Houston Dynamo won their fifth consecutive game, going on the road and defeating the Kansas City Wizards 1-0 on Sunday afternoon thanks to an 81st-minute goal from defender Patrick Ianni, the first of his MLS career.
Dynamo repelled attack after attack from the Wizards, who have now not won in three consecutive contests, as the defending MLS Cup champions claimed a victory for the second time in four days. Dynamo are now three points behind Western Conference frontrunners Dallas with two games in hand.
In addition, with the loss, Wizards head coach Curt Onalfo missed out on the chance to lead the MLS All-Stars against Celtic FC in the MLS Sierra Mist All-Star Game on July 19 in Colorado. New England Revolution coach Steve Nicol, whose team has the most points-per-game after the games of this weekend, claimed the honor instead.
The Wizards play was crisp and insightful early on as they created three chances in the first seven minutes. Davy Arnaud and Scott Sealy were at the sharp end of the Kansas City attack on all three opportunities, with Sealy's in the fifth minute from 15 yards going just wide left of the Dynamo goal.
Eliminating the few Houston attacking rushes, Kansas City continued to move the ball smartly as it probed the Dynamo back line for entry points. Arnaud was again involved in the 14th minute, as he received a pass from Kerry Zavagnin on the left side of the area and played a deceptive, penetrating ball for Michael Harrington. But the rookie pelted his shot right at Houston goalkeeper Pat Onstad for a comfortable save.
Houston was able to threaten near the midpoint of the half, but Kelly Gray struck directly at Wizards goalkeeper Kevin Hartman in the 20th minute. Four minutes later, Hartman punched away a threatening corner.
The half ended with a Kansas City flurry that saw right back Jack Jewsbury have two chances. The first, off a pass from Sealy, was parried out for a corner, while the second was a volley that flew well wide. Despite the Wizards dominating possession and creating some clear chances, the half ended scoreless.
The Wizards didn't lose their beat on the break and extended their residency in the fatiguing Dynamo's half. The first good attempt came 12 minutes in as Harrington whipped a swerving cross into the six-yard box where teammate Sasha Victorine and Onstad both slid for the dipping ball. But Onstad arrived first and the danger passed for Houston.
To keep legs fresh in the 87-degree heat, Onalfo inserted Kurt Morsink for Arnaud in the 67th minute.
Despite their dominance, the Wizards nearly found themselves behind four minutes later. Dynamo forward Brian Mullan broke the Wizards offside trap and went forward from the right with only Jimmy Conrad to beat and teammate Joseph Ngwenya open in the middle. Conrad was able to shut Mullan down though, the ball eventually cleared after some anxious moments.
Both sides made offensive substitutions late as the heat began to take its toll. Houston injected Dwayne De Rosario, like goalkeeper Onstad, fresh off Thursday night's CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal against the United States, while the Wizards put on Ryan Pore for orchestrator Carlos Marinelli.
But it would be a defender scoring his first-ever MLS goal that would change the match. Ianni rose above the crowd for an 81st-minute corner served by midfielder Stuart Holden and put the visitors up with a header high into the net.
Tiring themselves, the Wizards had to up their efforts to pull out a point for their efforts. Sasha Victorine had a chance off a Jose Burciaga Jr. corner in the dying moments, but struck it wide of the Dynamo net. Houston held on and claimed its season-best fifth victory in a row with a mature performance where they bent, but never broken.
Bob Rusert is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
