Three key stats from the Houston Dynamo’s 2-1 win over the San Jose Earthquakes.
It was an opening night victory for the Houston Dynamo at BBVA Stadium as they defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 2-1. Goals from Memo Rodriguez and Maxi Urruti led the home side to all three points. The Earthquakes received a top-class goal from Paul Marie but they fell short in their comeback attempt. Here are three key stats from Friday night’s match between the two Western Conference clubs.
Three new signings help lead the way for the Dynamo
The Dynamo’s new signings were instrumental in the 2-1 victory. Urruti scored his first goal for his new club while Joe Corona and Tyler Pasher contributed assists. WhoScored gave these three players the highest player ratings out of all the players involved in the match.
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With three of their offseason signings involved in the goal scoring, it’s a great sign for the Dynamo moving forward this season. They had an instant impact and were generating opportunities at a high rate. Their new attacking players are certainly capable of repeat performances and there should be more victories to come from the Dynamo in the weeks to come.
Earthquakes struggle to generate shots from open play
Only three of the Earthquake’s eight shots came from open play which was far below the Dynamo who had 12 of their 17 total shots come from open play. Although the Earthquake’s lone goal did come from open play, they weren’t able to generate enough attempts from open play to find the equalizing goal they needed to take at least a point away from the match. The Dynamo dominated in this statistical category and it helped pave the way to victory with both of their goals coming from open play.
Dynamo end winless run in MLS
After failing to win in their last seven Major League Soccer fixtures, the Dynamo are back to winning ways. Their last victory came on Oct. 7th when they defeated FC Dallas 2-0. After that win over their in-state rivals, they finished the 2020 season with five defeats and two draws. For this reason, Friday’s win was a great beginning to a new season as they ended the disappointing run of form they had concluded the 2020 campaign with. Things are looking up for the Dynamo in 2021 and this was the perfect start to what will hopefully be a top-seven finish in the Western Conference table.