West powerhouses meet in Houston
Both Dynamo and Galaxy have chances to win conference
ROBERTSON STADIUM, Houston, Texas
Oct. 18, 2009 (WEEK 31) / MLS Game #217
2 p.m. CT (TeleFutura; KHOU; FSN-W)
The first act in a two-week passion play for leadership in the Western Conference will take place Sunday at Robertson Stadium when the Houston Dynamo entertain the LA Galaxy. The teams are tied atop the West - along with Chivas USA - with 44 points; all three teams are among the four to have already clinched spots in the MLS Cup Playoffs. But top seed in the West and resulting home-field advantage is on offer - next week Houston travels to face Chivas USA, though the Galaxy can take a major first step toward claiming the regular-season crown with a victory in Houston.
REFEREE: Kevin Stott. SAR (bench): Rob Fereday; JAR (opposite): Greg Boles; 4th: Chris Penso MLS Career: 182 games; FC/gm: 26.1; Y/gm: 3.4; R: 50; pens: 36
INJURY REPORT: HOUSTON DYNAMO - OUT: DF Richard Mulrooney (R knee surgery); MF Corey Ashe (R knee sprain); DOUBTFUL: DF Danny Cruz (R foot strain) ... LOS ANGELES GALAXY - OUT: DF Julian Valentin (R foot fracture); FW Alecko Eskandarian (head); QUESTIONABLE: MF Dema Kovalenko (R Achilles tendonitis); MF Stefani Miglioranzi (L groin strain)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED: HOU: Cam Weaver (through Oct. 18); John Spencer (assistant coach; through Oct. 18)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: LA: Gregg Berhalter, Alan Gordon, Jovan Kirovski, Eddie Lewis ... HOU: Mike Chabala, Brad Davis
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: LA: Alecko Eskandarian, Omar Gonzalez, Mike Magee, Stefani Miglioranzi ... HOU: Wade Barrett, Bobby Boswell, Brian Ching, Ricardo Clark, Andrew Hainault
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (10 meetings): Dynamo 4 wins, 13 goals ... Galaxy 3 wins, 9 goals ... Ties 3AT HOUSTON (5 meetings): Dynamo 2 wins, 6 goals ... Galaxy 2 wins, 4 goals ... Ties 1
• The Galaxy won for the first time against Houston in a league game at The Home Depot Center in the first meeting this year. After playing to a scoreless in Houston's first-ever trip there, the Orange came away with victories in their next two trips to Carson before a 2-2 draw in last year's lone meeting.
• But the Galaxy had come away with points from three consecutive trips to Houston - until the 3-0 Dynamo victory in last year's final meeting. The first meeting was a 1-0 result before a crowd of 70,550 at Reliant Stadium (fifth-largest for a regular season game in league history) on Aug. 9, 2006.
• The home team won in the first matchup ever, a 2-1 Dynamo win on June 3, 2006 at Robertson Stadium - then did not win again until the Dynamo victory in Houston last year, a span of seven games. The Galaxy did win in a U.S. Open Cup semifinal at The Home Depot Center in 2006.
• Coaches record: Dominic Kinnear v LA: P18 W8 L6 D4 ... Bruce Arena vs. HOU: P4 W2 L2 D0
LAST MEETING (MLS)
6/28: LA 1, HOU 0 (Dunivant 24)
• The LA Galaxy put an end to the Houston Dynamo club-record 11-game undefeated streak in the first meeting, a 1-0 victory on June 28 at The Home Depot Center.
• The game's lone goal came in the 24th minute. From a corner kick played short, Mike Magee cut into the penalty area from the left and hit a low shot aimed for the far post. Todd Dunivant turned it inside the far netting with the slightest of touches, his first goal on the season and the fourth of his MLS career.
