Fox Man's Grade Book: Dynamo concede late defeat to Tigres UANL in CCL Quarters

Andres Naranjo
Mar 6, 2019
2 min read

Houston Dynamo would not be able to stop an energetic Tigres side as the Monterrey side would roar back in the second half and claim a 2-0 victory over the Dynamo in Leg 1 of the 2019 Concacaf Champions League Quarterfinals.

Key Points:

• The result marks the first-ever loss for the Dynamo at BBVA Compass Stadium in Concacaf Champions League competition.

• Tigres would score two goals in the span of three minutes as the hosts would fail to contain Enner Valencia and Julian Quiñones in the final third.

• Houston's all-time international record is now 21W-13D-12L.

• Leg 2 is scheduled for Tuesday, March 12 at 10:00 PM CST at Estadio Universitario in Monterrey, Mexico.

In a chilly night in Houston and without the use of a few of their starters, Tigres came to town with the hopes to earn a positive result to follow Mexico's yearly domination of the Concacaf Champions League over North American clubs and the confederation as a whole.

Houston would come in with Elis, Manotas, and other key players well-rested for the occasion after seeing MLS action a couple of days before and knowing that the environment at BBVA Compass Stadium would turn against them thanks to a dedicated Tigres fan base that is spread across Texas.

Coming in to this match I knew that the Dynamo had to do one thing for the entire match: foot on the gas, non-stop. Dealing with a highly offensive team like Tigres and attempting to win the ball back from them, the former would be easier said than done. However, the Dynamo did an exceptional job in the first half by dismantling the incoming pressure from the visitors and winning back those decisive passes that led them to a few opportunities to score but to no avail.

However, matches are decided in the second half.

Houston's defensive shape would downgrade over the course of the second half (I have seen this movie before) but they ultimately would not concede until the 78th minute as Luis Quiñones made a good run through the box and found Enner Valencia to break the stalemate. The hosts would look to bounce back and change the scoreline but the Colombian pair would once again torment the Dynamo off the counter and double the lead in less than three minutes.

Yeeesh.

Tigres' composure in the last few minutes would close things out as the Dynamo were successfully iced to a 2-0 loss at home.

Heading to Monterrey for Leg 2, it is going to take a Concacaf miracle for Houston to see the Concacaf Champions League Semifinals.

Fox MVP of the Night:

• Joe Willis: from MLS bench-warmer to starter, we are reminded every week that Mean Joe has been a great asset for Cabrera's team with save after save to keep his team in the match.

Honorable mentions:

• Boniek Garcia: solid performance in front of the back line to deny numerous opportunities for Tigres to build plays.

• Dynamo fans: for not being bandwagoners.