Dynamo 2sday: Palomino bags three points

Houston Dynamo 2 got back to their winning ways of early in the season with a 1-0 win Sunday night against Tacoma Defiance.

By Billy_Mears@BeSomeone87 Jun 28, 2022, 10:30am CDT

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Welcome in, welcome back for another exciting edition of this new series, where we talk all things Dynamo 2. We want to extend our gratitude to you, the reader. For allowing us to be one of the leaders of this community when it comes to providing accurate and engaging coverage for this organization and we are humbled to have you aboard. As always, For the people, by the people. Sit back and relax, we’ve got you covered.

Houston Dynamo 2 had an excellent weekend and took all 3 points at home in a thrilling match against a tough, Tacoma Defiance squad. The boys came out flying as the gameplan was to attack early and often to try and grab that early lead. II would be a late, dramatic winner by Marcelo Palomino that gave Dynamo 2 that much needed “get right game”. There has been some bad luck recently and they have been unfortunate in the recent stretch of games. Realistically, they could have come away with 2 wins and a loss, but instead were winless in the previous 3 heading into this one. This was one of those complete team efforts where it took the entire team playing cohesively and keeping the gameplan moving forward.

We saw Dynamo 2 come out in the 4-3-3 that had Kyle Edwards up top. His new presence with the team is a welcome one, as he has shown that he is a force in and around the box. Edwards is a perfect pairing with the ever dangerous, Jacob Evans, and Papa N’Doye (feared by all, caught by none) helping with the attack out wide. These guys are incredible, they create for each other with menacing precision on overlapping runs or through passes getting in behind the defensive back line.

The midfield was Juan Castilla (the hand that guides). Juan is as consistent as they come. He always performs at an elevated level and when corners are earned, his number is called because of his extreme accuracy putting the ball into the box. Castilla has set his teammates up with excellent opportunities inside the box all season long. He displays an excellent blend of offense and defense, with a calm and cool demeanor on the ball while directing the ball through the midfield. That is exactly what you want to see from your young midfielders. The same can be said right along with young phenom Brooklyn Raines, and goal scorer Marcelo Palomino.

This Dynamo 2 team is set up for success and the leadership group, as always, does an amazing job in bringing everyone together as a team. We cannot forget to mention the all-important back line, anchored by team leader and captain, Talen Maples. You cannot say enough good things about what he does for this team. Maples is a leader on and off the field, and a pivotal piece of this lockdown defense. He helps orchestrate the gameplan, makes sure formations are tight, and assignments are being covered. Along with Maples, Micael dos Santos Silva, who recently arrived from Brazil, is acclimating well to the style of play, and getting better every time he steps out on the field. The game is always evolving. Center backs used to just play defense and pass off to the closest teammate, now they are coming up the field to take on opposing defenses and be heavily involved in the distribution of the ball to allow the offense to get set up. I can’t mention the defense without mentioning 18-year-old Reese Miller and Mujeeb Murana, both of whom have been playing some highly effective and efficient defense. Sometimes it is hard to get the recognition when playing in the back out wide and they have done well in covering their defensive assignments, with a nose to get forward and help the attack when needed. Jathan Juarez came on as a sub and played an extremely solid 27-minute shift. His versatility is a huge asset to the team, and the staff are fortunate to have a player who can play so many positions and play them all exceptionally. Jathan holds a very pivotal role within the team, and we look forward to seeing him progress his game.

Dynamo 2 play for themselves, it matters to them, and that shows in the relationship between these players. Coach Kenny Bundy has spoken on the fact that these guys want each other to do well, they lift each other up and they win as a team and lose as a team. They were dissatisfied with previous results, came together, and did what they needed to do to come out and take this tough game at home. Dynamo 2 are now in 4th place with 25 points and within 5 points of the top of the Western Conference standings. The team will be back in action on July 1st against San Jose Earthquakes 2. This will be an away match that starts at 9:30 PM CT. If you would like to see some of my photos from the match on Sunday, they will be posted below. Until next time, stay cool, stay dry, and stay “Forever Orange.”