Beginning Wednesday, the Houston Dynamo will play the first of three successive matches away from home as they head to BC Place Stadium to battle the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Orange Crush moved a point above Vancouver in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer, edging Austin FC 2-1 in their previous encounter, with the Caps falling 3-1 at St Louis City.
Match preview
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It was a new venue but the same result as Vancouver lost a third successive road fixture in this competition over the weekend, putting them just a point above the playoff line.
Vanni Sartini's men found themselves behind 2-0 at the break, and they have only claimed one point this season when trailing to start the second half.
Their next four matches in all competitions will occur inside the friendly confines of BC Place, where the Caps have won four of their last five games, with their only home defeat in MLS this year coming in their opener, 2-1 versus Real Salt Lake.
The Caps have only conceded in one of those five regular season home games, and they have never lost to the Dynamo at BC Place.
They have not come away empty-handed from a home match against a Texas-based club in this competition since dropping a 2-1 decision to Dallas in September 2018.
With 10 of their following 11 regular season affairs being against teams in their conference, their summer form could go a long way in determining whether this team can return to the postseason after narrowly missing out in 2022.
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Four out of a possible six points versus their two state rivals should have the Dynamo feeling much better about their place in the MLS table.
Ben Olsen's men have done the majority of their damage this season in the second half, with nine of their 13 goals occurring in the final 45 minutes, netting the winner versus the Verde and Black three minutes before the 90.
Houston have only captured five regular-season road outings over the past three campaigns, and they have not begun 2023 any better, securing just two points from six away matches, one of which came the last time out against the Toros (1-1).
Wednesday will be their first visit to Canada in 2023, where the Dynamo have not triumphed in the regular season since July 2019 (2-1 win at Toronto), losing their last three trips to the Great White North.
The Dynamo hold a 100% record when leading in the second half of their matches this year, scoring the opener six times, winning five of those encounters and only conceding in two of those outings.
Under Olsen, this team have played a direct style of play, with most of their attacks coming down the middle, while they have looked particularly dangerous on set-pieces.
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Team News
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On Saturday, Sartini inserted five newcomers to Vancouver's opening lineup who did not begin their previous league fixtures versus the Seattle Sounders as Ranko Veselinovic, Alessandro Schopf, Julian Gressel and Simon Becher were in the starting 11, with Thomas Hasal featuring in goal for the first time in the 2023 campaign.
Brian White had their only goal in St Louis, his team-leading fifth of the season, Pedro Vite has netted in two of his last three MLS fixtures and Yohei Takaoka has only conceded in one of his previous five domestic encounters at BC Place, stopping the only Seattle shot he faced in a 2-0 win.
Becher will have fond memories of Houston as he made his MLS debut the last time they hosted them in August 2022, levelling that match in the 88th minute with former striker Lucas Cavallini putting home the winner on 92 minutes as the Caps earned a 2-1 triumph.
Erik Sviatchenko was on the bench for Orange Crush last weekend with a lower-body issue, Teenage Hadebe did not feature because of a sore leg, while Tate Schmitt and Ifunanyachi Achara are suffering from knee injuries.
Hector Herrera put the Dynamo on the board with a 37th-minute strike on Saturday, his third of the year, with Ivan Franco notching goal number one of 2023, which held up as the winner.
Franco Escobar has been instrumental in their outstanding defensive performances this season, third in MLS regarding tackles won (26), while Steve Clark is third for clean sheets (five) as the Dynamo have conceded the second-fewest goals (12) in the Western Conference this year.
Vancouver Whitecaps possible starting lineup:
Takaoka; Laborda, Veselinovic, Blackmon, Martins; Schopf, Cubas, Gressel; Gauld, Vite; White
Houston Dynamo possible starting lineup:
Clark; Escobar, Steres, Bartlow, Smith; Carrasquilla, Artur, Herrera; Bassi, Ferreira, Baird
We say: Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 Houston Dynamo
The Whitecaps' speed and ability to transition effectively on that quick artificial turf might be too much for the Dynamo to handle, while the visitors look overwhelmed and out of sorts when on the back foot away from home.
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Top tip
Joel Lefevre
