Pretty Futbol and Efficiency-- Bizarro World Edition

In a reversal of roles of sorts, an American team danced with the ball, moved effortlessly around the field and put on a dazzling attacking display, yet failed to score a goal.

The Houston Dynamo couldn't find a way to take advantage of their possession last night against Costa Rican champion Saprissa. Houston looked good. At the end of the 0-0 draw, I thought that Houston must have had nearly 20 shots. A look at the box score this morning confirmed it: Houston had 17 shots.

Part of the problem was that few of them were on goal: only 4 of 17. But not every dangerous opportunity that Houston created ended in a shot on goal (especially Ching's late header just over the bar), so the bigger problem is that none of them went in.

There was a lot to like about how the Dynamo played: DeRosario looked dangerous. New striker Franco Caraccio looked decent. In fact, about the only Houston player who looked bad was newcomer Geoff Cameron. It turns out that playing for the University of Rhode Island is not good preparation for playing the Costa Rican champions. He wasted a couple of possessions for Houston late in the game, when they most needed to press. It wasn't really Cameron's fault: he's a young player fresh out of the completely different college game. Houston's lost a little attacking depth this year and injuries to Stuart Holden and Brad Davis made it even more apparent. But Houston needed a late game changer, and it didn't have one.

The real question is how surprised we should be by all of this. Houston can be fairly said to be unlucky that at least one of its close calls didn't go in, but Saprissa, despite conceding possession entirely to Houston, had a couple of equally dangerous chances (Saprissa actually put more shots on frame-- 7 to Houston's 4).

But the simple fact is that MLS teams aren't better than Costa Rican teams yet. MLS teams have struggled mightily, compiling a record of three wins, three ties and six losses against Tico teams. Series victories against Costa Rican clubs in the Champions Cup are uncommon, although Houston beat Costa Rica's Puntarenas last year. Simply put, MLS teams are still underdogs. And when Houston goes to Costa Rica, it's fair to say they'll be heavy underdogs. That's why it was a real shame that Houston, for all their pretty futbol, just couldn't get the goals last night.