguez (caution) 38
Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Assistant Referees: Kyle Atkins, Jeff Greeson
Fourth Official: Pedro Trejo
