On Saturday, July 27th Houston Dynamo began League Cup group play when they hosted Atlas F.C. from Guadalajara, Mexico. The Dynamo returned to action after back-to-back road victories following a thrilling 4-3 triumph over Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday evening. The Dynamo reached the Round of 16 of the competition last year and look to earn one of three berths in the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup. The Dynamo entered the match with a depleted roster as a result of four players currently participating in France to compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris with some including Dynamo goalkeeper Xavier Valdez with the Dominican Republic. The game ended with the hosts Dynamo losing out dramatically 1-0 with the lone goal coming in the 83rd minute from Atlas youngster, defender Rivaldo Lozano assisted by forward Mateo Garcias. Both coaches Atlas’s Beñat San José and Houston Dynamo’s Ben Olsen respectively spoke to the media following the match speaking on what they could’ve done better, more opportunities for youngsters, and the differences between MLS and Liga Mx.
Atlas’s Beñat San José Spoke to Differences Between MLS and Liga Mx Seen in the Match
Beñat San José originally spoke to the media about his thoughts on what stood out for him in the game where he gave insight on differences he noticed between the MLS and Liga Mx.
“There are three things that MLS has that Liga Mx also has but I see MLS employs the most. One is that I saw that Houston Dynamo and also other teams have a really good touch and a really good vision of play, the finishing from crosses and passes is at a high level, an organized tactic game as opposed to Liga Mx’s constant attack and defense, and lastly without a doubt is the physicality aspect in speed and motion of play which is seen in Liga Mx but in MLS it’s more of a focus. This is what I would say on Houston and the MLS overall from what I’ve analyzed.”
Beñat San José Spoke About Opportunities for Youngsters and Praised Rivaldo Lozano
Beñat San José also spoke to the media about his praise for the goal-scorer Rivaldo Lozano who’s a youngster from Atlas’s youth system and in addition to that what he and his staff have tried to do to give more opportunities to the younger players.
“Originally when Lozano scored I felt huge satisfaction for the whole team and a great emotion because we’re the only Liga Mx team who’s won at the moment and hopefully there are many more because we’re a team in Mexico and always wish for the best. Also a joy for the fans and a reward for everything we’ve done in the match. I think we’ve had other opportunities in the match that we could’ve materialized and I think there is also a big joy for who scores, in this case Rivaldo Lozano. He’s a versatile player who we believed in and he is in us and in progress, a youngster who’s been able to score shows how versatile he is. More than that is that we achieved the victory with seven youngsters in the starting eleven which is a huge satisfaction even more because of the level of play and competition because it’s a part of our project in believing in the youngsters.”
Dynamo’s Ben Olsen Spoke to his Team Being the Better Team but Could not Take Their Chances
Olsen also spoke to the media about his thoughts on if there was a bit of a silver lining in the game, knowing the amount of talent that Atlas has.
“Silver linings are tough in this business. If I have some silver linings, they are a good team. They’re tough to break down, but I just don’t think, I’m biased, but I think we’re a better team than them. And I think in the end, tonight they won, so they get to say they’re a better team. But, again, if I know they’re talented, but so are we. And I think if you look at, again, the way we control the game and the opportunities we put ourselves into, just didn’t capitalize on it. So they’re good, again, not taking anything away from them. I think the coach has done a really good job with them. We saw them in the preseason and they’ve changed a little bit and I think they’re more balanced and they’re a hard team to break down. The silver lining would be Ponce pushing minutes, getting to 60-something minutes, and starting to build some relationships with players, you can see that he had some really good moments and he’s hardworking. Then Anali comes in, it was our first look at Anali and I think you can all see that this is a player with a high engine, good speed, and a guy who is pretty comfortable out there offensively. So now we’ve got to just incorporate him in a little bit more. So that would be the silver lining. And it was also 1-0. So now we’re still in it. We didn’t lose the League’s Cup and now we have a go against a very good team in Salt Lake coming in town and we got to take care of business there and then we’ll see where the chips lie.”
Olsen Comments on the Status of Adalberto “Coco” Carrasquilla
Olsen also spoke to the media lastly on the status of “Coco” Carrasquilla right now.
“We’re looking at his quad right now. He stretched it and I think probably, I’m not a doctor, but I think there’s some type of strain in his quad. So we’ll just evaluate him, but I don’t think it’s anything significant that’s going to keep him out over any too-long period, maybe a week or two. So we’ll check it out.”
What’s Next for Atlas and Houston Dynamo?
Atlas will continue League’s Cup group stage play as they face off against Real Salt Lake on Thursday, Aug 1st at 8:00 p.m. central time. While Houston Dynamo will also continue League Cup play also against Real Salt Lake on August 5th at 8:00 p.m. central time.
4 Comments