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Recap: Dynamo salvage point with late goal in Chicago

The Houston Dynamo rallied late and stole a road point against the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park. Though they struggled to possess and create opportunities on goal, a late push found them equal at the final whistle.

Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Spor

The Dynamo battled back from a 1 goal deficit caused by a Bobby Boswell own goal and earned a valuable road point that keeps the Dynamo in the middle of the playoff race. In a game where very few things seemed to go the Dynamo's way, Adam Moffat blasted a goal after a cheeky back heel pass from Corey Ashe in the dying minutes of the game to pull the visitors level. Tally Hall's efforts cannot be understated as the Dynamo goaltender made save after save to keep the team's chances alive.

The Dynamo looked strong early, with the best chance of the game before the goal coming from Will Bruin in just the 4th minute, a chance which was saved by the foot of Fire keeper Sean Johnson. Not many things went well for the Dynamo after that, as they struggled to maintain possession and failed to gain any form of offensive rhythm.

The Dynamo brought out a very physical back line with Bobby Boswell and Eric Brunner starting at center back and Jermaine Taylor playing at left back, but the lack of speed was exploited time and time again. Things became even worse for the Dynamo as Eric Brunner was forced to leave after a nasty challenge by Chris Rolfe in the 40th minute which allowed Ashe to enter the game - a switch that sacrificed physicality for speed that helped slow some of the chances created by the Fire.

After halftime the Dynamo continued their lackluster play, but Cam Weaver's insertion into the game for a struggling Warren Creavalle helped push the possession stat back into the Dynamo's favor. Chances were still slim and Chicago was content on limiting its offense to counter attacks, but the Dynamo began to make some of their own.

The biggest turning point of the game was when Andrew Driver came on for the largely invisible Giles Barnes (who did look better after being pushed back into his natural center midfield role). Driver brought an energy that helped start the Dynamo's offensive rhythm into a very strong late push for an equalizer.

While fans can appreciate the goal, the lack of form by the defense, the poor passing in the final third, and poor marking in the center of the field are areas the Dynamo need to address. These aren't typical areas of concern for the Dynamo, but lately they've been a problem.

The Dynamo are now tied with the New England Revolution with 37 points sitting just outside the final playoff spot based on the goals scored tiebreaker. They'll have their first chance to move ahead into a playoff position against the Columbus Crew in a very crucial midweek game this Wednesday, September 4th.