The Houston Dynamo's Top Five Players Against the Colorado Rapids

The Houston Dynamo let too many chances go to waste in their scoreless preseason draw against the Colorado Rapids, but they were on the front foot for a lot of the game and managed to threaten Colorado's goal multiple times. Here are the top performers from the match, in no particular order:

1. Andrew Wenger

Wenger played a solid 73-minutes, and did most of his damage in the opening half. There wasn't a ton of offensive action in that first half–and when there was it was directed at Tyler Deric's goal–but Wenger was able to stay active down the right side. He attempted a couple crosses and looked threatening most of the game. This is made more impressive by the fact that he had little help from offensively-limited Jalil Anibaba, a center-back who entered for an injured Sheanon Williams in the 16th-minute.

2. Tyler Deric

As mentioned above, there weren't many attacking opportunities in the first half. But when there were chances, Deric did an admirable job of stopping them. He had to be quick off his line in a couple of instances–notably when he denied Dillon Serna early on–and showed his shot-stopping ability when he leaped to save a Dillon Powers rocket. He did this again when he made an acrobatic block on an attempted cross that strayed towards the goal. A well-earned clean sheet for the Houston native.

3. Giles Barnes

Like Wenger, Barnes was one of the lone attacking threats in the first half. He combined well with DaMarcus Beasley down the left flank and sent in a cross or two. In the second half, though, he ended up with possibly the Dynamo's best chance outside of Ricardo Clark's skied penalty. The Jamaican winger smashed a shot off the crossbar in the 55th-minute, a shot that Rapids goalie Zac MacMath likely wouldn't have saved.

4. Mauro Manotas

Although Manotas only played 28 minutes, he made a significant impact off the bench. Not only did he draw the penalty that should have given the Dynamo the lead, he worked hard up top and showed an eye for the goal, consistently threatening Colorado's net.

5. Leonel Miranda

Like Manotas, Miranda came on as a second-half substitute and had an influence on the match. The Argentine, who entered in the 73rd-minute for Wenger, wasn't extremely active in the final third, but exhibited his impressive speed on the ball when carrying deep out of his own half.