Revs in town; Time to turn this ship around.

Taylor Twellman and the Revs come to H-town to avenge their loss to Dynamo Houston in last year's MLS Cup. They look poised to do so, with a productive attack that has scored a league high 14 goals in 7 games and two scorers in the league top 10: Twellman who leads the league with 6 goals and Andy Dorman who is sixth in the league with 3 goals. On top of that, they have Steve Ralston, who has a goal himself and an assist on the other 6 goals for the team. Playing with three backs, the team has a goals-against average of just a goal a game.

Houston on the other hand has a struggling attack, with the entire team racking up a total of 4 goals, tied with Columbus and Toronto for last place. We've been shut out in 4 of our 6 games, and have only two goal scorers. On the plus side, our defense has allowed only 4 goals, for a .67 average per game.

Despite the stats and the standings, both teams are well coached, stocked with talent, and very capable. If the Revs play a true 3-5-2, we should have less trouble in the attacking third (our usual region of weakness), but we might have more difficulty with the build up in the middle (one of our stronger areas). If the Revs score first, I'll wager we lose the game and are probably shut out a 5th time for the season as the visitors bunker in and rely on only the counter. If we manage to score first, I bet the goals come in bunches -- perhaps for both sides -- and we win in the end.

Ngwenya finds his finishing touch tonight hopefully. His last game was disappointingly reminiscent of Ale Moreno's finishing, but his pace did give us a new aspect on the attack. Hopefully he settles in and gels with the rest of our attack, while finishing off the opportunities he creates on his own. I also hope that DDR relaxes, only then will he regain the form that is powered by mojo, Wu Wei, the Force, or whatever term you prefer.

To be candid, I'm no Twellman fan. He has talent, no doubt, but strikes me as the Dan Marino of the MLS: talented, arrogant, whiny when things don't go his way, and (so far) unsuccessful winning championships. I hope Twellman is shut out tonight by Onstad & Crew.

For the second home game in a row, I won't make it to the Rob. I'll be attending my son's guitar performance, so I'll have to watch the taped match with the echoes of "Smoke on the Water" and "Louie, Louie" still echoing in my head. I hope the crowd looks spirited and shows the TFC fans that we're still tops in the league, while the Dynamo does the same on the field. Go Orange.