With Davis, midfield remains strength
Goalkeepers
All-Star Tally Hall (pictured) has been one of the best goalkeepers in Major League Soccer since 2011. He also broke midfielder Brad Davis’ string of team MVP awards in 2013 with his first Dynamo MVP honor. Since taking over the starting spot from Dynamo legend Pat Onstad, Hall has 27 shutouts while starting all but one of the Dynamo’s regular-season matches since 2011. He missed one game in 2012, the year he set the franchise’s single-season record with 12 shutouts. He played all of the club’s regular-season matches in 2011 and 2013. The 6-4, 215-pound Hall, 28, also has the Dynamo’s all-time record for postseason shutouts with five. Backup Tyler Deric, 25, had an injury-plagued 2013. The 6-3 goalkeeper is considered to be nearly as good as Hall, giving the Dynamo a backup-starter combination that goalkeepers coach Tim Hanley considers one of the best in MLS.
Defenders
Needing to unload salaries to remain under the MLS salary cap, the Dynamo gambled and let veteran leader Bobby Boswell exit via the re-entry draft this winter. Eric Brunner and David Horst, who was acquired via trade from Portland in the offseason, are competing to fill Boswell’s center back role. Jermaine Taylor, who missed the 2013 playoffs with a left foot fracture, owns the other center back role. Taylor has been a starter since the 2011 MLS Cup final, but he didn’t resume full training until midFebruary. Although Brunner started at center back in place of Taylor during the 2013 playoffs, it’s unclear if Brunner will beat out Horst for the other center back job. Speedy All-Star left back Corey Ashe (pictured, No. 26) and speedy right back Kofi Sarkodie, the 2013 Dynamo Defender of the Year, are unquestioned starters. Ashe, 27, will be called upon to serve as a vocal leader now that he’s second on the team in seniority. As long as Horst or Brunner step up, the Dynamo defense should be stout again because Ashe, Taylor and Sarkodie are among the best in the league at their positions.
Midfielders
The Dynamo midfield remains one of the most talented in MLS. The entire starting midfield — Brad Davis (pictured, No. 11), Boniek Garcia, Ricardo Clark and Warren Creavalle — from the 2013 playoffs returns intact. Unfortunately for the Dynamo, Creavalle isn’t expected to be ready for the start of the season as he recovers from offseason surgery on both knees. Davis, who is fighting for a spot on the U.S. national team’s World Cup roster, is one of the top assist men in MLS and arguably the league’s most dangerous left foot on set pieces. Garcia, who played in each of Honduras’ World Cup qualifying matches while helping Los Catrachos reach the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, is the Dynamo’s most dynamic offensive weapon. Few players in MLS are as talented as Garcia. Clark is just as valuable. Clark has been the rock of the Dynamo midfield since returning from Germany. He has showcased the ability that earned him a spot on the U.S. national team’s 2010 World Cup squad. Creavalle is less creative, but he provides a bite in the midfield with his athleticism and dogged pressure. Servando Carrasco, 25, Alexander Lopez, 21, and Tony Cascio, 23, could get plenty of opportunities to prove they can contribute this season. Carrasco could help distribute balls with a finer touch than the other players competing with Creavalle for a spot at center mid. The Dynamo spent more than $1 million last summer on a transfer fee to acquire Lopez from Honduran club Olimpia. Now Lopez must adapt to coach Dominic Kinnear’s style and prove he can contribute at center mid. Cascio and Andrew Driver could benefit when Garcia and Davis are called up for national team duty. Cascio and Driver can play on the wing and test opponents with their speed.
Forwards
Will Bruin (pictured, No. 12), who led the Dynamo in scoring in 2012, and Giles Barnes, who had a team-leading nine goals in 2013, are set to start again in 2014. Bruin’s goal total fell to eight one year after he scored a team-high 12 in the regular season and four in the postseason. He added two goals in the 2013 postseason despite playing with a fractured foot before missing the final leg of the Eastern Conference championship. He was second on the team with seven assists. Barnes went scoreless in the playoffs. Nonetheless, he did enough last regular season to merit a starting spot to kick off the season. Omar Cummings, 31, hopes to build on his postseason heroics. Cummings scored arguably the two biggest goals of the postseason last year for the Dynamo, and he’ll challenge for a starting role.