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Houston Dynamo Game Notes: Dynamo Vs. New York Red Bulls - Saturday,

March 30, 2017 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Houston Dynamo FC News Release


HOUSTON- The Houston Dynamo return home on Saturday night to play host to the New York Red Bulls at 7:30 p.m. CDT. After opening the season with consecutive wins at home, the Dynamo went on the road and dropped a hard-fought match at Portland on March 18.

Five Dynamo players will rejoin the club after representing their countries in FIFA World Cup Qualifying over the last week. Defenders DaMarcus Beasley (United States) and Adolfo Machado (Panama), along with forwards Alberth Elis and Romell Quioto (Honduras) and midfielder Boniek García, will return to Houston for training on Thursday and Friday ahead of Saturday night's game.

The fitness levels of those five players, particularly Quioto, could impact head coach Wilmer Cabrera's team selection on Saturday. Quioto went down clutching his left shoulder just before halftime of Honduras' 6-0 loss to the United States on Friday, March 24, and left the game immediately. Reports out of Honduras regarding Quioto's status have varied, and no official announcement has been made by either the Honduran federation or the Dynamo as of Tuesday afternoon.

Regardless of whether Quioto is available, the Dynamo will still feature a potent scoring attack with Elis, forward Erick Torres, midfielder Alex, and the potential addition of forward Mauro Manotas, last year's joint top scorer with six goals in just 10 starts.

The Dynamo face a Red Bulls team that has been one of the strongest sides in MLS under head coach Jesse Marsch. New York has topped the Eastern Conference in both of Marsch's seasons in charge, and are once again atop the conference after four weeks this season. The Red Bulls attack is keyed by US Men's National Team midfielder Sacha Kljestan, who led MLS with 20 assists a year ago, and English forward Bradley Wright-Phillips. Wright-Phillips tied the MLS single-season record with 27 goals in 2014 and led the league once again last season with 24 scoring strikes.

The two sides met around this time last season, with the Dynamo traveling to Red Bull Arena in Week 3 for their first road test of the year. Coming off of two strong home performances, the Dynamo fell to New York in a 4-3 thriller thanks to a pair of brilliant late goals from Brazilian midfielder Felipe. Houston enters this year's matchup with New York in much the same position and will be aiming to make this year a different story.


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