Ramos still grounded despite 3-game run
Dynamo coach Tab Ramos emphasized that his team’s growth would be steady even before things started clicking for the firstyear coach.
It took seven games for Houston to earn its first win — 5-2 over Sporting Kansas City on Aug. 25 — but since then, it hasn’t lost. It has outscored opponents 10-3 in its last three games.
As the Dynamo (3-2-4, 13 points) wrap up the first phase of their return to play with games against the Colorado Rapids (2-3-3, 9 points) on Wednesday and FC Dallas on Saturday, Ramos maintains a sober perspective of his team’s recent dominance.
“It is great that we have gotten results in the last three, (but) we still have to improve,” Ramos said. “After we won the first road game we came home, I wanted to see what kind of reaction we had to that and it was a good one. After winning two games in a row, you want to say 'OK, can you win two home games in a row, can you keep it going and become a winning team,' and we did that also. So, now it is a new test. We go on the road for the first time without the pressure of having to win a game.”
Recent Dynamo teams have been notoriously unsuccessful on the road. But in the team’s first road test since the return to play, Houston earned its first win after losing its initial road opener to Kansas City 4-0 in March.
That progress comes as top players work back to full health, and as Ramos continues to incorporate new faces.
“If you look at our lineup, we still have not had Alberth (Elis) 100 percent healthy, we still have not had Mauro (Manotas) 100 percent healthy, he has been playing a few minutes here and there,” he said. “We are just incorporating Ariel Lassiter, he is just getting part of that. We still haven't really incorporated (Wilfried) Zahibo into our lineup, although that is coming along. So, there is still a long ways to go.”
Said Elis, who has dealt with a lower back injury in recent games, “I think everyone has played a big role in our recent success…Whether they are on the bench or they are starting, we all have the same goal.”
Goalkeeper Marko Maric said he’s enjoyed his team’s recent defensive performances, which include two clean sheets. Ramos was excited to see Manotas score his first goal since February last week. A rejuvenated Darwin Ceren has become a fixture in the midfield and contributed an assist in each of the team’s three wins.
“Obviously he's earned the position,” Ramos said of Ceren, who hadn’t started back-to-back league games since 2018. “He's got a difficult job in there. He’s got to be fighting the whole day to prove he can do it all the time, and he's making us a better team.”
Ramos’ sobriety has permeated his team.
“I hope we can continue to show the league that we can win games, even if it not against the easiest opponents,” Maric said. “I just hope we can continue and keep earning three points. Of course, there will be losses too, but I just hope that we are coming to a point where people around football and the league say 'the Dynamo are a serious team this year,' and it is enjoyable to see them play football.”