Dynamo, FC Dallas clash in Texas derby
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A pair of rivals clash deep in the heart of Texas on Sunday as FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo meet at FC Dallas Stadium in the season's only installment of the Texas derby.
FC Dallas got off to a good start in Week 1 after the club captured three points at home against the Colorado Rapids, but had a bit of a letdown last week after dropping a 3-1 decision to Chivas USA at the Home Depot Center.
Captain David Ferreria gave Dallas the 1-0 lead in the 57th minute when he brought a ball down the left flank, cut to the inside and ripped a right- footed shot home from a difficult angle.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But the Dallas backline couldn't hold the lead as three consecutive tallies from Juan Agudelo, Oswaldo Minda and Giovani Casillas handed the Goats a 3-1 victory at the Home Depot Center.
FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman pointed to missed chances as a reason why his team couldn't hold off the Goats, becoming the first team to lose to Chivas since July 28, 2012 in the process.
"It wasn't clicking," said Hyndman. "There were a lot of opportunities that we could've laid balls off to a free player and it just seems like we may have held the ball a little bit too long."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Houston, meanwhile, secured a comfortable 2-0 win over D.C. United at BBVA Compass Stadium in Week 1, and had last week off from MLS competition while they battled Mexico's Santos Laguna in the CONCACAF Champions League.
The Dynamo took a 1-0 aggregate lead down to Mexico for the second leg of the clubs' quarterfinal tie courtesy of an 88th-minute goal from Brad Davis, but lost by a 3-0 count on Wednesday and 3-1 on aggregate to put an end to their tournament run.
Houston wasn't sharp against Santos, as several mental errors proved to be the difference in the match.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Anytime you make mistakes at the back you're spelling trouble for yourself," head coach Dominic Kinnear said. "They're a good team. You really need to not make mistakes at that end of the field and when you do there's opportunities for that to hurt you. And that's definitely what happened tonight."
Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall echoed his coach's sentiments:
"We gifted them a couple of goals as a defense," Hall said. "That's a good team that put us under pressure and we rewarded that pressure with goals that are uncharacteristic of us defensively. I feel like we're a better team than what we showed tonight."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The MLS Cup runners-up will have a chance to prove Hall right on Sunday against one of their biggest rivals with the El Capitan trophy on the line.
Houston has claimed the El Capitan title each of the last two seasons, with Adam Moffat bagging the wining goal in the 76th minute of last season's affair.