{"id":654678,"date":"2026-05-07T22:43:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T22:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/654678\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T22:43:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T22:43:12","slug":"lafc-vs-houston-dynamo-what-to-know-for-sunday-night-soccer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/654678\/","title":{"rendered":"LAFC vs. Houston Dynamo: What to know for Sunday Night Soccer"},"content":{"rendered":"

Matchday 12’s Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire doubleheader concludes when LAFC<\/a> host Houston Dynamo FC<\/a>.<\/p>\n

3rd in Western Conference
\n21 points, 6W-2L-3D<\/p>\n

LAFC turn focus back to the MLS regular season after exiting the Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a> semifinals, 5-2 on aggregate, to LIGA MX powerhouse Toluca on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n

The Black & Gold have four games before the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> pause, and will look to close the gap on Western Conference pace-setters Vancouver Whitecaps FC<\/a> and San Jose Earthquakes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

To reach that objective, it’s all about avoiding an emotional \u2013 and physical \u2013 dip after the club’s continental ambitions fell short.<\/p>\n

That’s where the likes of Son Heung-Min<\/a>, Stephen Eust\u00e1quio<\/a>\u00a0and Hugo Lloris<\/a> can prove crucial. The veterans will be counted on to deliver a business-like performance at home, where LAFC fans always expect three points.<\/p>\n

Son Heung-Min: The South Korean star is yet to score in league play this season, but he leads MLS with eight assists.
\nDavid Mart\u00ednez: The breakout season everyone has been waiting for seems to have arrived for the Venezuelan international, who has scored seven goals in around 950 minutes across all competitions.
\nStephen Eustaquio:\u00a0Canada<\/a>‘s co-captain hopes to head into the World Cup\u00a0pause in peak form after returning from injury.
\nAaron Long: The veteran center back recently made his return from injury and looks set to lead the Black & Gold’s formidable back line.\u00a0
\nHugo Lloris:\u00a0The legendary French World Cup-winning goalkeeper is rolling back the years with a league-leading eight clean sheets.<\/p>\n

Now that LAFC are out of the Concacaf Champions Cup, it’s all about stacking points \u2013 and getting the most out of key squad players.<\/p>\n

With Denis Bouanga<\/a> suspended, Nathan Ordaz<\/a> or Jacob Shaffelburg<\/a> could slot in out wide.<\/p>\n

8th in Western Conference
\n15 points, 5W-5L-0D<\/p>\n

It’s been a two-part story for the Dynamo in 2026.<\/p>\n

After starting the season with four losses in their first six games, the Dynamo have found form with five wins in their last six matches across all competitions.<\/p>\n

In large part, the shift has been due to significant defensive improvement. Houston have gone from conceding 16 goals in their first six games to just four goals in their last six matches.<\/p>\n

Newcomers Guilherme<\/a> and Mateusz Bogusz<\/a>, as well as Argentine striker Ezequiel Ponce<\/a>, form Houston’s Designated Player trio. USMNT<\/a> midfielder Jack McGlynn<\/a> is another key standout for head coach Ben Olsen’s side.<\/p>\n

Guilherme: An early candidate for Newcomer of the Year, the Brazilian has hit the ground running with 5g\/4a in his first 10 MLS games.
\nMateusz Bogusz: The former LAFC standout has had a slow start to his Dynamo career with 1g\/1a. Will a matchup with his old club light a spark?
\nJack McGlynn: The former Philadelphia Union<\/a> midfielder has made his presence felt with three assists despite missing a month due to injury.
\nLawrence Ennali: Fresh off scoring a golazo in Houston’s 1-0 win<\/a> over the Colorado Rapids<\/a>\u00a0last weekend, Ennali<\/a> is on pace for a career year with three goals already.
\nH\u00e9ctor Herrera: Whether he starts or comes off the bench, the former Mexican national team star tends to leave his mark.<\/p>\n

If veteran defender Erik Sviatchenko<\/a> is healthy and available, he could slot onto the backline. Otherwise, we expect Houston to run it back.<\/p>\n

The market appears to favor LAFC, who are licking their wounds from a 4-0 defeat<\/a> at Toluca midweek. Despite that, the Black & Gold’s eight goals against are the fifth-fewest in MLS this season, and Son and Mart\u00ednez are game-changers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Live trade MLS games and props on\u00a0Polymarket<\/a>. Current as of Thursday, May 7 at 10 am ET.<\/p>\n

Will LAFC experience a CCC hangover?<\/p>\n

If not, this match could come down to which dynamic attack breaks through against the other’s stingy defense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Matchday 12’s Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire doubleheader concludes when LAFC host Houston Dynamo FC. 3rd…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":654679,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,16527,242671,24857,93272,24855,561,82,93270],"class_list":["post-654678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-houston-dynamo-fc","tag-lafcvshou-05-10-2026","tag-los-angeles-football-club","tag-priority-match","tag-sendtonews","tag-soccer","tag-sports","tag-sunday-night-soccer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=654678"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654678\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/654679"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=654678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=654678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=654678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}