Real Salt Lake vs Houston Dynamo
Real Salt Lake and Houston Dynamo are set to square off at the Rio Tinto Stadium in an exciting MLS showdown.
Real Salt Lake came from a 1-0 HT deficit to beat Montreal 2-1 on the road last time out, making it two 2-1 MLS wins in a row. A return of three victories from their last four MLS fixtures (L1) represents a noticeable upturn in form for Salt Lake, compared to an underwhelming run of six leageu games without winning beforehand (D3, L3). Notably, the ‘Claret and Cobalt’ are unbeaten in all five home MLS matches this season (W4, D1), including a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Austin last time out. That’s another testimonial to Salt Lake’s fighting spirit that needs to be at its best if they are to extend their impressive nine-game unbeaten MLS streak against Houston (W4, D5).
Meanwhile, Houston Dynamo will be out to pick up their first H2H win in MLS since a 5-1 thrashing of Salt Lake in June 2016. However, Houston’s problems with inconsistent performances sound troubling, as they’ve alternated between victories (2) and defeats (2) across their last four league outings, with each game won/lost in that sequence seeing the winner on the day keep a clean sheet. Away from home, it’s been ‘all or nothing’ for the ‘Orange Crush’ this term, as they’ve won two of their five MLS fixtures on the road, losing the other three, two of which via a single-goal margin. Another tight contest is on the cards, as Houston’s last seven MLS visits to Salt Lake have featured a full-time margin of under 1.5 goals.