Confident offense takes on hot Columbus
The Dynamo’s offensive attack is beginning to click at the right time.
Houston has won its last two MLS games by a combined score of 8-0 with wins over Portland and Salt Lake. In between was U.S. Open Cup win over Salt Lake by a 3-1 margin in the semifinals. That’s 11-1 in three matches heading into Wednesday’s home game against the Columbus Crew.
The scoring spree has helped he Dynamo move into the top five of the MLS Western Conference standings with two games left before a two-week international break.
“We still don’t have any luxury to try to step off the gas right now,” Dynamo coach Ben Olsen said. “We’re still in a position where you win one, you can really move up, or teams can pass you up very quickly if you’re not sharp and you drop points.”
Nine different players have scored in the last three games, including Adalberto Carrasquilla, who has scored in two straight games following back-to-back wins against Real Salt Lake.
Aliyu Ibrahim became the 10th Dynamo player this year to pick up MLSSoccer.com Team of the Matchday honors after assisting Carrasquilla in a 3-0 shutout win at Real Salt Lake.
“Well, I think the team right now is generating a lot of confidence, so I think the three points were important away from home,” Carrasquilla said. “Now the goal is to win those left at home. So, now on Wednesday, we have a new battle to get those three points.”
Columbus, fifth in the Eastern Conference standings with 42 points, has a lot of offensive firepower as well. Cucho Hernández leads the Crew in assists with 10 and is also two goals behind team leader Christian Ramirez (8).
The Dynamo will also need to keep an eye on new attacker Diego Rossi, who signed with the Crew in early August following two years with Turkish club Fenerbahçe.
Rossi helped Columbus defeat Toronto 2-0 on Saturday in a game where it had a season-high 31 total shots. The former Los Angeles FC player scored his first goal unassisted in his second appearance and first start for the Crew.
The pair of goals also helped the Crew record their 50th goal in 25 games for only the second time in club history.
The Crew, who have won seven of their last 11 MLS matches for a league-leading 24 points since late May, are as good as any team in the league right now, Olsen said.
“We understand the quality that they bring, and this will be a very tough match-up,” Olsen said. “They are one of the toughest teams that we’ve played in quite a while. So, we’re looking forward to that and being at home.”