February 23, 2007
The defending MLS Cup Champion Houston Dynamo will play Puntarenas FC of Costa Rica at 8 p.m. this Thursday at the Aggie Soccer Stadium in a must win affair for the Houston professional team.
Puntarenas FC claimed the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup quarterfinal series against the Dynamo with a dramatic 1-0 victory Wednesday afternoon in the Costa Rican?™s coastal city.
That contest was decided in stoppage time when Kurt Bernard found the back of the net. Although the strike didn't have much power, a deflection by a Dynamo defender was enough to give it a way into the Houston goal. Houston must now win the return game in College Station by a two goal margin to win the series on aggregate scoring and advance to the CONCACAF Cup Semi-Finals.
The Dynamo played much of that game?™s second half down a man after Mexican referee Arredondo sent off Houston center back Eddie Robinson, apparently for time-wasting. The defender had received a yellow card very early on and received his second after seemingly simulating a foul. Also receiving a red card was Dynamo trainer Bruce Morgan, who kicked the Red Cross stretcher after coming onto the field to tend to a Dynamo player, who suffered a knock.
?We?™re obviously very excited to have the Dynamo coming to Aggieland,? said Texas A&M soccer coach G Guerrieri. ?As a fan of the team I feel really honored to have them playing in our stadium and am hoping they can pull off the big win needed on Thursday. The playing surface at the Aggie Soccer Stadium is in wonderful shape and I?™m hoping that we?™ll have a full-house crowd there to rouse them to victory.?
This will be the first professional soccer game ever held at the Aggie Soccer Stadium. The Aggies annually lead the NCAA in college soccer attendance, and will also be hosting the NCAA Women?™s College Cup at the complex in December.
?This is a big deal for soccer in the College Station/Bryan area. We?™re pretty close to the suburbs of Houston, and many people in our community made the drive down to Houston to see Dynamo games against MLS teams last summer. But, this is a really exciting opportunity to have the MLS champs come to our town and play in a great competition,? added Guerrieri.
The CONCACAF Champions Cup is the longest running international club competition in the Central American, North American and Caribbean regions, and has crowned the champion club of the Confederation since its inception in 1962. As MLS Cup Champion, the Houston Dynamo is automatically entered to participate in this event. In addition to becoming the CONCACAF Champion, the winner will also have the chance to play as the CONCACAF representative against the world's best teams in the 2007 FIFA Club World Cup, while the Champions' Cup runner-up will be one of the three CONCACAF invitees to the 2007 Copa Nissan Sudamericana.
Tickets for Thursday?™s game are still available and can be purchased online at www.HoustonDynamo.com.