Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 draw in their first match of the 2022 MLS Season.
MLS is back and H-Town´s team Dynamo FC made its home debut against a very competitive squad in Real Salt Lake. Houston is starting a new era after many changes in the offseason and has a clear mindset of being a winning team that can make the playoffs and battle for their third MLS Cup.
A key change was in the coaching position. Tab Ramos left the club after two mediocre seasons and now it’s Paulo Nagamura’s turn. The young coach, who was making his MLS debut on the match, comes to the league after finding success in the youth system of the Sporting Kansas City organization. His offensive mindset and finding order in their backline are the qualities which will help Dynamo to achieve their goals this 2022.
Courtesy of Houston Dynamo FC
RSL, on the other hand, wants to consolidate their project this season. After qualifying to the playoffs last season, they know they need to improve what they did last year, and they were ready to show it off in Houston.
Let´s talk about the match. This game was a very well fought one, especially in the midfield. Both teams neutralized each other there and their attacks were not as cleared as they were hoping.
Houston created some chances in offense and was a little more aggressive than the visitors were. Even though neither of the teams found many opportunities to score, Houston attack looked good. It is clear that MLS newcomer Sebastian Ferreira will be an important player for the Orange in offense during the season. Dynamo really needed to acquire a striker for this season. Since Mauro Manotas left, the club a couple of years ago, the goal production in Houston has declined and this is something coach Nagamura needs to work on.
Alongside Ferreira, Fafa Picault, Memo Rodriguez, and Darwin Quintero are the men that can help Dynamo´s offense. Besides helping Ferreira in the attack, they need to step up and score some goals for the Orange. Something they struggled to accomplish last year.
Another notorious improvement for Houston was the defense. Tim Parker is definitely the leader of this squad, and now with the addition of Daniel Steres, Dynamo´s backline is a solid one. Keeping a clean sheet during Sunday night match is also something to highlight because last season Houston was one of the worst defensive sides allowing 54 goals in 34 matches. Moreover, having an experience goalkeeper in Steve Clark, also helped Houston to have security at goal and have order in that back.
On the other side, RSL came to this match knowing that getting points away is crucial to qualify to the playoffs just as they did last season. They did not risk much during the match and were okay with the point.
Real Salt Lake has a good offense in Bobby Wood, Justin Meran, and Damir Kreilach. They provide a versatile attack for the visitors. However, they struggled to find clear chances to score.
After an entertaining match, the final 0-0 was a fair score and now both teams will move to week 2 where Houston is traveling to the Midwest to face Sporting Kansas City, a place where Dynamo always struggle. RSL will debut at its home as they host Seattle Sounders. Both matches are schedule for Saturday, March 5th.
