The MLS season isn’t even three months old, and it’s already been an up-and-down ride for the Houston Dynamo.
After a red-hot, undefeated April, the Dynamo followed that up by finishing winless over six games in May. But while no Houston player or coach will tell you he is happy with the month the Dynamo had — because they are most definitely not — the sky is certainly not falling in Houston.
May brought a step up in competition, after all, and Houston grinded out three points from its last four games against playoff-caliber teams Real Salt Lake, New York, the LA Galaxy, and FC Dallas. After getting a well-earned three points from that stretch after tough losses to Colorado and Toronto FC to start the month, players can look at the way they played in May and take some positives to build on going forward.
“We tied some in May, and those are games we would’ve lost in the past,” midfielder Geoff Cameron said. “But we’re looking forward and working to make progress.”
The Dynamo’s biggest problem during a frustrating month? Closing out games. Houston was a play or sequence away from putting teams away in recent weeks, and the Dynamo failed to take advantage of those opportunities. And that cost the team points and position in the standings.
“We’re moving the ball well, but getting the win and getting over the hump can be the hardest thing to do,” head coach Dominic Kinnear said.
Getting back on the winning track is the immediate goal for Houston, despite what the calendar now reads. If Dynamo fortunes are turned around in June as the calendar flips, then so be it. They return to action on the road against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday.
“We don’t look at things by months or quarters,” defender Bobby Boswell said. “We look at things week to week, and we want to win every time out. I think if we can get a win and start off June right, that will be good.”
Darrell Lovell covers the Houston Dynamo for MLSsoccer.com. Follow him on twitter at @Dynamoexaminer.
