Houston Dynamo 2-Montreal Impact 1
Houston came into Saturday’s match after losing at home in the CONCACAD Champions League against Tigres and tying against the RSL in their home opener. Coach Wilmer Cabrera and the Dynamo know that being strong at home is a key element to be a playoff team this season, that is why the match against Montreal was very important for their immediate future.
Montreal came to Houston with the idea of stealing points on the road. By being solid in defense and having long possessions at midfield they knew they will have a better chance of accomplishing that. And it almost paid off. After a hard-fought game for the first 30-minutes both teams barely had some chances to open the score. Even though both teams were struggling in offense, in the 34th minute Saphir Taider took advantage of an opportunity inside the box and opened the score for the Canadians.
However, the Orange tied everything up only two minutes later when ‘Memo’ Rodriguez scored a golazo after his shot from outside the box beat goalkeeper Evan Bush.
With everything even at the half, the Dynamo knew they needed to come up strong in the second half to get that much needed win in front of their loyal home crowed. So, coach Cabrera got into the match Romell Quioto and Alberth Elis, who started off the bench. This was a great moved by the coach because the Orange took advantage of these players’ vertical and fast game.
It was until the 86’ minute when Quioto crossed the ball inside the box to find Mauro Manotas who scored the final 2-1 for the Houston win. This was Manotas’ 50th career goal with the Dynamo and his 2nd this MLS season.
Now Houston will play at home for a third time in a row when they host the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday 16th for the MLS. However, after that match, they will have to pay a visit to Liga MX Tigres in Monterrey on Tuesday 12th for the CONCACAF Champions League. On the other hand, Montreal will visit Florida to play against Orlando City also on Saturday 16th.
Houston Dynamo
Montreal Impact
