Dynamo Home Opener vs. Austin FC
Last night was the first Houston Dynamo home game of the season. For a lot of reasons I was excited for this one.
New Ownership & Management
New owner Ted Segal bought into the club at the end of the 2021 season, and since then has proven that he’s serious about making this club a serious contender in the league, and is willing to invest to do so. This season opener was the first opportunity to get a glimpse of what that might look like. Sure, last season included the signing of Hector Herrera, a top Mexican player from Atletico Madrid, but this was the first full offseason that the new ownership has had to sign new players, upgrade the facilities, and make front and back-office staff changes. I won’t go into everything that’s been done, but I point all this out because one of the changes involved upgrades to Shell Energy stadium.
The New Stadium
Shell Energy Stadium (formerly PNC Stadium, formerly BBVA Stadium) got a pretty drastic facelift over the summer. New mesh seating was installed, new restaurant contracts were signed, and the East portion of the stadium was fitted with a new East Club experience geared towards more high-rolling fans and corporate seating.
I was eager to check out the changes firsthand.
Upon walking in, the hallways to the stadium looked refreshed, but largely the same at first glance. As you went further in, you noticed the new restaurants that were operating. The smells of the food were much more pleasant and apparent, as there were a lot of unique flavors available for purchase (BBQ, Mexican, and Vietnamese via Roostar).
But heading out to the field was a whole different matter. The seats are NICE! Very comfortable, and the field looks like a modern club stadium fitting of a city like Houston. Overall, the facelift modernizes the stadium, and I’m excited to be able to watch the rest of the season in this environment.
The Game
It’s no secret by now that the Dynamo got the 3 points with a 2-0 game over Austin FC. Austin is a tough rival, but this was their third game in the last week, so one can be forgiven for not reading too much into this victory. Having said that, there were lots of positives about this game for a fan who was watched this team scrape bottom of the league for the better part of a decade.
The game was a blast. The Dynamo didn’t have many moments of brilliance, but they managed to get the ball in the back of the net. Steve Clark had a really solid game at goalkeeper and kept the clean sheet. Hector Herrera eschewed his usual position of defending midfielder and pressed forward to attack and scored his first goal since signing with the team. I’m not sure if this was part of the original game plan, or just him being a team captain and showing the newer guys how it’s done. Regardless, his goal off of a great give-and-take assist from Griffin Dorsey showed that this team is figuring out how to link up inside the box and can be dangerous if you’re not paying attention.
It’s still a VERY new team, and they haven’t had a chance to solidify how they’re all going to play together. Because of this there were plenty of sloppy passes, incoherent play execution and general mistake-making. However, they all played aggressively and dominated most of the important stats (shots on goal, passes, corner kicks). Also, I was shocked at how physical our players were in comparison to Austin, especially in the second half. Amine Bassi is shorter than most of the Austin team, but he looked positively ecstatic to be bodying a number of their players throughout the game.
I’m not calling this team a finished product at this point, but I am optimistic about what next season will bring. I may even be convinced to be optimistic about this season if they get more polished, but maintain this level of intensity throughout the season.