The Houston Dynamo defeated Inter Miami 2-1 to lift the US Open Cup at DRV PNK Stadium, as goals from Griffin Dorsey and Amine Bassi secured Ben Olsen his first title as head coach. The Herons were without Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba, as the pair failed to make the bench due to injuries.

Corey Baird initiated the goal-scoring run, outpacing Sergio Busquets to work his way into the final third before finding Artur in the center. The midfielder danced his way through Miami’s backline to seek out Dorsey on the far left and propel the defender to rocket the ball into the upper left corner.  

The visitors doubled the score just minutes later, after Inter Miami defender DeAndre Yedlin brought down Houston’s Nelson Giovanny Quiñónes Iturre inside the box to inspire the penalty. Bassi stepped up and sent the ball into the center of the net for the 2-0 lead. 

Houston almost managed the 3-0, but VAR proved Quiñónes’ strike to be offside and ruled the goal out. 

Inter Miami managed to get back into the game when pulling one back, as Josef Martinez connected with Facundo Farias to score in stoppage time. But the efforts proved too late.

Despite the loss, Inter Miami still qualified to the Concacaf Champions League due to their Leagues Cup victory.

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GK: Drake Callender – 6.5/10 – Inconsistant once again. Made certain saves, but struggled when put under constant pressure from Houston.

RB: DeAndre Yedlin – 3/10 – Terrible defending on the first goal before comitting the foul that inspired the penalty. All around a disappointing performance.

CB: Serhiy Kryvtsov – 4/10 – Struggled throughout. Absent in that first goal, and made constant errors throughout the field. Most notably, displayed a lack of communication with Callendar that could’ve cost Miami another goal.

CB: Kamal Miller – 6/10 – Led the defense with a couple necessary saves, but overall struggled to keep Houston’s attack at bay.

LB: Noah Allen – 6/10 – Arrived extremely late to defend the first goal, and overall lost in the backline.

CM: Diego Gomez – 6/10 – Underwhelming. Appeared defeated before being subbed out.

CM: Sergio Busquets – 7/10 – Clearly overworked in the midfield, but still found moments to shine with certain passes and free kick attempts.

CM: Benjamin Cremaschi – 6/10 – Visibly tired, blended into the background of this match. Made a few key passes, but otherwise lacked energy.

RW: Facundo Farias – 5/10 – The team missed his creativity on the attack. Managed the assist on the goal but could’ve done much more to find another opportunity during regular time.

ST: Leonardo Campana – 5/10 – Completely lacking. Could’ve created more opportunities but struggled to find clarity on the attack.

LW: Robert Taylor – 6/10 – Made a couple attempts but nothing nearly as threatening as previous performances.

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Substitutions

CM: Dixon Arroyo ( ’46 for Diego Gomez) – 6/10 – Did little to improve the game.

ST: Josef Martinez ( ’46 for Robert Taylor) – 10/10 – Scored the goal. The only 10 tonight.

CM: David Ruiz ( ’76 for DeAndre Yedlin) – N/A

CM: Nicolás Marcelo Stefanelli ( ’86 for Benjamin Cremaschi) – N/A

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Manager

Gerardo ‚Tata‘ Martino – 6/10 – Limited options given the injury-laden roster but struggled to find a composed lineup following halftime.

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