In the thick of a battle for playoff positioning, the Union head down to Houston for a difficult matchup with the Dynamo. Here’s what you’ll see if you tune in Wednesday evening.
Former teammates touch base again
Houston Dynamo left back Damarcus Beasley began his professional career with the Chicago Fire playing alongside a lanky defender named Jim Curtin. The former teammates will meet up again on Wednesday when Curtin leads his charges into BBVA Stadium. Although there is no official confirmation of this, it’s likely that Beasley is still the faster of the two but Curtin likely remains more dangerous in the air.
Oh that attack!
The Dynamo are a strong side at home, and that strength comes from aggressive wing play. Philadelphia’s best option for nullifying the Dynamo’s destructive wide men is to possess the ball and pass it around the center. Houston will let their two holding midfielders help defensively in wide areas, so if the Union work the ball around patiently, they will open the middle of the pitch, and the Dynamo’s center backs will not respond well to central penetration. Alternatively, possession could force Houston to ask their wings to come deeper and help defensively, which takes them further from the Union goal.
Sneak up behind ‘em
Montreal Impact and New England Revolution are four points ahead of the Union in the standings, but Philly can cut that lead to one with a win over the Dynamo. Looking ahead, Montreal has to play Wednesday in the Cascadia Championship then turn around and face Atlanta next Saturday. Meanwhile, the Revs wait until August 4 for their next match, a trip to Orlando City. Although that looks soft on paper, Orlando’s new head coach James O’Connor will finally have a two week window to implement his ideas, so if the Lions were to turn things around this game would be the first sign. In sum, a win this Wednesday keeps Philly right in the hunt for the playoffs with two big matches against the Revolution ahead in August.
Set play success?
The Dynamo have given up nearly a quarter of their goals against on set pieces this season: two from corner kicks and four from indirect free kicks. Philly scored from a corner against Orlando in the US Open Cup quarterfinal last week and created another great chance for Mark McKenzie on a corner against Los Angeles. Wednesday night should offer some big set piece moments if the Union can capitalize.
