FC Dallas v Houston Dynamo – MLS Betting Preview + Prediction
03 Jun 2016, Stadion Toyota, 01:00 GMT +0
Dallas come into the game on a good run of form with ten points from their last possible twelve. They’ve turned their fortunes around after losing three in a row and found the net again with 8 goals in their last 4 games, leaving them sitting in 2nd place overall. The side are also unbeaten at home, winning five and drawing two.
They have to face with two injury problems. Alex Zendejas and Michael Barrios will both be unavailable through injury. They’ll also be missing Atiba Harris and Tesho Akindele who are on international duty. The side should see a couple of changes, but Chris Seitz should remain in goal. Maynor Figueroa should come straight back into the side with Harris unavailable whilst the rest of the defence should remain the same with Ryan Hollingshead on the right hand side. Matt Hedges and Walker Zimmerman playing centrally. The central midfield will probably remain intact with Victor Ulloa and Kellyn Acosta play as a withdrawn two. Mauro Rosales should come in for Barrios, whilst Diaz and Castillo will play advanced roles behind Maxi Urruti.
The back four of Dallas operate differently on each side of the pitch with Hollingshead being a lot more attacking than Figueroa on the other side. This means the left back will tuck in when the side are attacking to make a back three allowing, Hollingshead to move forward. The attacking trio behind Urruti are given a fair amount of freedom in terms of position and time on the ball with both Rosales and Castillo being among the goals this season. This is helped by the central partnership of Acosta and Ulloa who play deeper and sit back.
Houston come into the game with Dallas after picking up their first away point of the season in their 1-1 draw with Vancouver at the weekend. The form of the side has picked up somewhat with 2 wins and a draw in their last 5 games. This follows a run of 1 point in only 6 games as the squad try and make up ground on the sides around them.
They have no injury worries ahead of the game and Giles Barnes will be available for selection after returning from international duty. The only player who won’t be available for selection is Alex, who is suspended following his red card at the weekend. That is expected to be the only change in the side with Giles Barnes coming in to replace Alex and the side moving to a 4-3-3 formation. Tyler Deric should remain in goal whilst Sheanon Williams playing on the right hand side. DaMarcus Beasley operates on the left whilst David Horst and Raul Rodriguez playing in the centre. In midfield Collen Warner, Boniek Garcia and Ricardo Clark should make up a central three with Andrew Wenger on the right and Giles Barnes on the left. Will Bruin should keep his place up front as a lone striker.
The back four are fairly solid and don’t like to leave positions much with the full backs keeping shape and letting the wide players play higher up the pitch. Warner and Clark have been offering more protection, focussing on their defensive duties more often. The attacking options for the side are varied with Wenger sticking to his wing whilst Barnes likes to cut inside and try and influence play through the middle. The attacking trio, including Bruin, look to be finding their form after a tricky period to start the season.They will come into the game with a bit more confidence than in recent weeks after picking up their first away point of the season against Vancouver at the weekend. The side have 7 points from their last 5 games but the side still remain in 19th place.
Anyway, Dallas will have a lot of confidence coming into the game after extending their run of unbeaten games to four. The side have looked in really good form in recent weeks, picking up 10 points from a possible 12 and scoring an average of 2 goals a game. The side will also have the motivation of knowing that a win here could take them top of the overall table. The side are in great form and with Colorado not having a game before the mid-season break the team could go into the second half of the season top by two points.
Prediction: Dallas -0.75
Odds: 1.90 Dafabet
