Chivas USA Rallies for Tie Against Houston
Chivas USA midfielder Jesse Marsch knows that any road to the top of Major League Soccer’s Western Conference goes through Texas -- namely the Houston Dynamo and FC Dallas.
It’s rather weighty thinking for a team that won only four games in its inaugural season, but these are different days and this is a different Chivas USA team than the one that took the field in 2005.
Marsch’s goal in the 75th minute Wednesday night made up for an earlier defensive error and helped Chivas earn a 1-1 tie against Houston, only the second time this season that the second-year club has earned a point after trailing.
“I felt very responsible for giving up that first goal,” said Marsch, referring to his missed tackle in the 55th minute that allowed Dwayne DeRosario to get into open space before he fired a 20-yard shot past goalkeeper Preston Burpo for a 1-0 Houston lead. It was DeRosario’s first goal since June 3 against the Galaxy in a 2-1 victory.
Chivas (5-5-4), which has lost only once in its last eight games and takes on West-leading Dallas at home Saturday, seemed to wake up after giving up the goal.
“I was pleased with the response after getting behind,” Coach Bob Bradley said.
Chivas kept the pressure on Houston (6-3-5) and finally broke through when Marsch followed a wicked shot from the right by Juan Francisco Palencia that Dynamo goalkeeper Pat Onstead stopped but couldn’t control. Marsch, who was crashing the goal on the left, slid toward the rebound and put it in left-footed to tie it at 1-1.
“I think he was disappointed and felt he should have won the ball outside the box,” Bradley said of Marsch’s misplay, “but as we pressed the game, Jesse’s one of those that keeps going and keeps going and it was nice to see him rewarded with a goal.”
Said Marsch: “The play just developed nicely and I don’t get many chances to be in the box so I was glad to score.”
It was Marsch’s first goal of the season.
Houston nearly took the lead in the 80th minute when U.S. national team forward Brian Ching shook a defender in the middle of the box and fired a point-blank shot at Burpo, who made a reaction save with his right shoulder.
Early on, Chivas lacked the sharpness it had displayed in many of its several games.
But Houston couldn’t take advantage although the Dynamo produced a few scoring chances. Midfielder Wade Barrett was the main figure in two of them.
In the 23rd minute, Barrett gathered in a cross on the left side that skipped past the defense, but his left-footed shot went astray despite having an open net. In the 37th minute, Barrett again found himself alone on the left after a touch pass from DeRosario, but his chip over Burpo sailed over the cross bar.
