NYCFC vs Houston Dynamo: Predictions, Odds and Roster Notes

Where: Yankee Stadium, New York City, New York

When: Thursday, August 8th at 7:00 PM EST

How (TV/Radio): TV: ESPN+. NYCFC TV/Radio: MSG, WNYE 91.5 FM. Houston TV/Radio: KUBE, KLAT 1010 AM.

Team Notes

New York City FC

New York City FC has a record of 9-4-8 (W-L-D) through 21 games this year.

NYCFC has scored 37 goals against the 27 they’ve allowed. The club has 35 points, despite playing four fewer games than Philadelphia, the Eastern leader at 42 points.

New York City FC has the third highest odds to win the MLS title at 9-1.

Houston Dynamo

Houston holds a record of 9-11-3 (W-L-D) through 23 games of the season.

The Dynamo have scored 32 goals against 36 they’ve surrendered. They have 30 points this season and stand alone in 9th place in the Western Conference.

Houston’s odds have dropped dramatically to 60-1 odds to win the MLS title in November.

Goalie Notes

New York City FC: Sean Johnson (6-3-8, 1.29 goals allowed per game)

Johnson allowed three goals on four shots in NYCFC’s 3-1 loss to Real Salt Lake last weekend.

• In his four matches since returning from the Gold Cup, Johnson has allowed seven goals on 16 shots.
• The NYCFC keeper has made just eight saves in his last four starts.
• Johnson has not posted a clean sheet since his May 11th game against the LA Galaxy.

Houston: Tyler Deric (1-3-0, 2.00 goals allowed per game)

Deric has started the last four games of the season after taking the starting job away from Joe Willis.

• Deric has been fantastic over his last three matches, allowing just one goal per game.
• In his last game, Deric held Chicago to one goal on three shots with one save.
• Over his last three matches, Deric has surrendered three goals on nine shots.

Players to Watch

NYCFC

Alexander Ring scored early for NYCFC but an offensive drought for the rest of the match caused a 3-1 loss to Real Salt Lake.

• Heber leads the club with nine goals in 14 appearances in 2019 for NYCFC.
• Maxi Moralez leads the MLS in assists with 13 in 18 games this year.
• Moralez and Heber also lead the club with four home goals each.

Houston Dynamo

Houston has not scored a goal over their last two matches against Chicago and Seattle.

• Alberth Elis leads the Dynamo with two road goals this season. He also has seven assists on the year to lead the club.
• Mauro Manotas has scored just one of his eight goals on the road this season.
• Manotas leads the team in game-winning goals with four in 2019.

Last Five Games

New York City FC

• New York FC 2-3-0 in their last five matches.
• New York has a minus-1 goal differential in their last five games.
• NYCFC has scored seven goals in their last five matches.

Houston Dynamo

• Houston has a record of 1-4-0 over their last five matches.
• In their last five matches, the Dynamo have scored just four goals.
• Houston’s goal differential in their last five games is minus-7.

Game Odds

If you reside in New Jersey, you can already place bets on MLS games at 888Sport.

Match

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