Amino Bassi scored again from the spot to give Dynamo a back-to-back home win as they beat NYCFC 1-0 on Saturday night.
Dynamo came to this match with the belief and confidence they can get another victory at home after they beat Texas rival Austin FC the previous week. Houston coach Ben Olsen has emphasized that being a strong team at home is a key element for the team to make the playoffs. However, they knew the match against the Citizens was not an easy task.
To start, the Orange had to make changes in their lineup. Adalberto ‘Coco’ Carrasquilla, who is a key piece for the Houston midfield, did not take part of the match as he is with his national team, Panama, playing in the CONCACAF Nations League. Also, another player had to miss the match. Ivan Franco, who had a good impact in offense for the Dynamo in their last matches, was not available as he traveled to his home country Paraguay to be with his wife as they welcomed their baby. The two players that substitute the two players missing were Nelson Quinones and Brooklyn Raines. They both earned their first start for Houston. In addition, Raines became the youngest player to start a match for the Houston Dynamo in franchise history at 18 years and 14 days old.
On the other hand, New York City FC was coming to this match after two wins in their last two matches. They wanted to capitalize away from home and take all the points from the Space City.
The match was a fight from the beginning. Both teams wanted to take control of the midfield and from there create chances in offense. Even though the Citizens have a very powerful attack with Matias Pellegrini, Gabriel Pereira, and Santiago Rodriguez, they struggled to find clear chances to score. A big part of the offensive problem for the away team was due to a great defensive performance by the entire Dynamo squad. Defenders Teenage Hadebe and Ethan Batrlow are showing better chemistry and along with Artur in the midfield made it almost impossible for NYCFC to had chances to score the opening goal.
Also, Dynamo pressured the East coast team in all sectors of the field. That gave Houston the opportunity to recover the ball fast and from there create chances to find the goal.
The home team had some chances to score, but they found the winning goal via a penalty kick. At the 55th minute, after a foul inside the box, that was reviewed by the VAR, Amino Bassi shot from the spot to find the back
After the goal, Houston continued to have a perfect match in defense. Even though New York was attacking more aggressively towards the end of the match, they were not able to find the equalizer and got another loss away from Yankees Stadium.
Now, Houston will visit California to play against San Jose Earthquake on Saturday April 1st. The same day, NYCFC will have another way match as they will face New England Revolution in Boston.
Houston Dynamo
