Following a 5-1 loss to Chicago last Sunday, the New York Red Bulls head to Houston to face-off against the Dynamo. After having their five game unbeaten streak snapped in embarrassing fashion, New York will be looking to take advantage of a significantly weakened Houston side that will be missing numerous significant players. Star midfielder Dewayne DeRosario and goalkeeper Pat Onstad will be away on international duty with Canada as they play Brazil, and defender Eddie Robinson faces a one game suspension after picking up two yellow cards in Houston’s 2-2 draw with FC Dallas on Wednesday. The Dynamo, sitting on eleven points after ten matches, lie in fifth place in the Western conference, although they are only three points behind first place Los Angeles.
There is no doubt that New York will be looking to improve defensively after surrendering five goals to Chicago, and will certainly be aided by the return of midfielder Seth Stammler from injury. Stammler’s tenacious tackling and ball-winning prowess was certainly missed last Sunday. Talking about Chicago midfielder Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Claudio Reyna said, “Without blaming anyone, every time I turned around I couldn’t believe how much time he had. Juan (Pablo Angel) and I sat at halftime and said we never have time like that. He just seemed to be running into spaces and didn’t really know why he was so open at time. Pace isn’t his thing and he was getting wide open on the ball.” Stammler is excellent at closing out passing lanes and establishing control of the midfield, while also providing support to the backline.
Two notable absences will be Claudio Reyna, who will not make the trip west due to a hamstring injury, and midfielder Dave Van den Bergh. Van den Bergh will miss his second consecutive game, as his wife is scheduled to give birth to the couple’s second child in the coming days.
Another intriguing combination to keep an eye on is the Red Bull’s strike force, which has struggled to establish itself this season. The duo of Juan Pablo Angel and Jozy Altidore was predicted to be one of the most prolific goal-scoring pairs in recent MLS history, but early injuries have plugged up the expected deluge of goals. Juan Pablo Angel has suffered from an underwhelming offensive supporting cast, as well as opponents becoming more familiar with him and marking him tightly with double teams. Red Bulls officials have also started to become concerned with the attitude of Jozy Altidore, who seems to be a bit distracted by all of the attention he is receiving from high profile international clubs. The team has also been suffering from an effective third option up top, but will be reinforced by the return of Columbian striker Oscar Echeverry. Considering the talent of this group, it is not a question of if the goals will begin to flow, but when.
