Houston Away Preview

By: Matt | March 20th, 2009

So, I haven’t quite finished my position by position look at the 2009 Crew yet. I blame school work, copious amount of alcohol on Tuesday, and my very own University of Dayton Flyers qualification for the NCAA Basketball Tournament (WOOOOO!). Since the season opener is tomorrow in Houston, I thought I’d give all three of my readers my thoughts on the Crew’s opening match of their MLS Cup defense. Let’s start with the basics.

Who: Houston Dynamo (2008-1st in Western Conference, Quarterfinals of the MLS Playoffs)
What: Matchday 1 Crew- 0 pts. Houston-0 pts.
Where: Houston, Texas-Robertson Stadium
When: Saturday March 21st, 8 PM Eastern

So Garber and co. must really be having a laugh with this one. Rumored to not be the biggest fan of the Columbus MLS franchise and handing the MLS Cup to “Captain Guillermo Barros Schelotto” (direct quote from the ceremony) despite the fact that Frankie Hejduk is actually the captain, when the Don saw this tie on the first day of the schedule, him and the boys must have had a couple of knee slaps and gut busting laughs. Nothing will hinder a cup defense like sending the holders to one of the best teams in the MLS home pitch. Ok, so maybe my time as a Celtic fan has made me a bit paranoid. Perhaps Garbes (can I call you Garbes?) was looking for a match up between to of the top teams in MLS to highlight opening weekend and perhaps thought that Ohio has a tendency to be a bit chilly this time of year. You quit your rational thought, there is no place for that on this blog! Anyways,…

Saturday night will certainly be the pick of the MLS openers. The top two teams of the 2008 MLS regular season facing off. Schelotto vs. Holden, Hesmer vs. Onstead, the match-ups are certainly tasty to a neutral fan, but to a Crew supporter it’s mind numbingly stressful.

The big news of Houston’s off-season was the departure of Dwayne DeRosario. The Canadian international went back home to the Great White North. The loss of DeRosario is a big one, as the attacking midfielder netted 7 goals for the Dynamo and was the center of Houston attack. Kei Kamara was brought in this off-season and Houston fans hope Kamara can replace some of the offensive spark that DeRosario brought. Luckily for Crew fans, Kamara will be suspended for Saturday’s match.

The Crew will still have to deal with striker Brian Ching. The US National Team member is always tough to deal with, but it will be interesting to see how Ching’s performance is without DeRosario on the field. With DeRo gone and Kamara suspended, the Crew will be able to focus on Ching and hopefully be able to shut him down.

On the injury report, Houston will be missing defender Eddie Robinson because of knee problems. For the Crew, Pat Noonan is the only one listed, due to his back problems. Adam Moffat is not on the injury list, but I would not expect the Scot to start on Saturday as he continues to recover from last year’s knee problems. Expect Emmanuel Ekpo to get the start in the midfield for the Crew. Other than Ekpo, I would expect to see a line-up similar to what the Crew used last season. Alejandro Moreno will most likely be the lone striker, with Schelotto, Carroll, Rogers, Gaven, along with Ekpo.

Saturday will be a tough first test for the Crew. Houston will be a pretty good indication if the Crew are operating with the same magic that they did last year. Any points taken from Houston on Saturday will be good points, but for some reason I believe that the loss of Kamara will give the Crew the edge. Without DeRosario the Dynamo lose some attacking prowless and their replacement will not even be there. I see the Crew winning 1-0, with a late Alejandro Moreno goal.