New York City FC vs Houston Dynamo

New York City FC and Houston Dynamo are set to trade tackles in an exciting Major League Soccer clash at Yankee Stadium.

Back-to-back scoreless league outings in mid-May (D1, L1) now look so distant for New York City after consecutive two-goal margin wins over Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls propelled them to sixth in the Eastern Conference standings. However, their five-point lead over 10th-placed New England Revolution looks fragile, so it’s good that they’re back at Yankee Stadium, where they’ve won six of their eight MLS fixtures this season (L2). With four of those six victories producing a single-goal margin, NYCFC know they can’t afford to switch off, as narrow wins have become a recurring theme in their strong home form. Adding to this sentiment, New York’s three previous home league H2Hs with Houston have yielded a full-time margin of under 1.5 goals (W1, D2). 

Visiting Houston Dynamo squandered a two-goal lead in a topsy-turvy 3-3 draw at San Jose Earthquakes, relinquishing a two-game winning MLS run in the process. Houston’s indifferent 15-game league streak (W4, D5, L6) keeps them in the Western Conference’s lower reaches, albeit only two points adrift of 9th-placed Austin FC. However, Ben Olsen’s men have been prone to dropping points on the road, picking up just one win in seven MLS away games this season (D4, L2) while averaging only one goal per game. On the bright side, they’ve bagged 2+ goals on their last two MLS road trips after scoring one or fewer on their first five.