Minnesota United vs. Houston Dynamo
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Allianz Field
Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
Radio: KSTP-AM, 1500
Weather: 66 degrees, rain, 10 mph east wind
Betting line: MNUFC minus-115; draw plus-270; Houston plus-290
Form: The Loons (8-4-6, 30 points) had its four-match unbeaten streak snapped in a 4-2 loss to San Diego FC on June 14. Houston (5-8-5, 20 points) has dropped two straight to two of the worst teams in MLS — Montreal and Kansas City. Both were 3-1 defeats.
Recent matchup: MNUFC overhauled its starting XI and those eight changes — including five making their first starts of 2025 — resulted in a 2-0 loss to Houston on May 15. The Loons won’t be full strength Wednesday but aren’t expected to tie one hand behind its back in St. Paul.
Update: Four key MNUFC players — Dayne St. Clair and Tani Oluwaseyi (Canada), Carlos Harvey (Panama) and Joseph Rosales (Honduras) — remain away for the Concacaf Gold Cup and will miss Wednesday’s match.
Stats: The defeat to high-flying expansion side San Diego was the first time Minnesota had lost a match when scoring the first goal this season. They are now 8-1-3 in those games, 0-3-0 when allowing the first goal, along with three scoreless draws.
Check-in: Swedish club Malmo FF will no longer proceed in trying to acquire Loons winger Sang Bin Jeong, according to SportBladet. The outlet said MNUFC’s transfer fee of approximately $2 million has been deemed too high by Malmo. Jeong, who just received his U.S. Green Card, might more likely be headed to another MLS club this summer. The South Korean has yet to score in 286 MLS minutes this year.
View: Rookie goalkeeper Wessel Speel struggled in his MLS debut against San Diego, but head coach Eric Ramsay continued to speak highly of the 23-year-old Dutchman after the match. Actions will speak louder if he sticks with Speel over fellow back-up Alec Smir against Houston.
Projected starting XI: In a 5-4-1 formation, FW Kelvin Yeboah; MF Joaquin Pereyra, MF Robin Lod, MF Wil Trapp, MF Owen Gene; LWB Anthony Markanich, CB Nico Romero, CB Michael Boxall, CB Jefferson Diaz, RWB Julian Gressel; GK Wessel Speel.
Scouting report: Jack McGlynn, arguably Houston’s best player, is away with the U.S. men’s national team in the Concacaf Gold Cup. The 21-year-old was cutting open the Loons last month with a game-high 10 shot-creating actions, per FBref.com. United won’t miss him this month.
Prediction: Ramsay has talked regularly about the Loons contending with the top of the Western Conference. They smacked into the ceiling again versus San Diego. This match is about creating distance from their floor. Loons come out victorious, 2-1.
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