HOUSTON (Feb. 24, 2024) – Houston Dynamo FC earned a 1-1 draw versus Sporting Kanas City to open the regular season at Shell Energy Stadium tonight.
Kansas City took the lead in the 61st minute after Erik Thommy dribbled to the top of the box and found the bottom corner of the far post.
Houston equalized in the 69th minute after Aliyu Ibrahim headed the ball across the face of goal to an unmarked Gabe Segal, who finished the play by heading the ball toward the opposite side of the goal. Segal had just entered the match and became the 14th player in Dynamo history to score in his first MLS match with the team and the first since defender Tate Schmitt at FC Cincinnati in last season’s opener.
Dynamo goalkeeper Steve Clark was called into action in the 22nd minute when he dove toward the back post to control a cross from Daniel Salloi. Clark made his only save of the night minutes later when he denied a long-range shot from Salloi at the near post.
Midfielder Sebastian Kowalczyk recorded Houston’s first shot on goal in the 40th minute after Ibrahim fed a ball to the Polish player running into the penalty box. Kowalczyk created his own space for a shot, but it was deflected behind goal.
Houston thought they had opened scoring in the 42nd minute when defender Brad Smith found the bottom far corner of the net with a headed ball thanks to a long delivery from midfielder Adalberto “Coco” Carrasquilla. However, the goal was reviewed by the video assistant referee Ian Anderson and ruled offside.
Ján Greguš and Segal entered the match in the 67th minute to make their Dynamo MLS debuts, replacing defender Brad Smith and midfielder Brooklyn Raines.
Carrasquilla forced a save at the near post in the 70th minute following a rebound that fell to the Panamanian at a tight angle.
Houston almost scored a second goal in the 78th minute after Carrasquilla delivered a corner to the head of defender Erik Sviatchenko, forcing a scrambling save from Sporting goalkeeper Tim Melia. Schmitt almost tapped in the rebound, but his attempt was blocked.
Kowalczyk managed another shot on goal in the 86th minute, taking his chances from distance, but Melia managed to coral the shot.
The Dynamo host St. Louis CITY SC on Tuesday, Feb. 27 in the second leg of the Round One matchup of the Concacaf Champions Cup, with kickoff scheduled for 9:30 p.m. CT.
