HOUSTON — Three draws from their last three MLS games. The Houston Dynamo might be making improvements, but still are not exactly where they want to be just yet.
The Dynamo settled for a scoreless draw with D.C. United at home on Saturday night, and the result at BBVA Compass Stadium left interim Houston head coach Wade Barrett displeased despite his team's solid defensive showing.
“We all feel a little bit disappointed not to come away with three points tonight,” said Barrett.
Houston had a total of 17 shots on the night, but only four were on target. The hosts also had the better of the possession, but still couldn’t break through the D.C. defense. When the Dynamo did get through, United goalkeeper Bill Hamid stood tall, including on two plays in injury time.
While the attack could have been better, Barrett has seen improvements in the Dynamo, especially in terms of hard work, discipline, and the drive towards a common goal.
“The guys have done an excellent job in a short amount of time of wrapping their head around those three things,” said Barrett. “If we work on those things every single day and we have that be our main focus, I truly believe between now and the end of the season that the results will be there.”
This current group of Houston players has taken strides defensively. While former head coach Owen Coyle’s team gave up soft goals, Barrett’s version of the Dynamo has been committed to putting in the work on the defensive end.
Collen Warner — who has started the last three games after only making two appearances under Coyle — said that Barrett has stressed defense in his short time at charge.
“We know that if we’re able to keep clean sheets or keep teams off the scoreboard that we’ll have chances at scoring,” said Warner. “It was clear tonight that there were opportunities for us to score.”
In search of more scoring chances and goals, Barrett also mentioned that the Dynamo might try a new formation or “make little tweaks here or there to just try and get the most that we can while still being difficult to play against.”
