Breakfast Links - June 6, 2022

It has been rough with no Dynamo this weekend, but we were able to see the Dash get a historic 5-0 win. With momentum, we roll into this week with a full head of steam. You could be reading anywhere this morning during your Monday morning (insert routine), but you are here with us, and we appreciate you for it.

Houston

The Houston Dynamo are currently enjoying a much-needed break from their loaded schedule, having played 7 games since May 7th. They will be back at it on Saturday June 18th for an away match against Orlando City.

The Houston Dash destroyed the Orlando Pride in a historic 5-0 thumping at PNC stadium on Friday night. Rachel Daly was honored pre-game for her 100th NWSL match in her career. Only one other time in the history of the team, have the Dash put up 5 or more goals in a match. Nichelle Prince became the first Dash player to ever score a hat-trick (with 27th minute, 39th minute, and 49th minute goals) in a wondrous performance. The match also saw goals from Rachel Daly (32nd minute), from a header in the box that required an extreme amount of skill to pull off. Maria Sanchez crossed from near mid-field and put her pass directly on to Daly’s head.

Just when you thought the Dash would take their foot off the gas pedal, they would blast through in transition with extreme speed and accuracy. Having only played 7 minutes this season, Michelle Alozie, scored a goal in the 87th minute to cap off the monumental evening at PNC stadium.

Houston Dynamo 2 lost 2-0, as they battled it out with St. Louis City 2 on Saturday night. This was the most difficult test of the season so far for Coach Bundy and the rest of the team. The match saw goals from Victor Diaz (28th minute) and Celio Pompeu (55th minute). Dynamo 2 would have their chances in this one but were unable to get past the St. Louis keeper, who made 4 crucial saves on the evening. Xavier Valdez made 5 really class saves for Dynamo 2, keeping them in this match and preventing things from ever getting out of reach. Papa N’Doye leads the league in shot attempts and was able to get off 2 in this one adding to his lead in that department. Dynamo 2 defender, Reece Miller, made his first start of the season and defender Bryce Barnum made his MLS NEXT Pro debut in the 84th minute. Talen Maples almost pulled one back in the waning minutes of the match when he found himself on the end of a free kick into the box the St Louis keeper was having none of it and made a diving save to put an end to the hopes of any late game heroics.

Dynamo 2 struggled to find much rhythm on the evening, trying to control the game out of the back with slow build up play. St. Louis did not give Dynamo 2 much space on the ball all game and pressed exceptionally well, often winning back possession in the midfield and getting forward quickly to created chances. Talen Maples is the engine that makes this Dynamo 2 squad hum. He does a fantastic job getting the gameplan from the staff and relaying the messages to the rest of the lineup. Dynamo 2 will be back in action next Saturday at 7PM for a home game against Sporting Kansas City 2.

Major League Soccer

Vancouver Whitecaps beat Real Salt Lake 2-1 in the only matchup in MLS this weekend. Vancouver stole it with a dramatic penalty drawn by Luis Martins and then buried by Ryan Gauld in the 90+3. Aaron Herrera received a red for his 2nd yellow card of the match in the 90+1, opening the door for Vancouver to make that final push to take all 3 points.

Around The World

Photo by Huw Fairclough/Getty Images

It has been decided, the United States World Cup opening match will be against Wales on November 21, 2022. Wales were able to secure their World Cup ticket by beating Ukraine in an emotional playoff matchup. The winner moving on to represent their country on the grand scale, and the loser having to endure that all too familiar grueling wait for the next cycle of the tournament to come back around in what feels life a lifetime. Ukraine left it all on the field but were unable to overcome the 34th minute own goal. West Ham attacker Andriy Yarmolenko tried to clear a Gareth Bale free kick into the box via header but the speed and weather (rain) caused him to inadvertently put it directly on frame on his own goal. Keeper George Buschan never stood a chance to react with the deflection happening too close to the 6 yd box. Wales keeper, Wayne Hennessey, was the man of the match registering an impressive 8.8 player rating on Fotmob, making 9 saves (6 diving saves, 4 from inside the box).

Wales will join the USA, Iran, and England in group B of the World Cup. England lost to Hungary 1-0 in the UEFA Nations League A, courtesy of a 66th minute penalty scored by Dominik Szoboszlai. England had their chances with 12 total shots, 11 from inside the box with only 4 on target. Hungary have not defeated England in over 60 years and the loss comes as a major disappointment for England players and fans, especially with the World Cup on the horizon.

I know it’s just a friendly, but it is worth mentioning that Argentina eviscerated Estonia 5-0 on Sunday afternoon. The bigger headline was that the legendary Lionel Messi scored all 5 goals (8th minute penalty, 45th minute, 47th minute, 71st minute, 76th minute) making him the 4th all time leading scorer in international matches with 86 goals in 162 matches.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored a brace (35th minute, 39th minute) for Portugal on Sunday when they blasted Switzerland 4-0 in the UEFA Nations League A. Cristiano Ronaldo, much like Lionel Messi, refuses to let father time defeat him any time soon. With these 2 goals, Ronaldo added to his already impressive lead sitting atop the list of most goals scored in international play with 117.