The Houston Dynamo will look to bounce back from a rare loss when they host the struggling San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday in a Western Conference clash.
Houston (12-7-2, 38 points) returns home following a 2-1 away defeat to St. Louis City SC on Aug. 22, which ended an eight-match unbeaten run (6-0-2) that had propelled the club to second place in the Western Conference standings.
The loss to St. Louis City marked Houston’s first defeat since a 3-0 road loss to Real Salt Lake on May 13. Ibrahim Aliyu netted the equalizer in the 75th minute, but St. Louis answered with the game-winner ten minutes later.
Head coach Ben Olsen expressed appreciation for the heightened expectations that come with the team’s recent strong form.
“The team has been really good in the last couple of months, especially at understanding the plays that really matter in both boxes,” Olsen said. “I love that the expectations have changed now and that we need to win every game — that’s healthy.”
Guilherme remains the key attacking threat for Houston, leading the squad with 12 goals and seven assists.
The Earthquakes (10-8-3, 33 points) are winless since returning from the World Cup break, losing all four of their August matches and five of their last six (with one draw) dating back to July 22. San Jose has been outscored 18-5 over that span, including a 5-1 home defeat to Minnesota United on Aug. 22 in their most recent outing.
Timo Werner’s sixth goal of the season, a penalty kick in the fourth minute, accounted for San Jose’s lone tally in that loss. Werner was forced from the match early in the second half after sustaining an apparent leg injury.
After beginning the regular season with wins in nine of their first 10 matches and rising to the top of the West standings, the Earthquakes have since slipped to fourth place in the table.
“Our opponents have been very physical against us over the last four or five games, and we haven’t responded well to that,” San Jose coach Bruce Arena said. “We haven’t done a good job in the middle third of the field in terms of having some physicality, some presence, winning the ball, and making better passes.”
Preston Judd leads the Earthquakes in goals with 11, while Niko Tsakiris and Werner share the team lead with seven assists each.
