Houston Dynamo: Youth movement has worked before for Matt Jordan

General Manager Matt Jordan wants the Houston Dynamo to get younger. It is a policy that he has had incredible success with before during his time in Texas.

Earlier this week, Houston sports radio host Glenn Davis revealed that Houston Dynamo Senior Vice President/General Manager Matt Jordan wanted the team to get “younger.”

It should come as no surprise that Jordan is looking to implement such a strategy, considering that the Dynamo attack benefited greatly from such a policy.

Mauro Manotas, 23, Houston’s top goalscorer from last season, joined the Dynamo in 2015 as a fresh-faced 19-year-old, and Alberth Elis, 22, who completed a permanent move last offseason, has become one of Major League Soccer’s most dynamic weapons.

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Romell Quioto, Tomás Martínez, Ronaldo Peña and Memo Rodriguez make up the rest of the lively group, and it is not an exaggeration to say that they are one of the best groups in the league. Jordan was instrumental in assembling this electric group.

Nonetheless, the Dynamo did not have any problems scoring goals last season. Their problems lay at the other end of the pitch. Injuries, tactics, inconsistent lineups, and the absence of 2017 MVP Juan David Cabezas can be attributed as the principal reasons behind the Dynamo’s defensive woes.

Houston conceded 58 goals last season. That is more than every team that finished above the playoff line other than Real Salt Lake, who ended the year in sixth position in the Western Conference and also conceded 58 goals. If the Dynamo have hopes of reaching the postseason, which they should, it is clear what part of the team needs addressing this offseason.

And it would seem that Jordan is looking to tackle the issue directly, and by doing exactly what he did with his attack. The club declined contract options on Adolfo Machado, 33, and Leonardo, 30, and Philippe Senderos’ contract expired following the conclusion of the 2018 season. Moreover, the Dynamo have already made moves that give validity to Jordan’s statement.

17-year-old center-back Erik McCue was signed to a Homegrown contract,  while Matías Vera, 23, was acquired to solidify the depth and spine of the team. And there are undoubtedly other moves still in the works to help sure up the defence and reset the average age of the unit. Like with the strikeforce, Jordan wants to fix a weakness by going young.

This youth movement policy has worked for the Dynamo before. The forward additions helped give the Dynamo an attacking identity and refresh the team in the final third.

And so, it makes sense for Jordan to take a similar path to fix his next problem, the defence. He will be hoping that his 2019 offseason additions help fortify the Dynamo’s porous defense and propel them to a return to relevance within MLS.