BBVA Compass Stadium Houston, Texas — “99 days” exclaimed Dynamo President Chris Canetti. “It’s only been 99 days since our last game. When you think of all the things that have happened it’s quite remarkable.”
Canetti is right. The Houston Dynamo, one of the most recognizable teams over the last 10 years in Major League Soccer, had undergone a complete facelift.
Owen Coyle became only the second manager in Dynamo history, Matt Jordan was named as the new General Manager, Erick “Cubo” Torres joined as a record transfer, an additional 10 players have joined the squad, and of course there is the re-alignment of the Dynamo to the Western Conference.
That list doesn’t even include the new TV deal with ROOT Sports Southwest that will expand the Dynamo’s reach into states like Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. There is a Spanish speaking television network deal in the pipeline too.
All in 99 days.
It was apparent right away that big things are happening in Houston. The buzz echoing around the BBVA Compass Stadium was one of excitement, one of expectation.
“We’re very excited about the future that is ahead of us, we’ve been a successful franchise both on and off the field since we came here in 2006” Canetti said in his opening speech for the media day on Tuesday afternoon in the presidents club suite at BBVA Compass Stadium.
He’s right. The playoffs are painted Orange, no matter which way you look at it. The Dynamo have managed 7 playoff appearance in 9 years, appearing in four MLS Cup finals and winning two.
The Dynamo own the MLS Cup playoffs.
Houston has been given just 40/1 odds by Vegas to win the MLS Cup. Surprising when you think about their record in the playoffs — people point at the realignment to the Western Conference, but both MLS Cup Championships came out of the Dynamo being in the Western Conference and they have since appeared in a Western Conference final, too.
Dynamo team MVP for last season Giles Barnes disagrees with Vegas. When asked about whether the MLS Cup was a realistic goal for the Dynamo this season Barnes responded “That’s our aim, I dont see why not. We have one of the most talented squads in the league, we are ready and raring to go. The first day of pre-season, right down to the number changes, we felt there was something big going on. We’ve brought in quality and kept that quality base too.”
It’s hard to disagree with Barnes. The Dynamo have moved to address the defensive woes they had last season by bringing in Raul Rodriguez from Espanyol who play in Spain’s top division, to partner veterans Jermaine Taylor and DaMarcus Beasley in passing on experience to the promising Kofi Sarkodie.
On top of that, the Dynamo have potent attacking threats not just in Barnes, but in Will Bruin, Boniek Garcia, Brad Davis, and most notably on his return, Erick Torres. Couple this with a new style of possession football that is being professed by Owen Coyle, instilling his winning mentality all the while, this Dynamo team really believes that it can make a charge for a third MLS Cup.
Owen Coyle used the jersey unveiling as a chance to tell fans and media what the Dynamo means to him, and what it means he will try and bring to the Dynamo.
“You could put this stadium in any league in the world, and the same goes for the fan base, that was a huge factor in me coming over here — especially how passionate they are” Coyle said of the facilities he’s been provided with in Houston while going on to state that “as head coach its my responsibility to put a team on the pitch that is representative of our support.”
The support the Dynamo has is something many people highlighted throughout the day. President Chris Canetti showed a video of all the highlights from the last 9 seasons that the Dynamo has been in Major League Soccer. There was always a constant, Canetti reminded us, and that constant was the team’s tagline “Forever Orange.”
This slogan has served as an identity for Dynamo fans since Brian Ching scored their first ever goal in Major League Soccer back in 2006. With the Texian Army, Brickwall, El Batallon, and La Bateria supporters groups all making noise, emblazoned in orange, BBVA Compass Stadium has been in intimidating place to come of opposing teams of late.
Coyle was wary of promising the attending Dynamo fans the world, he knows the city expects. “I can’t promise you, and I won’t, that we’ll win every game but we will set out every time to win matches” Coyle began, “what you have to do is commit to the work ethic and to implement an idea. This idea is in its infancy, the longer we’re together the better we will get.”
Coyle’s right. This is a new look Dynamo team, coming into a new era. It’s exciting for the players, for the fans and for the staff, and Owen Coyle wants to deliver. “Will it be difficult? Of course it will. But we have players who are talented, players who can win.”
“The first target is to make sure we reach the playoffs so that we can have a chance of winning a MLS Cup.”
The Dynamo open their season at home this Saturday against the Columbus Crew. Kick off is at 7.30pm central time.
