The Houston Dynamo FC is putting all their pieces together to form a competitive squad that has the mission to qualify to the playoffs under second year coach Tab Ramos. After making a rebranding, they need to show the club is more than a logo or adding FC to their name. They have to work on building a contender squad that will battle to win MLS title.
The moves started early in the offseason as forward Mauro Manotas was transferred to Liga MX side Xolos de Tijuana. This move was surprising as he was one of the best players in the squad and definitely the best offensive weapon they have. However, to keep improving, the Colombian needed the move to a more competitive league as he is looking to be part of his National team.
Photo: Jose Castellanos
The Orange needed experience in their squad, so they selected Joe Corona in MLS Re-Entry Draft. The 30-years old brings National Team experience to Tab’s team. Another great move by Houston was acquiring midfielder Fabrice ‘Fafa’ Picault from FC Dallas in exchange for allocation money. In addition, Dynamo FC acquired Derrick Jones from Nashville SC in exchange for allocation money. All these moves will boost the Dynamo’s midfield and give it depth, something the team really lacked last season.
Another surprising move was a January trade that send Dynamo’s defender Kiki Struna to Montreal in exchange for forward Maximiliano Urruti. Maxi gets to Houston to fill the spot left by Manotas. His experience can help Dynamo FC in their offensive side. Struna on the other side left the Texan club after being one of the best defensive players in the squad. However, he had a disappointing 2020 season that made Ramos to make the decision to trade him away.
Photo: Jose Castellanos
Dynamo did an excellent move by acquiring defender Tim Parker via a trade with NY Red Bulls. Parker arrives to Houston to fill the spot Struna left in defense. In exchange for the defender, Houston send allocation money to the New York side. This is probably one of the best additions for the Forever Orange this offseason.
The Houston organization has not stopped working this offseason. They managed to add a forward to the club in Tyler Pasher. He is coming from USL side Indy Eleven where he scored 23 goals and tallied 6 assists in 50 appearances. This move is clearly a gamble, but that can pay off for Houston big time of Pasher keeps the good momentum and take advantage of the opportunities coach Ramos will give him.
Coach Ramos is still expecting more moves, but negotiations and scouting are still happening. However, they reinforced their youth system by selecting three players in the MLS Super Draft. Houston selected with the sixth overall pick defender Ethan Bartlow from the University of Washington. One of the best defenders in this year’s draft. Moreover, they added another defender in Brandon Terwege from SMU with the 57th pick. In addition, they added a forward Kristo Strickler from Virginia Tech.
Photo: Jose Castellanos
As we can see, Dynamo FC is trying to build a competitive squad that will battle for a spot in the playoffs and compete for the MLS Cup starting on April 3, when the 34-match regular season will start this 2021.