• Here's Arena's team (4-4-2): Donovan Ricketts - A.J. DeLaGarza, Gregg Berhalter, Omar Gonzalez (Tony Sanneh 62), Todd Dunivant - Jovan Kirovski, Mike Magee, Stefani Miglioranzi, Eddie Lewis (Chris Klein 84) - Edson Buddle, Alan Gordon (Bryan Jordan 72). Substitutes Not Used: Leonard Griffin, Kyle Patterson, Josh Saunders, Josh Tudela
• Here's Kinnear's team (4-4-2): Pat Onstad - Richard Mulrooney, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Mike Chabala - Brian Mullan (Dominic Oduro 75), Brad Davis, Stuart Holden, Corey Ashe - Brian Ching, Kei Kamara (Cam Weaver 73). Substitutes Not Used: Ade Akinbiyi, Tally Hall, John Michael Hayden, Julius James, Craig Waibel
HOUSTON DYNAMO
The Houston Dynamo came back for a 1-1 draw with the Kansas City Wizards in their last match, Oct. 4 at Robertson Stadium. The Dynamo are now in a three-way tie atop the Western Conference with 44 points from 28 matches, level with the LA Galaxy and Chivas USA.LAST MATCH
• The Dynamo had put an end to a four-game winless run in their last league match two weeks earlier, while the Wizards had three wins and a draw in their last five games as they bid to stay alive in the postseason race.
• After just 17 minutes, the home side went a man down, when forward Cam Weaver was sent off for a challenge on Kansas City midfielder Santiago Hirsig in midfield.
• Yet the Dynamo took the lead just nine minutes later. Brian Mullan sent in a low rolling cross from the right flank that made it all the way across the face of goal to the back post, and Luis Angel Landin tapped home from on the doorstep for his first MLS goal.
• The Wizards finally took advantage of their man-up situation in the 73rd minute. Claudio Lopez dropped an inch-perfect ball over the top of the Dynamo back line, and Zoltan Hercegfalvi hit a full volley in full stride in the penalty area for his first MLS goal and the equalizer.
• Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear made two changes to the team that defeated Real Salt Lake 3-2 the weekend before. Ricardo Clark came into the team for Ryan Cochrane, and Cam Weaver replaced Brian Ching, away on international duty.
• Here's Kinnear's team (4-3-1-2): Pat Onstad - Andrew Hainault, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Mike Chabala - Brian Mullan (Ryan Cochrane 80), Ricardo Clark, Brad Davis (Corey Ashe 69) - Stuart Holden - Cam Weaver, Luis Angel Landin (Dominic Oduro 63). Substitutes Not Used: Wade Barrett, Tally Hall, Eddie Robinson, Craig Waibel
TEAM NEWS
• Weaver's red card was the seventh of the season for Houston and the fourth consecutive game they've had someone sent off. Six of the seven ejections have come in the last seven games, since Aug. 6.
• "It is not helping us, and I talked to the guys after (the K.C.) game. We're going to look into some stats and kind of make the guys aware of how many minutes have been missed," Kinnear said. "Some you can't control. But some are not good, and it is not fair to the guys that are still on the field and playing. I am disappointed in that. I really am and I think it really hurt us today."
• Said Brian Mullan: "That is something that we need to sort out and definitely the first thing that we need to sort out is our red card problem. And no fault to Cam there. Cam is going in hard, and he is doing his job. But we seem to be pulling red cards for the last 10 games it seems."
• The goal was the first with the Dynamo for Landin, the club's first designated player. He had started the last three games, making five appearances in all since his acquisition.
• "My dad was here, and that provided some extra motivation," said Landin. "But what I did out there today, what I do out there every time, is for my baby that is on the way. It was a nice goal, and I hope it is the first of many more to come."
• In their week off, the Dynamo played host to Mexico's CF Monterrey in the inaugural Dynamo Charities Cup, claiming a hard-fought 2-1 win at Robertson Stadium on Oct. 11. Geoff Cameron put the Dynamo into the lead (63) before Jesus Zabala equalized in the 82nd minute, but Dominic Oduro scored just three minutes later to give Houston the win.
• "Hopefully that goal takes a lot of weight off (Oduro's) shoulders," said Kinnear. "Hopefully, he can relax now and a streak can continue."
• The match reached a fever pitch in the first half when Corey Ashe was forced injured from the field, and boiled over in the second half when four players were sent off, one from each team on the field along with two Monterrey substitutes.
