Allianz Field once again played host to an energetic and extremely vocal home crowd, which is no surprise considering Minnesota United’s recent run of form at this juncture of the season. From kickoff and throughout the first half it appeared as if this game would have a similar storyline as most of the Loons most recent wins, but it wouldn’t quite turn out that way. Once again, the Loons attack started out fast and found themselves getting quality looks at the Houston net. But, for every nice look the boys found themselves with, it was an extra touch here or missed pass there that stood between them and finding themselves in the lead in the first half.
In spite of the handful of miscues, Minnesota United felt very much in control of their own destiny for the remainder of the half. However, as they’ve been prone to do in some of their contests this season, they allowed an annoyingly well-placed Houston cross that Corey Baird nearly shanked but ultimately chipped high enough into the air and out of reach of goalkeeper Dayne St Clair, resulting in a lame but legal score. 1-0, Houston.
The late lapse didn’t feel like a good omen for the boys as they made their way to the locker room at the half. The start of the second half didn’t instill much in the way of optimism, as the trend of nice looks on goal suffered from the same extra touches and off-target passes that had kept the squad off the scoreboard earlier in the game. In addition, the Houston side showed glimpses of an attack that could pose an issue to the Loons trying to climb back into this one. Add in the Dynamo’s strategic efforts to milk as much of the clock as possible against a more talented MNUFC squad, making the danger of losing to the less-than-vaunted 13th seed in the Western Conference a concerning possibility.
Thankfully, the Loons were primed to answer the early wake-up call later in the game. The first signs of life came not from the attack but from All-Star MVP goalkeeper Dayne St Clair, whose Superman-esque save in the 75th minute kept another Houston goal from slipping in, while also revitalizing a crowd that was looking for something to spark the comeback. In the 79th minute, that spark turned into a flame, when Emanuel Reynoso’s free kick from outside the corner of the box had enough English on it to ricochet off Houston defender Fafà Picault and into goal, 1-1.
Then, in the 85th minute, the Loons lit all of Allianz ablaze with a beautiful cross from defender Alan Benítez that found Luis Amarilla front-and-center in the box, who put a boot on the ball and sealed the deal in completing the comeback win.
For a team that saw similar sorts of games sneak away from them earlier in the season, this win showed another side of Minnesota United that will be important to see if they plan on making noise down the stretch and into the playoffs. When the chips were down, they fought their way out of the hole they had made for themselves to get the win. It’s a testament to just how far MNUFC has come over the course of the 2022 MLS campaign.
