The Houston Dynamo beat Vancouver Whitecaps FC2-1 on Friday night, due in part because of the freedom head coach Wilmer Cabrera allowed forward Mauro Manotas.
Starting as the No. 9 in Houston’s 4-3-3 formation, Manotas was not restricted off the ball by the coaching staff. He was not required to stretch the offense or even necessarily to be available centrally. Instead, they gave Manotas the liberty to move into space as he saw fit. This decision paid dividends, as he was the catalyst behind two of the more impactful moments of the match.
In the very first minute, the Colombian set the tone for his team as he drifted all the way to the right side. He received a pass out wide and then delivered a pinpoint service to Romell Quioto at the far post that should have resulted in Houston taking a 1-0 lead before the 60-second mark.
When Alberth Elis picked up an injury and Erick "Cubo" Torres entered the match in his place, Manotas was nominally shifted to the wing, giving him even more freedom to roam.
In the 66th minute, Manotas checked deep into the midfield when you would have expected him to be much higher up the pitch, and set in motion a string of passes that ultimately led to the Dynamo drawing a foul in the box that led to their game-winning penalty-kick goal.
pic.twitter.com/t6J2KxsHdC — MLSclips (@MLSgamefilm) May 15, 2017
SKC give Latif a chance
With Dom Dwyer suspended, Sporting Kansas City head coach Peter Vermes opted to give Latif Blessing his first start over the weekend in their 2-2 draw at Orlando City SC, and he did not disappoint.
Blessing showed he has a knack for being in the right spot around the goal, is quick to react and has a striker’s mentality where he makes opportunistic assumptions about how plays unfold.
The Ghanaian finished with two goals and made his presence known early after scoring in just the 9th minute. What’s more, Blessing almost had an assist on a quality Benny Feilhaber strike in the 51st minute.
Dwyer remains SKC’s go-to man up top, but Blessing showed he will be a good attacking option to come off the bench for Vermes’ side in the future.
Colorado adjustments
The Colorado Rapids got their first win since opening weekend and Pablo Mastroeni’s game plan was, at least in part, responsible for a clean sheet, the side’s first goal and nearly another goal in the 34th minute.
Colorado’s two central midfielders were the key. Micheal Azira and Dillon Powers dropped deep to help the back four maintain possession amidst high defensive pressure from San Jose, and were consequently always in great position to defend if the ball turned over. Instead of an attacking midfielder, Mastroeni decided to start two forwards in Alan Gordon and Dominique Badji.
Colorado’s first goal came as a result of Azira's and Powers' immediate ability to shut down any penetrating passes after the Rapids lost the ball. As a result, San Jose were forced backwards and ultimately conceded a foul on Gordon that led to Colorado’s first goal after a quick restart.
pic.twitter.com/zv7buHBNzj — MLSclips (@MLSgamefilm) May 15, 2017
Already up 1-0, Azira and Powers combined with the outside backs to bypass the Earthquakes’ pressing efforts in the sequence below. Switching the point of attack as San Jose looked to close in on the right side of the field, Colorado’s central midfield duo created another goal-scoring opportunity out of a pocket of space they found along the left.
pic.twitter.com/gmZYscLy4a — MLSclips (@MLSgamefilm) May 15, 2017
Subs in Montreal
Despite losing 3-2 to Columbus Crew SC in the end, due mainly to a tremendous individual performance from Justin Meram, Mauro Biello’s substitutions changed the game and nearly earned the Montreal Impact a come-from-behind 2-2 draw.
Montreal finished the first 45 minutes with 61 percent of the possession, but no shots on frame and down two goals. Biello’s first change, swapping defensive midfielder Adrian Arregui out for Patrice Bernier to start the second half, allowed the Impact to be more dangerous with their possession. Bernier finished the second half with 21 successful passes in the opposition half, more than twice as many as Arregui had in the same amount of time.
One such pass came within the first five minutes of the second half, leading to a great chance for Dominic Oduro, who pinged his shot off the post.
Biello’s 74th-minute substitution of Anthony Jackson-Hamel gave Montreal a goal three minutes later when the forward tucked home a header to tie the match in the 77th. It was his fourth goal of the year, all of them coming off the bench.
Crew SC head coach Gregg Berhalter had some tricks up his sleeve, too. After Jackson-Hamel's equalizer, Niko Hansen subbed on in the 63rd minute and notched the assist on Meram's winner. And the threat of Ola Kamara, who was brought on in the 89th minute, kept the Impact defense disconnected.
Julian Gressel on the wing
Atlanta United FC's Julian Gressel, who has started in a primarily attacking position only three times this season, got his first opportunity to start as a winger on Sunday against the Portland Timbers. Coach Tata Martino had mostly used Gressel as a defensive midfielder during March and April, but that might change given this recent performance in Atlanta's 1-1 draw.
The German-born Providence College product, who has a history of scoring at the collegiate level, earned his first professional goal against Portland.
Though he had had the chance to start in the No. 10 role in two other matches, this was the first time Gressel even registered a shot when starting in a more attacking-minded position.
While it certainly served Atlanta well in this match, they are not a side short on offensive talent and it will be interesting to see how Martino manages this going forward, with the return of Josef Martinez in the offing.
Sam Polak is a tactical writer who authored the Audi Player Index playoff series, has been featured in FourFourTwo, the NSCAA and several other publications. He is also a youth and high school coach in Connecticut.
