Things are heating up in Houston as Sounders FC prepares to take on the Dynamo in the second-to-last match of the MLS regular season. With just three points separating the club from a seventh-straight postseason appearance, defender Brad Evans shares his Captain's Notes and reflects on the task facing his team this weekend.
This is a massive match at Houston on Sunday. We're coming off a bye week where we had the chance to get a lot of guys healthy and we're recharged and ready to go. It was a tough few weeks at practice but we're eager to get back out there. We should have a full-strength lineup and we look to make a run at this thing. With the standings as they are, we know things are tight, but the biggest thing we need to take into account is us. We need to worry about ourselves and worry about where we are. Once we start thinking too much about other teams and banking on them to get results, we lose focus on what we're trying to do. That's the point we've been reminding ourselves of all week as we prepare for this match. We need to focus on us and play our game.
We are coming into a very difficult place to play here in Houston. It's a place where we haven't gotten a result in a long time. We're taking that into account, along with the weather, but we know it could be worse. We had a good day of training on Saturday and the guys are focused and ready. We wanted to keep the momentum going and we know we need to jump right back into it. We know our fate lies in our hands.
We'll see what this team is made of in the next two weeks if we can advance. That's the bottom line. I think we're ready for the tough task ahead. When you think of Houston, Brad Davis comes to mind, as does Will Bruin. Giles Barnes has been a revelation for them, too. They've solidified their backline and historically, this is a difficult place to play. We know we face a difficult team, but we have to get after it on Sunday.
Let's go, Sounders!
