Recap: Houston Dynamo FC 1, Austin FC 2

Phil West

Sebastian Ferreira scored a stunning AT&T 5G Goal of the Week candidate to open the match, but Austin FC came back with a goal in each half to best Houston Dynamo FC 2-1 at PNC Stadium on Saturday afternoon in an-all Texas tilt.

It was a double dose of disaster for the visitors less than five minutes in, when Ferreira struck deftly from near midfield, catching Brad Stuver off his line. Stuver couldn't paw the ball out of goal and subsequently suffered an injury forcing him to exit the match on a stretcher.

Austin equalized in the 39th minute with Ethan Finlay crossing to Dani Pereira, who scored his first-ever MLS goal with a confident finish — and nearly got a second shooting in similar fashion just before halftime.

Sebastian Druissi brought Verde in front in the 66th minute, carving out space in the box by moving toward the 18, but more centrally, for his MLS-leading seventh goal of the year. Though the Dynamo pushed to equalize, Austin also maintained their close to 2:1 possession advantage and played some gritty defense to close out the road win.

Goals

5' – HOU – Sebastian Ferreira | WATCH
39' – ATX – Dani Pereira | WATCH
66' – ATX – Sebastian Driussi | WATCH

Three Things

THE BIG PICTURE: Austin retook their spot at the top of the West Conference and the Supporters Shield race, being first out of the gate in Week 9. Though losing both the lead and their starting 'keeper was quite the inauspicious start to the match, Verde showed their mettle by getting a crucial road win with a team that includes a serious Landon Donovan MVP candidate in Sebastian Driussi. For the Dynamo, it’s a loss that leaves them 3W-3L-3D on the season, and might leave fans wondering if there’s a swoon on the horizon after dropping their second straight all-Texas match by a 2-1 margin after being up 1-0 in both.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Though the Sebastian in orange had a head-turning goal to open the proceedings, it was the Sebastian in green who had the final say with this work against an overmatched Dynamo defense.

MAN OF THE MATCH: Pereira – last season’s No. 1 MLS SuperDraft pick – might just be in the midst of a breakout season, and his first-ever league goal to equalize shows he’s evolving his two-way game.