Dynamo 2018 Preseason

I was able to watch most of the game.

1st half Portland 1st team was playing 2/3 of our bench. It showed.

Fuenmayor no bueno esta dia. We shall see. Ward as well. both were a step slow got physically pushed around and coughed up the ball that directly led to shots on our goal.

the young goalie was very busy snd stopped quite a few shots. keep an eye on him.

Memo snd Alvarez look better than #10 Martinez, who lost the ball alot.

Portland was the moredangerous team and had a better defense.

preseason, so we need to see more games

 

Fyi the youtube link for Hou-Portland remains good, ie, if you want to watch the game it's saved



I've been watching the Olympics but I'll get around to it soon enough out of curiosity.

Based on the lineups and subs, second half was the starters, give or take Quioto:

Seitz
Garcia Machado Senderos Beasley
Alexander Cabezas Garcia
Elis Manotas Wenger

subs first half:
Nelson
Malki Fuenmayor Leonardo Remick
Ward Ceren Martinez
Alvarez Steeves Memo

Some would question whether certain first half players really are subs, and anything is possible, but be honest with yourself about what the level of quality looks like on the bulk of that unit, and what it might suggest about more "name" of players run out with that unit.

I assume Willis sits because he's been wheeling and dealing, but it is interesting it's Nelson and not McLain. To me on the highlights McLain looked like a much better keeper, and Nelson more like someone you ship down to RGV and see what happens. Perhaps that's a $ decision.

My thoughts on Beasley/Remick are already out there but for a team that was already giving up goals I really don't like Garcia wide.

Does this mean Martinez is annoying Cabrera, or did he just not start all the starters for some reason.

Steeves continues to be the designated lunk off the bench, which I think guarantees him on the roster.

Interestingly looks like we will continue with a scrappy midfield, Ward and Ceren off the bench, and the more technical Alvarez and Memo may be used as forward subs along with Boniek. Or at least we're playing with that scenario.

 

Watched the first half of the HOU-POR game, will watch starters another game. Alvarez was the offense and Nelson had to make a lot of saves. The second team defense looked poor.

Fuenmayor didn't seem particularly responsible for the problems, I'd blame the rest. He looked aggressive but didn't stick out to me. Leonardo was getting beat and I might take the first/second division as quality-based between him and Machado/Senderos.

 

I watched the whole game of the NYRB Houston preseason game

Our first and second team vs the NYRB II USL club.

We looked pretty good albeit shaky at times on defense in the middle. Willis had a few good saves to settle things down back there. However, it was against a USL side since the NYRB first team is in training for a Confederation club cup or something.

Bird with two assists and Steeves with two goals at the end. Granted, the other team was a little tired at that point and had a lot of subs in.

Still no appearance by Quioto.

This game or the Portland game wasn't our starters vs their starters, so no real head to head test in preseason as of yet.

 

If Steeves can get in position and finish like he has been against actual MLS starters, WC will have another good option for Striker.

 

What is up with Quito? They said he had the flu at one point.

 

My concern on him is knee health, and that's just going to be a running worry, but he looks good when he gets on the ball, has made finishes similar to his college highlights.

He is such a unique body type to the team -- an actual 9 in build -- that he will see playing time. They needed three things in the attack: a 9, and Steeves will get plenty of run out as that option, someone to create late a la Sanchez, and I think they think that's Alvarez, and a speed sub, which didn't get done.

The first two picks seem decent. The later round players seem long since ticketed to RGV if anything.

 

I watched the first half of NYRB, last time I watched the bench start, this time I wanted to see the XI.

My two cents, the offense is weakened but the bench will be better. In terms of starters, we are dangerous if we can get the ball to Elis wide in dangerous spots when the other team isn't sitting back. I don't know if the team is as good at getting the ball outletted early.

However, offsetting that, I think we have a wider variety of bench options in creative spots, Memo, Alvarez, Wenger, Steeves. I think Steeves' height plus Elis and Remick gives you some people who could make Memo useful late.

I'm a little concerned about wide defending.

I see a marginal 4-6 seed with an improved bench and will be interested what gets done with Torres Cash in the summer. But I thought on paper we should have run NYRB B off the field, and didn't, so I think we're back roughly where we were last spring, but with the surprise card already played.

 

He allegedly had the flu while the team went off to RGV for their initial road trip. He also was sick last year at some point causing him to miss a game when there is some indication he may have been on a Galveston party cruise instead.

 

After Deric getting canned, going off on a frolic of his own is not a smart move. Based on dropping down to 1 playoff start and 140 minutes, and what happened to Torres whose role similarly shrunk, I kind of thought Quioto, Manotas, and Martinez had an important first half of the season in front of them. I think we need a 10, but if we instead want to shop forwards, that surely comes at someone's expense. Since the premise of this offseason is continuity giving up that advantage would be unwise.

This team is set up to make it to the summer, center backs aplenty for Machado, no real 10 in the midfield, bunch of forward options. I see change in the summer, if he doesn't get off his tail he gets traded or something.

 

We have Martinez this season at 10. I saw some glimpses of good football from him, but now that he has had time to adapt to the manager and learn his team, the pressure will be on him to earn that shirt.

 

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/sp...-lean-on-Tomas-Martinez-as-their-12529085.php

"The Dynamo do not expect Martinez to play at the level of those greats, but they do expect him to produce at a high level.

"He has to take that role because that's one of the reasons we brought him," Cabrera said. "We expect that he feels more comfortable every day. He is young, only 22 years old. We want for him to know that his role is respected, but also to let him know about the responsibility he has.""

""He came in and impacted the team positively," Cabrera said. "He came in moving well, working hard, assisting and scoring goals. In the end, that's what we want. It's a new year with new challenges, so he needs to continue maturing and continue adapting to the league and the team.""

I think he has until the summer to impress and earn the spot. At which point we have Torres Cash to spend. I think they would rather spend it elsewhere but I think if he struggles he will be replaced.

I actually think he's a decent worker bee but he's making producer money and they want him to playmake.

 

Is Wharton any good? Any of the other noobs (Fuenmayor, Donovan, Bilyeu, Ward, Aguilar, Bird, Palomino) impress? I realize it was a USL team and we obviously rested people and kept minutes down for some, but my theory is if you can't make someone look in this kind of game chances are you're not a MLS gamechanger or even role player just the same.

 

I watched most of the game and the Dynamo controlled most of the possession but had fewer clear cut chances.
Ward with the red so Wharton from RGV played and provided an assist.
Byrd Memo Alvarez Martinez all looked lively and moved the ball around quickly and were pests to provide good pressure on the USL side. Resulted in lots of turnover and counters.
Fuenmayor looked better. Byrd looked vastly improved - liked his performance. Bilyeu only made a few mistakes very late but looked better than Malki.
Alvarez’s left foot cut back causes defenders problems - 2nd goal like that.

 

appearance by Quioto - not beating ppl on speed was surprising. He had some attitude problems.

Goalies looking adequate.
Seitz saved a penalty and a rebound from jason johnson i think.

I did not see the last 25 of the first half so I didn’t see that much of Steeves performance.

 

they actually put in the kid from UCLA, Palamino and Cabrera in late.

Cabrera had a breakaway one v one with the keeper in the waning minutes with plenty of time and keeper stoned him.

typical youngster tryout