Pick the Houston Dynamo Lineup against the Seattle Sounders

The Houston Dynamo made strides last week as they were able to claim their first 3 points away from BBVA Compass Stadium by beating the San Jose Earthquakes 2-1. This week they’ll hope to begin their first winning streak as the Seattle Sounders come to town before we face FC Dallas this weekend. The Sounders are in a lot of ways similar to the Dynamo this season. Both have jostled for positioning at the bottom of the Western Conference and both sides currently have interim managers leading their squads. This match is very important to both teams for a variety of reasons. For the Sounders, they’ll have an opportunity to gain ground against the Portland Timbers for a playoff position and for the Dynamo they’ll be able to take 3 points against an opponent directly in front of them keeping the season alive.

Health is also once again on the side of the Dynamo as only left back DaMarcus Beasley and goalkeeper Tyler Deric will be forced to sit out. Fortunately the Dynamo have options and have proven deep in their defense regardless of who is out. At goalkeeper Joe Willis has performed well while Deric has been sidelined and he even earned a Team of the Week nod along with center back David Horst. At left back the natural choice would be to play Abdoulie Mansally, a player similar to Beasley, or to play the versatile Jalil Anibaba.

One thing we could guess given our two games in one week dilemma is that the lineups could feature some youngsters in some capacity along with a variety of other players. Erick Torres has returned and could see time in the starting lineup. Whether Wade Barrett elects to play a formation with a single striker or a duo isn’t certain. While I personally would elect for a two striker system, with Barrett collecting his first win on the road using a 4-2-3-1, he may decide to not change things up too drastically.

The Houston Dynamo are currently one of four teams without a road win (amazingly the Portland Timbers haven’t won on the road and are in a playoff position). The Dynamo will go back to the Bay Area to take on their former manager Dominic Kinnear and his San Jose Earthquakes this Friday. While the Dynamo certainly haven’t played well this season, they’ve remained competitive – and by that I mean they’ve drawn a lot of games and only lost by margins greater than 1 goal twice. Those two games stand out as the worst games of the year: once was at home to the LA Galaxy and the other was on the road at San Jose. The Dynamo have a chance at redemption now in San Jose, though every game feels like a redemption game at the bottom of a conference.

My Preferred Starting Lineup

While I realize my starting XI may be a pipedream, it is still grounded in the defensive minded framework that is in line with Barrett’s “let’s be tough to play against” mentality. The midfield is comprised of our best defensive midfielders who, nearly all of them, are capable of getting forward when needed. Up top I think Will Bruin’s strength will match up well against physical center backs like Chad Marshall while Mauro Manotas can run off Bruin and his speed will give opponents fits.

My Projected Starting Lineup

However, why mess with what was working last game? Saturday could be the time for adjustments rather than against the Sounders. This is at least what I predict we’ll see, although Cubo Torres or Bruin could be the lone striker.

There are plenty of options to choose from so who do you want to see start against the Seattle Sounders? Let us know below and share your starting squad in the comments below!

There are plenty of options to choose from so who do you want to see start against Dom Kinnear and the ‘Quakes? Let us know below and share your starting side in the comments below!