Player Ratings: Houston Dynamo vs. the Chicago Fire

The Houston Dynamo have been up and down in form, but were finally able to capture their elusive first road win in their 3-2 win over the Chicago Fire. The Dynamo came out with energy early, but after going up a goal they fell asleep at the back and let the home team have a 1-2 lead early in the first half. The Dynamo kept pressing and they were able to get an equalizer and finally a game winner in the second half. It was a dominant display overall, but those defensive errors that led to goals do stand out.

The Top Performers:

Alberth Elis, Man of the Match, (8.8) – Alberth Elis has been a little on the quiet side since Romell Quioto rejoined the lineup. I don’t think he’s played poorly by any means Quioto has just been playing very well and has been a part of most goals the Dynamo score. Against the Fire, the Dynamo seemed to go to Quioto a little more, but the second half Elis came alive and converted a penalty and got the game winner. His 1v1 finishing still needs a bit of work, but if we keep giving him chances he’ll get some of them.

Romell Quioto (8.7) – Quioto got things going early with a goal in just the 4^th minute. He continues to show how dangerous this team can be from either wing. His speed, vision, and finishing have helped make Houston the dangerous counter attacking team that it is and his goal highlights that. It is quite the luxury of having both Elis and Quioto on the pitch together.

Tomás Martínez (7.7) – One player who has needed to continue to show growth has been Tomás Martínez. Martínez hasn’t played badly, but he was supposed to be the player that can help us break other teams down in different ways other than just killing them with our speed on the wings. His progress has been mixed, but he’s shown quality as a deep lying playmaker at times when we start the counter and he’s threaded some very difficult passes to teammates. His pass to Quioto for the opening goal was a thing of beauty.

Head Coach Wilmer Cabrera (6.9) – Like the team that he coaches, Wilmer has seen highs and lows this season. At times, fans scratch their heads with some of the substitutions that he makes and letting teams come back after we take a lead is almost a style of play for Houston. That being said, I think he managed this one pretty well. I don’t think you can blame him for the team falling asleep for two minutes and letting the Fire back in. He did finally change up his 4-3-3 to a 5-2-2-1 late in the game to help preserve the win and that’s definitely a step in the right direction.

The Rest of the Starters:

GK: Joe Willis (6.9)

DEF: DaMarcus Beasley (7)

DEF: Alejandro Fuenmayor (5.8)

DEF: Adolfo Machado (5.7)

DEF: Andrew Wenger (6.5)

MID: Oscar Boniek García (7.6)

MID: Eric Alexander (6.6)

FW: Mauro Manotas (7.1)

The Subs:

DEF: Leonardo (6.1)

MID: Luis Gil (5.8)

FW: Arturo Álvarez (5.7)