Houston Dynamo were unable to capitalize on a man advantage during the final 50 minutes of the match and were held to a scoreless draw by Chivas USA at The Home Depot Center on Saturday night.
The result was costly for Dynamo as it cost them the top seed in the Western Conference -- and guaranteed home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The result sets up a first-round playoff match up against interstate rival FC Dallas for Dynamo, who finished in second place in the Western Conference standings, one point behind Chivas.
Each side had its share of missing key players. For Dynamo, defenders Ryan Cochrane and Eddie Robinson sat out with yellow card accumulation, while Chivas made do without the injured Jesse Marsch and Francisco Mendoza.
Chivas lost another player in the first half. Dynamo took a man advantage five minutes before halftime when Chivas midfielder Lawson Vaughn was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Richard Mulrooney near midfield.
Then, moments before halftime, defender Wade Barrett received a yellow card for knocking Chivas forward Laurent Merlin to the ground with a late challenge.
In the 53rd minute, Dynamo midfielder Stuart Holden nearly beat Brad Guzan with a long-distance shot that sailed just above the crossbar.
Four minutes later, Joseph Ngwenya fed Dwayne De Rosario with a pass into open space three yards outside of the Chivas penalty area. After settling the ball, De Rosario ripped a 20-yard shot that was high of the target.
Playing a man down, Chivas spent most of the second half bunkered in their own half playing for a draw.
Dynamo boss Dominic Kinnear inserted forward Nate Jaqua in the 64th minute to give his side a bigger target in the middle.
Brian Ching had a wide open shot from the top of the Chivas penalty area stopped by Guzan in the 66th minute. Ching's shot, while strong, was sent directly into the 'keeper's arms for an easy save.
Two minutes later, Patrick Ianni was given a yellow card after a dangerous tackle on Maykel Galindo. The ruling prompted an angry outburst by Chivas midfielder Sacha Kljestan who argued that the challenge warranted a red card.
In the 78th minute, Ching missed a wide-open header attempt from point blank range. A cross was sent into the Chivas area where an unmarked Ching flatfooted a header just over the crossbar.
Later, Chivas midfielder Jonathan Bornstein was seemingly fouled inside the penalty area when Brian Mullan knocked him over. The referee, however, allowed the play to continue to the dismay of the Chivas bench who called for a penalty kick.
The final 10 minutes of the match were tense as Dynamo pushed numbers forward in an attempt to snatch a late goal.
In the first minute of stoppage time, Chivas' Kljestan was stuffed by Dynamo 'keeper Pat Onstad. Kljestan took a pass deep inside the penalty area and hit a side-footed shot that Onstad was able to stop diving to his right.
Moments later, Holden had another close attempt but he sent his seven-yard shot wide of goal.
Then, Guzan made the save of the match in the closing seconds on a close range bicycle kick attempt by De Rosario. The Canadian's shot came off a loose ball in front of goal but the attempt was stopped by a perfectly positioned Guzan.
With the tie, Dynamo now look ahead to their playoff opener, a road game against FC Dallas.
Chivas, meanwhile, must wait until the conclusion of Sunday's LA Galaxy-Chicago Fire match up to learn their first round opponent. If the Galaxy win, they will meet Chivas in the playoffs. A Chicago win will setup a Chivas-Kansas City Wizards matchup, while a tie would see Chicago as Chivas' first-round opponent.
Danny Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
