The Houston Dynamo extend a warm welcome to Toluca FC when the two sides meet in the Leagues Cup Round of 32 on what is projected to be a hot and humid Friday night at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston, Texas.
The weather forecast at kickoff is in the lower 90s Fahrenheit, an adjustment that even for the Diablos Rojos is a bit extreme.
“Very hot,” said Toluca head coach Renato Paiva. “We thought it was hot in Kansas, it's much hotter here. But it's a beautiful city that I hope will be the city that marks our qualification for the Round of 16.
“We have 90 and many minutes ahead of us, but very difficult, even more so with the issue of heat, which is not an excuse, but who is here, for who is not, it may be, but who is here can feel it,” Paiva added. “It's hard to breathe, we have to adapt quickly to that, but it is what it is and we have a lot of confidence in our team, in what we're doing. But I repeat, only a high-level Toluca can win this match.”
Toluca won the West 4 group with victories over Chicago Fire and Sporting Kansas City. Prior to the tournament, the team started the Liga MX Apertura 2024 season with two wins and two draws.
Always in the hunt for trophies, Toluca is the third-winningest club in Mexico with ten league titles behind Club América (15) and Chivas of Guadalajara (12). They have yet to lose a match in the Leagues Cup, eliminated in the 2023 Round of 16 on penalties.
“The level of confidence is high,” said Toluca goalkeeper Tiago Volpi. “Because of what we have been doing, not only in the Leagues Cup, but what we have shown in the league as well, but confidence to a certain point.”
“I think it will be the most difficult game we will have so far,” Volpi added. “It is an extremely organized team, an extremely compact team and we expect a very, very difficult game.”
The Houston Dynamo share the same sentiment.
“They have very good players,” said Houston Dynamo midfielder Artur. “They push a lot of numbers forward, and we know it's going to be very difficult to defend them, but we know we also have the quality to hurt them and the other side of the pitch. I think we need to be ready for that, and tomorrow, we need to start with the right intensity, and it's going to be one of the best teams we've played so far.”
Houston Dynamo FC bounced back from a 1-nil loss to Atlas in their opening match with a 3-nil victory over Real Salt Lake to take first place in West 8. Eliminated from defending their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title, the Dynamo have looked to the Leagues Cup as a chance to replicate their 2023 cup-winning success.
“Toluca shows some things that we haven't seen in a while,” said Houston Dynamo head coach Ben Olsen. “A very, very solid team all around high. Quality individuals all over the field. A very aggressive attack. The amount of numbers that are being thrown at you is somewhat extreme and difficult to handle.
“Of course, when you do something extreme, it gives some vacancies and some opportunities for us. So, we’ve got to find that balance of making sure we respect them and understand what they're going to do, but also be ourselves and play the way we can at home.”
