Houston, Texas (Sunday, July 10, 2022) – Real Monarchs (1-12-2 5 points) dropped a 4-1 loss in Texas to Houston Dynamo 2 (9-3-2, 30 points) after a three-goal second half from the home side, erasing the first-half equalizer from captain Pedro Fonseca.
In the summer Texas heat, it was the home side who struck first in the 14th minute off of some chaos created by a corner kick. After an initial punch away from Monarchs’ goalkeeper Gavin Beavers, the ball bounced around in the box before Mujeeb Murana hit a right-footed shot inside the far post to take the early 1-0 lead.
Ten minutes later Real Monarchs were able to equalize on the counter-attack when Tyrone Mondi won control of the ball and played it ahead to Leo Torres. Torres took a touch past midfield before sending a long ball over the top towards Fonseca whose defender slipped, leaving him alone with Dynamo 2’s goalkeeper, Andrew Pannenberg, to slot the ball into the back of the net. As the half progressed, both sides had opportunities to take the lead, but neither side could break through, keeping the score knotted at 1-1.
Coming out of the halftime break, Houston pushed hard to reestablish the lead, creating multiple opportunities before breaking through again in the 58th minute. After a turnover inside the box, Brooklyn Raines found Jacob Evans in front of goal who snuck it past Beavers inside the near post. Shortly thereafter Dynamo 2 earned a penalty and Kyle Edwards powered it home to make it 3-1 in the 61st minute. Two minutes later the home side struck again as Edwards played ahead to Isaiah LeFlore who slammed the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal for the 4-1 lead.
Monarchs almost pulled one back as Fonseca’s shot from outside the box went just wide of the goal and out of reach of Yekeson Subah. The team was unable to spring another attack forward and the match ended 4-1 in favor of Dynamo 2.
UP NEXT: Real Monarchs will look to build on their first victory at home as the Club returns to Zions Bank Stadium to take on Western Conference foe Sporting Kansas City II on Saturday, July 16 at 7:00 p.m MT for Wizards and Princesses Night. Tickets can be purchased at rsl.com/monarchs/tickets/.
GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN:
HOU: Mujeeb Murana 14th minute: Punching on a loose ball after a corner kick, Murana found himself alone inside the box and fired a shot into the side netting.
RM: Pedro Fonseca 23rd minute: After taking the ball away deep in their own defensive end, the Monarchs sprung the counter with Torres launching a deep ball to Fonseca who calmly pounded the ball past the goalkeeper and inside the far post for the equalizer.
HOU: Jacob Evans (Brooklyn Raines) 58th minute: After a turnover outside the 18-yard box, Raines found Evans whose right-footed shot tucked inside of the near post.
HOU: Kyle Edwards (PK) 61st minute: After being awarded a penalty kick for a foul from Christian Nydegger, Edwards placed his right-footed shot into the bottom left corner of the goal.
HOU: Isaiah LeFlore (Kyle Edwards) 63rd minute: On a fast break, Edwards played it ahead to second-half substitute LeFlore slipped the pass into the back of the net.
NOTES:
- Defender Bret Halsey made his 2022 debut and his first appearance in MLS NEXT Pro.
- Defenders Bode Hidalgo and Bobby Pierre were suspended for today’s match. Hidalgo was absent due to yellow card accumulation, while Pierre was out due to a red card he picked up in a dominant win against Timbers 2.
- Today’s matches mark the first matches where MLS NEXT Pro’s new rules were used. If any player earns a red card in tonight’s match, they will be suspended for the next time these two teams meet. In addition, if a player goes down and needs medical attention, that player will be taken off the field and treated and cannot return to the field until a minimum of three minutes have passed.
Match: Real Monarchs vs Houston Dynamo 2
Date: July 10, 2022
Venue: AVEVA Stadium
Weather: Sunny and 101
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
Real Monarchs 1 0 1
Houston Dynamo 2 1 3 4
HOU: Mujeeb Murana 14’
RM: Pedro Fonseca 23’
HOU: Jacob Evans (Brooklyn Raines) 58’
HOU: Kyle Edwards (PK) 61’
HOU: Isaiah LeFlore (Kyle Edwards) 63’
Lineups:
Real Monarchs (4-5-1): Gavin Beavers; Bret Halsey, Christian Nydegger, Jaziel Orozco, Aziz Kayondo; Golden Mafwenta (Abokye Bikyeombe 66’), Pedro Fonseca, Chris Garcia, Benjamin Rodriguez (Yekeson Subah 59’), Leo Torres (Julio Benitez 66’); Tyrone Mondi
Subs not used: Blake Kelly, Marcus Vazquez, Jude Wellings,
Houston Dynamo 2 (4-3-3): Andrew Pannenberg; Jathan Juarez, Micael dos Santos Silva, Jon Talen Maples, Mujeeb Murana; Marcelo Palomino (Paulo Lima 68’), Juan Castilla (Diego Gonzalez 74’), Brooklyn Raines; Thiago Fernandes Rodrigues (Isaiah LeFlore 46’), Jacob Evans (D’Allesandro Herrera 74’), Papa Ndoye (Kyle Edwards 54’)
Subs not used: Jonathan Munteanu, Sterling Penniston-John, Diego Rosas, Joyner Castillo,
Stats Summary: RM/ HOU
Shots: 9/12
Shots on goal: 1/4
Saves: 0/0
Corner Kicks: 1/3
Fouls: 17/18
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
RM: Jaziel Orozco (caution) 16’
HOU: Juan Castilla (caution) 36’
HOU: Jacob Evans (caution) 73’
RM: Aziz Kayondo (caution) 78’
HOU: Brooklyn Raines (caution) 90’
OFFICIALS:
Referee: Ricardo Fierro
Assistant Referees: Justin Mack, Samuel Zamora
4th Official: Alexandra Theriot
