Considering the jam-packed fixture schedule this season, Houston Dynamo knew the depth of their roster would be tested. They just didn't think it would happen so soon.
The Orange play the second leg of their CONCACAF Champions' Cup quarterfinal series against Costa Rican side Puntarenas FC Thursday in College Station, Texas (9 p.m. ET; FSC). The MLS club will need to overturn a 1-0 deficit.
But they'll need to do it without starting goalkeeper Pat Onstad, who is out for at least two weeks with a calf injury, and defender Eddie Robinson, who was sent off in last week's first leg. Brian Ching, the MVP of MLS Cup 2006, is unlikely to play more than 30 minutes as he fights to regain fitness after taking some extra time off this offseason.
"We're lucky we've got guys on our bench with over 100 career appearances in the league," said defender Craig Waibel. "So, we've got guys to bring in that still have experience before we have to dip too far into the bench. I think we'll be all right this week."
When Robinson was sent to the showers last Wednesday, head coach Dominic Kinnear shifted regular right back Craig Waibel into the middle alongside Ryan Cochrane and put substitute Kelly Gray on the right. He's likely to do the same thing Thursday. Another potential fill-in is second-year man Patrick Ianni, who played a total of two minutes in 2006.
At times last year, Kinnear shifted to a 3-5-2 - usually by pushing left back Wade Barrett into the midfield - to generate more of an attack, but he said he'll likely start in a 4-4-2 and only make a formation change if the game demands it.
"I think we're really confident," Ching said. "I think that's the way we have to approach it, to come into this game thinking that we're going to score a couple of goals on them. In our past when we played in San Jose, we've done well against (Central American) teams when they've come to the States to play us."
The conditions on Thursday ought to be in favor of Dynamo. In Puntarenas, the club was confronted with a narrow, bumpy field that caused the ball to bounce erratically, all but eliminated Houston's wide play and subsequently pinched the midfield pairing of Dwayne De Rosario and Ricardo Clark.
With a flat and wide field to play on Thursday at the home of Texas A&M, Kinnear and Dynamo are confident they'll be able to spread the field and attack well from their 4-4-2. Being down a goal, it's only natural that bettering the attacking effort from a week ago is foremost on Kinnear's mind.
"I think the test for us will be getting a goal against these guys," Kinnear said. "We'll see how they'll play; I don't know if they'll sit back or not because they've got a lot of attacking players, as well. But we have to make some more chances than we did last week and capitalize on them.
"We don't need to score in the first five minutes of the game. We just need to win by one goal," he added. "I think our 4-4-2, when it's playing well, is very capable of getting a goal or two. But I want to win this tie. It's preseason and all, but you still want to come out victorious in this."
If Dynamo can get the ball on the feet of Brad Davis and Brian Mullan on the wings, they should have a significant height advantage on crosses. The one area of last week's game where Dynamo dominated was in air.
"Even in our league play domestically, one of our biggest strengths here in Houston is our set pieces," Waibel said. "We seem to attack them well. Brad Davis swings in very good service. It makes the balls easy to attack. He puts them in very good places offensively and in difficult places defensively."
Behind Waibel and the rest of the Dynamo defense will be backup goalkeeper Zach Wells, who will take Onstad's place. Just minutes after entering last week's game in the first half, Wells - who saw very little game action in his first year in Houston - was called upon to save a penalty kick.
Waibel said he's confident in having Wells between the posts.
"Obviously, there are question marks whenever anyone new goes in the lineup, but I think Zach did a good job last week," Waibel said. "He saved me from the penalty shot and he went on to read the game really well. He put a good stamp on it; he made the field players comfortable."
If Dynamo can come back to win the series Thursday, it will be the first time an MLS team has advanced past a Costa Rican side since 2000, when D.C. United downed LD Alajuelense 2-1 in a single-game quarterfinal.
Jason Halpin is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
