Bayou City Soccer Previews Colorado Rapids at Houston Dynamo

HOUSTON, Texas – Colorado Rapids head down to Texas to play at Houston Dynamo this weekend. We reached out to our friends at Bayou City Soccer to see what’s up with Forever Orange ahead of the match. Thanks to Dustyn Richardson for collaborating.

Houston had a decent season last year but is off to a bad start. What’s gone wrong? Should Ben Olsen be on the hot seat?

It really boils down to losing three key players from last season and not fully replacing them yet. The midfield duo of Hector Herrera and Coco Carrasquilla have both moved on to Liga MX and left a big hole in the middle of the park for the Dynamo. Center back Micael, who many had as a Best XI level player last season, was sold to Brazil.

Olsen and the staff have had to kind of put things back together on the fly and the adjustments seem to be working. There are also new players joining soon, we could see the debut of new DP Ondrej Lingr tomorrow. I think some fans might want Olsen out, a very small “some”, but I don’t think his job is at risk at all.

The big offseason acquisition of course was midfielder Jack McGlynn from Philly. How good has he been? How is the Dynamo midfield doing?

McGlynn has been solid. The last two matches, he moved over to the right midfield role that Carrasquilla played and that seems to have unlocked even more of the youngster. He scored the winner against LAFC and he seems very comfortable playing higher up the field.

With Lingr and Duane Holmes both coming into the team soon, it remains to be seen whether McGlynn will stay in that more advanced role or drop back into more of an 8. How this plays out will go a long way into what their midfield can be this season. Artur is Artur, a rock in the 6 position, but they are still trying to figure out exactly what the 8 and 10 look like.

Last week saw Houston draw LA Galaxy after being up a goal and a man in the first half. What went wrong? What needs to be better this weekend?

Talking to Olsen and players this week there has been a clear feeling of disappointment with that result. They got an early goal then went up a man in the first half and just couldn’t find another breakthrough.

Diego Fagundez scored a great free kick to equalize and the Dynamo weren’t able to grab a winner, even against 10 men. I think a lot of what we talked about earlier with still trying to figure out the midfield plays into that. They need another playmaker in the worst way. Lingr and Holmes should bring that but until they get into the lineup it’s been very hit-and-miss with Amine Bassi and Sebastian Kowalczyk.

Houston’s one of a few MLS teams with some question marks in goal. Jonathan Bond just joined the team. Does he start against Colorado?

It seems to me that Bond will be the starter…eventually. Rookie Blake Gillingham has done surprisingly well after Andrew Tarbell and Jimmy Maurer went down with injuries. Gillingham is still a rookie and he still has so much to learn but I think Olsen will ride the hot hand at least for a little longer before Bond takes over. Olsen has raved about goalkeeper coach Tim Hanley and his work, especially with Gillingham, so they may have uncovered something here with their young keeper.

If another MLS team has a Colorado native, I have to ask about him. Griffin Dorsey was great in the game at DSGP last year. How’s his season going?

Dorsey is such a fan favorite here in Houston. Fans love the passion and energy he brings week in and week out. On the field, it’s been a bit of a slow start for him. He plays almost as a winger from his right back position but he hasn’t created as much in 2025 as he has in years past. Like most of the team, this should improve with the addition of the new attacking pieces being inserted into the lineup soon.

Lastly, got a prediction for us? Stoppage time winner for Houston after a Rapids player gets elbowed in the face? Andreas Maxsø is definitely still mad about last year.

I almost forgot about that Brad Smith winner last season!

I think the Dynamo are really peeved after that result last weekend and their home form in general this season. They need to start picking up points soon. This is a very good Colorado team but I think Houston grabs a win here, it may not be pretty, 1-0.

Photo Credit: Mark Shaiken

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