Early lead is not enough as Houston falls at home once again
By Vicente Garcia Miale
Houston Dynamo FC hosted Sporting Kansas City in the season's first meeting between the two Western Conference sides. The squad coached by Ben Olsen secured three clean sheets in May, climbing to the ninth seed of the table with five wins, six losses, and five draws. Sporting KC (3-8-4) arrived in the Bayou City after obtaining three consecutive draws led by former player and now interim coach Kerry Zavagnin.
Kick Cancer Night began at Shell Energy Stadium with a fearless Houston Dynamo that utilized the wings to place the ball inside the box with multiple long crosses. Kansas City goalkeeper John Pulskamp was challenged early in the game as he made two incredible saves from Houston headers in less than three minutes. Houston’s intensity and the showcased talent rewarded the fans with a beautiful outside-the-box finesse shot finish that placed the home team ahead on the scoreboard. An Ondrej Lingr pass near the edge of the box allowed Sebastian Kowalczyk to calmly use his right foot to defeat the Sporting Kansas City goalkeeper 13 minutes into the match, scoring his first goal of the season.
Nevertheless, the away team recomposed itself as the first half progressed and found the equalizer during stoppage time. Striker Dejan Joveljic pulled a goal back as he controlled a deflected cross attempt from right-back Khiry Shelton inside the box. The former LA Galaxy player placed the ball in the bottom left corner and gave Houston goalkeeper Jonathan Bond no chance to respond.
An even score at the half encouraged Sporting Kansas City to push forward as the three points were crucial in the race for a playoff spot. The second goal of the night for Kerry Zavagnin’s team arrived from a set piece in the 52nd minute of the match. A served corner kick landed in center-back Jansen Miller, whose header hit the crossbar and allowed Dejan Joveljic to score a volley near the goal line against an already defeated Jonathan Bond. The Serbian striker tallied his ninth goal of the 2025 season.
Ben Olsen and his staff completed various substitutions as they trailed in the score. Winger Lawrence Ennali made his season debut after returning from a knee injury suffered in August. Midfielder Duane Holmes made his home debut when he replaced Kowalczyk with ten minutes remaining in the match.
The need to score and even the match forced Houston to display different attacking options, creating large defensive gaps for Kansas to exploit. It was in the 88th minute when Sporting KC launched a counterattack led by Daniel Salloi, who assisted Santiago Munoz as he capitalized with a one-touch finish inside the box to seal the match. Ben Olsen’s team has lost five games at home but remains in the ninth spot of the Western Conference standings.
Houston’s coach spoke about the performance of his team and the mistakes he witnessed throughout the night.
“We looked sharp early on in this game, and I can deal with getting gassed later on, but I cannot deal with complacency,” said Olsen. “We do not have the luxury to not press at the right speed after scoring a goal and make poor decisions on the offensive end.”
The Dynamo will face CF Montreal on Saturday, June 14, at Shell Energy Stadium after the upcoming FIFA window set early in the month.
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