Houston Dynamo secured a late equalizer through Artur to earn a point against Vancouver and maintain playoff contention. The draw left Houston 12th in the Western Conference, three points behind San Jose in the final postseason spot. The Dynamo have not won in five MLS matches, but manager Ben Olsen praised the team's resiliency, grit, and the strong impact from substitutes. San Jose have recorded one win in eight league games and most recently lost 2-1 to San Diego, producing higher xG but missing many chances. Midfielder Noel Buck called for improved attacking efficiency to bolster qualifying hopes.
We ended up being pushed back and defending for long stretches. But they can do that, and they usually do it against teams that come into this building. The resiliency was real. The grit that we have been finding over the last few weeks was found, and to get something out of it was a really emotional point for us. The substitutes came in and did great again. Overall, a lot of good performances against a very good team, arguably the best in the division, most certainly in this building.
San Jose, meanwhile, are enduring a difficult stretch of late, picking up just one win in their last eight league matches, the latest of which saw them lose 2-1 to San Diego FC. They were made to rue a glut of missed opportunities, having registered an expected goals (xG) total of 1.54 from their 16 shots to San Diego's 0.69 from their five attempts. And midfielder Noel Buck insisted that his team must improve their efficiency in attack if they are to stand any chance of qualifying for the playoffs this season.
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