HOUSTON – New York City FC have posed a myriad of problems for their opponents this season and the Houston Dynamo expect more of the same on Friday night.
Star midfielder Frank Lampard may be out injured, but the club features stars likeDavid Villa,Andrea Pirlo and a throng of young players who have raised their game this season.
“We know what to expect,” said Houston Dynamo interim head coach Wade Barrett ahead of Friday night’s clash in Houston (8 pm ET, UniMás in US | MLS LIVE in Canada). “But I’ve said this many times, ‘you can know what to expect, but actually dealing with it on the weekend it’s a different thing.'”
With Lampard on the shelf and speedy winger Steven Mendoza out due to a calf injury, Barrett singled out the play of Tommy McNamara “on top of all the other players that you have to worry about.”
And then there's Villa, who Barrett considers a strong contender for league MVP.
“His offensive output, what he provides to them, goals, assists, in the buildup play but also his work rate,” Barrett said. “To me that’s one of the most impressive things that he gives...he’s a complete player.”
Villa’s fellow countryman and Dynamo center back Raul Rodriguez took it a step further – he thinks that an MVP award for Villa would be much-deserved. But while NYCFC have scored the most goals in MLS (55) on the strength of Villa's 19 goals, they have also given up the second most goals in the league (53). That defensive record, however, hasn't cost them too much – they're heading to the Audi 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
“Even if defense isn’t their strength, it doesn’t mean it’s bad,” Rodriguez said. “Any team that’s made the playoffs with five games still left in the season has to be a balanced team.”
The last time the Dynamo faced NYCFC last year, current Orlando City head coach Jason Kreis was at the helm. This year the American coach was replaced by Arsenal and France national team legend Patrick Vieira, who has NYCFC in contention for the top spot in the Eastern Conference in his debut MLS season.
Before Vieira's success this year, it had been a commonly held belief that foreign coaches struggled to adapt to MLS. The Houston Dynamo experienced one such case with Scotsman Owen Coyle, who was replaced by his American assistant Wade Barrett when he abruptly departed in May with the team stuck in last place in the West.
Barrett noted how Vieira's ability to make adjustments on the fly has been the key to NYCFC's success this season.
“You see teams that get stuck just doing one thing over and over again, I don’t want to say they get figured out, but sometimes they run out of options,” Barrett said. “You see a coach like him, he’s made adjustments in games, moved pieces around, and I think that’s really important in this league, is to be able to adjust.
“Patrick’s come in and he’s done very well," Barrett continued. "He’s got his group playing a very effective style.”
