Houston Halts San Diego's Winning Streak
Dynamo's late surge secures a 4-3 victory, handing SDFC only their second home loss of the season.
San Diego FC's return home after a month-long absence saw them engaged in a back-and-forth battle against the Houston Dynamo. Coming off a win against St. Louis City, Houston aimed to extend their positive momentum, while SDFC sought to continue their impressive four-game winning streak. The match proved to be a significant challenge for San Diego.
The game kicked off with Houston Dynamo employing a high press, keeping the early play on San Diego FC’s side of the pitch. San Diego gradually settled into the match by regaining control and playing the ball out from the back. This approach was perfectly exemplified in the 25th minute. Following a San Diego FC throw-in, the ball was handled by Chris McVey and then Anibal Godoy. Godoy passed to Oscar Verhoeven near the sideline, who then aimed a pass for Onni Valakari. Valakari cleverly dummied the ball, allowing it to reach Anders Dreyer, who then laid it off to Luca Bombino on the far side. Bombino delivered a pass into the penalty box from just outside the area. Valakari headed the ball to Milan Iloski, who then slotted it between the goalkeeper's legs for his tenth goal of the season, making him the first player to reach double-digit goals for SDFC. This goal, which also placed Iloski tenth in the league for goals, perfectly showcased SDFC's patient build-up play, from center back to striker.
However, San Diego's lead was short-lived. Just ten minutes later, in the 36th minute, SDFC committed a costly error. From a corner kick on the far side, a Houston Dynamo defender headed the ball out of the penalty area. Alex Mighten inexplicably attempted to head the ball back into the box but missed entirely. The ball was cleared by Amine Bassi towards San Diego's half, where only one Houston player, Lawrence Ennali, was sprinting forward. With most San Diego players pushed up for the corner, only Luca Bombino was playing back, and he lacked the speed to keep pace with Ennali. Ennali gained control and chipped the ball over a sliding CJ Dos Santos in the penalty area, equalizing for Houston. According to Joseph Lowery, Ennali's speed on this play was recorded at 22.74 mph, the second-fastest in MLS history.
Houston wasn't finished scoring in the half. In stoppage time, Oscar Verhoeven was dispossessed near the sideline on Houston's side of the pitch. Houston quickly moved the ball centrally to Ondřej Lingr, who carried it deep into San Diego's half. Lingr then passed to Bassi on the far side. Bassi exchanged passes with Brooklyn Raines before passing to Ethan Bartlow, who then returned the ball to Bassi. Bassi found Lingr on the far side, who then passed back to Bartlow near midfield. Bartlow spotted Franco Escobar on the near side and passed the ball to him. Despite poor defending from Jeppe Tverskov, Escobar cut back to his right and unleashed a shot that was just out of the reach of a diving CJ Dos Santos, finding the back of the net for his second goal of the season. The half concluded with SDFC trailing 1-2, having 54% possession, 6 total shots (2 on target), while Houston had 5 total shots (3 on target).
San Diego FC came out in the second half determined to equalize. In the 54th minute, Anders Dreyer took a free kick from the near side that went wide right, but Paddy McNair headed it back towards Onni Valakari inside the penalty area. Valakari kicked the ball towards Jeppe Tverskov, who then headed it to Luca Bombino. Bombino hit a downward shot with enough velocity to beat the goalkeeper, scoring his first professional goal. Shortly after the goal, Chucky Lozano came on for Alex Mighten in the 56th minute.
San Diego FC continued to press for the go-ahead goal. In the 67th minute, after a period of contested possession, SDFC regained control deep in Houston's half on the far side. Verhoeven passed to Godoy, who then found Dreyer. Dreyer immediately returned the ball to Godoy, who passed to Verhoeven near the sideline. Verhoeven played it back to Chris McVey, who then passed centrally to Tverskov. Tverskov advanced a few yards before passing to Lozano. Lozano cleverly chipped the ball over the defenders near the penalty box, allowing Tverskov to run onto it and redirect it towards the central area. Dreyer received Tverskov's pass and shot towards goal, with the ball deflecting off Valakari's knee and into the net for his fourth goal of the season. This assist marked Dreyer's 13th of the season, leading MLS.
Houston, though trailing, showed resilience. In the 71st minute, they stretched the field, and Ezequiel Ponce appeared to have equalized, but the goal was disallowed due to Duane Holmes being offside in the build-up. Houston remained undeterred. In the 79th minute, a Houston throw-in on the far side led to a series of passes that eventually brought the ball back to their goalkeeper, Jonathan Bond, allowing them to reset. Bond then launched a pass to Vieira in midfield, who attempted to find Ennali. However, Bombino intercepted the pass and played it back towards goalkeeper CJ Dos Santos. As this happened, Ponce accelerated, chasing the ball. Dos Santos came off his line to challenge Ponce, resulting in a collision where Ponce's hand struck Dos Santos's nose and Dos Santos slid to Ponce’s feet. A foul was called on Dos Santos, and a penalty kick was awarded to Houston. Despite a bloody nose, Dos Santos gave the thumbs up to continue. Ponce stepped up and converted the penalty, sending the ball high and to the central area of the goal, leveling the score at 3-3. This was Ponce's sixth goal for Houston.
With the score tied, the fourth official signaled an astounding 17 minutes of added time. In the 100th minute, Houston gained possession after Chucky Lozano's pass towards Anders Dreyer in the penalty area was cleared. Houston quickly transitioned the ball from their penalty area to the far side. Raines handled the ball in midfield and passed it to Holmes on the near side. Holmes advanced a few steps before passing back to Vieira, who then found Ethan Bartlow. Bartlow, facing minimal pressure, carried the ball through midfield. As he surveyed his options, still unopposed, Bartlow waited for Ponce to get back onside. Once Ponce was in position, Bartlow threaded a pass through two defenders to him. Ponce then struck the ball with his left foot towards the right post, out of Dos Santos's reach, securing the winning goal for Houston. The final score was 4-3 in favor of Houston Dynamo.
This loss marked only San Diego's second at home this season, and their first since April 26th against Real Salt Lake. For the first time this season, SDFC lost a match when they scored first. For Houston, Head Coach Ben Olsen lauded it as their "best performance to date," praising his team's resilience, ability to match their competition, and composed play, especially in the late stages of the match. San Diego FC's next match will be against the Chicago Fire in Chicago. We’ll have a preview on Chromainiacs podcast and on this substack