Picault gets two goals as Bundy earns first victory
There definitely will be a turnover of the Houston Dynamo roster in 2023. This year’s results determined that.
Dynamo coach Paulo Nagamura couldn’t survive his first season leading the club, failing to make it through a full season. Coming into Tuesday’s match with New England, Houston was tied for 13th place, the final spot of the Western Conference standings.
Until last week, interim head coach Kenny Bundy was in charge of Houston’s reserve club. Against the Revolution, he was matching wits and strategies with Bruce Arena, a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame who has won five MLS Cup titles.
Bundy came out on top Tuesday for his first MLS victory in two tries following a draw in his Dynamo debut.
A change in leadership seems to have energized Houston. The Dynamo played like winners, no one more than Fafa Picault, who scored twice in Houston’s 3-1 victory at PNC Stadium over the Revolution, who are chasing Columbus for the final Eastern Conference preseason spot.
“That was a playoff game tonight,” Bundy said. “That was as close as a playoff game that we’re going to get.”
Poor play throughout the season ended Houston’s hopes of making the 2022 playoffs early in the season. The Dynamo have lost seven games after taking a 1-0 lead.
On Tuesday, the Dynamo (9-16-6) finished out a game.
Picault scored on a penalty in the 76th minute to reinstate Houston’s lead, and the attacker scored an insurance goal in the 85th minute. Darwin Quintero scored in the 37th minute for the Dynamo.
“I felt we were always going to win the game,” said Picault, who scored his seventh and eighth goals of the year while playing with a yellow card issued in the 51st minute. “We were creating enough chances and we had them on the back foot.”
Playing aggressively, Houston had 21 shots on goal, a season-high 11 on target. The Dynamo finished with 4.54 expected goals, the fourth-highest rate of any MLS team in any game this season.
“We deserved the three points,” Bundy said. “The guys’ performance did deserve maximum points. I have to give credit to the staff because the plan was put together in a short amount of time. It was spot on.
“We expected goals. I’m excited for the guys and I hope everybody saw what (the win) meant, and it’s a springboard to what this group can do.”
In transition, the Dynamo had opportunities to get even more goals, but Revolution goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic was outstanding in defeat, collecting eight saves.
In one sequence of the 71st minute, Petrovic made a triple save, including taking a ball in the face. Houston unloaded four shots within 23 seconds, but Petrovic stopped all four.
“The biggest thing is to show that we can win games,” Picault said. “That we can put out good performances. Right now, we’re playing with a lot of confidence.”
Houston goalkeeper Steve Clark made four saves. He denied Carles Gil in a one-on-situation in the 29th minute.
New England (9-11-11) made three changes to start the second half, and it briefly energized the visitors. The Revolution leveled the score 1-1 on a 63rd minute penalty kick by Gil.
Never in contention for playoff position this season, the Dynamo, with only three games remaining, are playing to impress management as well as the coaching staff. Several Houston players will be out of contract with 13 more in their option year.