Houston Dynamo: 3 Takeaways from the victory against NYRBs

Keep Crossing, Keep Attacking with the 4-3-3. The Houston Dynamo’s 14 crosses in their April 1 home win helped them tally double-digit on-target shots.

Here are the three key things the Houston Dynamo take with them from the result over the New York Red Bulls.

1) Keep Crossing, Keep Attacking 

The home scoring began when Alex sent a 14th-minute cross picked up by D Dylan Remick. He headed the ball into the upper-right net for the first goal for the team and first of his career.

Remick’s score also proved the momentum-goal for the rest of the game. The first Dynamo goal this season by someone other than a forward, first scored other than with a right foot, and first following a corner-kick.

At the final whistle of a hard-fought home game for Houston, Dynamo players combined for 10 on-target shots against three, a convincing performance.

2) Keep Clear/Assist the D

The Dynamo not only tripled the Red Bulls in on-target shots. The players nearly doubled their opponents in clearances, 22-12.

The simple explanation would be that Houston’s back four played like eight. But that’s not so. The other players, especially midfielders, ran into the fray on their defensive end to help defenders stay effective throughout the game.

3) Keep Learning/Improve Passing Accuracy

Before the game, Dynamo Head Coach Wilmer Cabrera said he expected the kind of push against the team encountered in their Portland road loss. In that second half, Houston appeared to have run into a wall in the midfield, where passing really counts.

"Cabrera on Red Bulls: “They have a very good, possession-oriented team. They like to apply high-pressure every time.”"

Cabrera has also said Houston has an attacking game rather than possession-oriented. It’s a win where the Dynamo trailed their opponents in passing accuracy 60%-77%.

This difference in passing accuracy results mainly from a 4-3-3 formation heavily weighted toward the offense. Trailing in the passing numbers, the Dynamo still faced a strong opponent and delivered a second-half shutout, increasing their lead.

Their offense-strong 4-3-3 scheme succeeded powerfully against New York’s 4-2-2-2.

If the players will keep learning and increase their passing accuracy, this should make them more formidable on the road this season and help carry them deeply into the post-season.

Next: MLS Expansion: St. Louis - Don Garber, a Rally and the NWSL

Celebrating the first hat trick of his career in the post-game press conference, Erick Torres pledged that the team indeed would keep learning and improving.

"Torres: “We will continue working!”"