Houston Dynamo host FC Dallas at the BBVA Compass Stadium in Major League Soccer in the second Texas derby match of the season.
The visitors were the victors in the first meeting between these two last month but trail the hosts by six points, albeit with a game in hand still to play.
Match preview
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Last year saw Houston qualify for the MLS Cup playoffs for the first time in five years thanks to a fourth-placed finish in the Western Conference in their first season under the guidance of Ben Olsen.
A 2-1 victory in the US Open Cup final saw Houston also pick up their first piece of silverware since 2018, topping off a brilliant debut campaign in charge of the club for Olsen.
Three wins and a draw in their first three matches of the 2024 campaign saw Houston seemingly pick up from where they left off, but a run of just two wins and five losses in the following eight games has seen a drop off in form.
One of those losses included a shocking 10-9 penalty defeat to Detroit City FC after initially taking a 2-0 lead in the first half, resulting in Houston's immediate exit in their first attempt at defending the US Open Cup.
Olsen will be hoping he can lead his side back to winning ways against a struggling Dallas, but with no wins in the last five MLS meetings, that may be a hard task.
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While an opening-day victory over San Jose got Dallas's season off to a positive start, five defeats and two draws in the following seven quickly saw that come to an end.
Nico Estevez has turned the club's fortunes around in their recent outings, securing three wins in four, including a 2-0 victory over Sunday's opponents at the Toyota Stadium just under a month ago.
Dallas will now be looking for a third consecutive win across all competitions, something they have failed to achieve since October-November 2020.
While the Burn have been the more dominant of the two in this fixture over the years, undefeated in the last six competitive meetings, they have failed to beat Houston away from home since a 3-1 victory in August 2016.
After winning the reverse match in April, Dallas could retain El Capitan for the third successive year with a draw or win in this one, giving them the opportunity to extend their lead to 11-8 in the series.
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Team News
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The hosts will be without no fewer than four players for this derby match against Dallas.
Carlos Ferreira and Franco Escobar both remain out due to hip injuries, while Nelson Quinones also joins them on the treatment table with a knee problem.
Defender Daniel Steres came off at half time in the eventual victory over Sporting Kansas City and is likely to remain absent here.
As for the visitors, they will be nursing up to six injuries for this one.
Alan Velasco will remain unavailable until July with a cruciate ligament injury that has kept him out since November.
Amet Korca, Geovane Jesus, Paul Arriola, Paxton Pomykal and Sebastian Lletget are all also out until later this month or early next month.
Houston Dynamo possible starting lineup:
Clark; Dorsey, Sviatchenko, Bartlow, Schmitt; Carrasquilla, Artur; Blessing, Bassi, Aliyu; Kowalczyk
Dallas possible starting lineup:
Paes; Ibeagha, Tafari, Junqua; Twumasi, Fraser, Illarramendi, Farfan; Ntsabeleng, Ferreira; Musa
We say: Houston Dynamo 1-1 Dallas
Dallas have been the more successful side of the two in the history of this fixture but have struggled to pick up victories when playing away from home, failing to win since August 2016.
For that reason, we believe this one will end all square, leaving Dallas to retain El Capitan for a third successive year.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