• "Glad we won and got some guys some minutes like Eddie [Robinson], Ryan [Cochrane], Luis [Landin], and Cam [Weaver] and that was the plan obviously," said Kinnear. "Corey is hurt so that is a bummer ... Job number one is to win, and we accomplished that. It's bittersweet though because we have a player that is important to us and that is injured now."
LOS ANGELES GALAXY
The Los Angeles Galaxy again returned to their winning ways, defeating the Chicago Fire by the game's only goal on Oct. 2 at The Home Depot Center. The Galaxy now have 44 points from 28 games, tied for the lead of the Western Conference with the Houston Dynamo and Chivas USA, five points behind the Columbus Crew in the race for the Supporters' Shield.LAST MATCH
• The winner of the Friday night clash would be guaranteed a place in the MLS Cup Playoffs. The Fire were coming into the game off three consecutive draws -- the last two at home -- while the Galaxy had lost twice in the last three games after suffering just three losses in their previous 22.
• The game's lone goal came three minutes before halftime. Chris Klein put a ball over the top of the Chicago defense and Landon Donovan ran past the high line, chipping the ball from outside the area over Fire goalkeeper Jon Busch as he came off his line for his 11th goal of the season.
• Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena made two changes to the team that lost 2-0 to the Columbus Crew on at Crew Stadium. Todd Dunivant and David Beckham came back into the team, in place of Stefani Miglioranzi and Bryan Jordan.
• Here's Arena's team (4-1-3-2): Donovan Ricketts - Sean Franklin, Gregg Berhalter, Omar Gonzalez, A.J. DeLaGarza - Chris Birchall - Chris Klein (Mike Magee 67), David Beckham, Eddie Lewis (Bryan Jordan 73) - Edson Buddle (Alan Gordon 88), Landon Donovan. Substitutes Not Used: Todd Dunivant, Jovan Kirovski, Yohance Marshall, Josh Saunders
TEAM NEWS
• The day after the win against Chicago, the Galaxy learned they had secured a spot in the 2009 MLS Cup Playoffs, ending a three-year postseason drought and leaving the San Jose Earthquakes (1997-2000) as the only club not to qualify for the playoffs for four consecutive years.
• "I said that when I first came back that this team has players that are not afraid to pass the ball and to make plays on their own, and maybe we haven't had that over the last couple of years," David Beckham said. "And we've got strength in depth as well with the players that we've got coming in. We've got a stronger squad of players more than anything. Of course, having Bruce know the league and know the players and know the way he wants us to play, it's working out well so far."
• Just four players remain from the 2005 Galaxy team that last played in the postseason - Donovan, forward Alan Gordon, defender Todd Dunivant and goalkeeper Josh Saunders. Current assistant coach Cobi Jones was also on that team.
• "We weren't expected to win in 2005 ... we weren't the best team," Gordon said. "We snuck into the playoffs and didn't have high expectations, but I expect this team to do better because we've been consistently good all year. We've battled back and showed a lot of character. We've been very resilient throughout all the adversity."
• While the Galaxy have cinched a place in the top eight, they still could lose out on home-field advantage for the Western Conference Semifinal Series. They do have the advantage of currently holding most tiebreakers with the teams they are tied with atop the division: Houston and Chivas.
• "We sure as heck want to win the games that we have remaining," said Arena. "But at the end of the day it seems like everyone is going to be playing each other anyway. The biggest factor is certainly whoever makes it to their conference final, then they'll have home-field advantage. I'm sure not looking that far ahead."
• The Galaxy have recorded shutouts in five of their last seven games. The last, against the Fire, came with two rookies in the back four in Gonzalez and DeLaGarza, along with Franklin, last year's Rookie of the Year.
• "Sean has done a great job coming back from his injury. It's not easy being out that long and stepping right back into it. He has good pace and strength and I think he really imposes himself well on the right side and going forward," said Gregg Berhalter, the fourth member of the group. "Omar also has the physical presence. He's really good in the air, he's good at reading the game and has just been steady. He's made some big plays when we needed them. A.J., like I always say about him, he adapts and he's resilient. He just keeps plugging away. He keeps popping up ... right side, left side, wherever the team needs him, and that's a really special quality to have."
);){kind=link}