Houston Dynamo, who finished 4th in the Western Conference, struggled a bit to reach this stage. However, it’s fair to see that it’s well deserved. They had to beat Real Salt Lake in penalties in the third game of the best-of-three series.

All three games were tight with two going to penalties, so that shows me they have the right mentality for knockout competitions – not forgetting they also won the U.S. Open Cup in September, beating Inter Miami 1:2 in the final.

In the previous playoffs round they deserved to beat Real Salt Lake already in the second game (1.26 expected goalS, 0.81 for RSL). However, their topscorer Bassi (who is in great form with 2 goals in three playoff games) missed the first penalty in the shoutout and finally Houston lost the round. In the third game they also had more chances and expected goals (0.95) than RSL (0.30), but had to wait till the penalties shoutout to confirm the qualification.

There’re three players really stand out for Houston. Firstly, the composure and awareness of Hector Herrera in the centre of midfield is vital to how the side play – he controls the tempo, reads the game so well, and can launch attacks with his clever passing.

Then there’s Adalberto Carrasquilla who generally starts on the right but pops up anywhere in the final third. I see him as the dangerman because he has the ability to score and create, so Sporting Kansas City need to nullify him.

And finally I also see as an important player for this match the striker Amine Bassi, who scored three goals in the US Open Cup semifinals (3:1), another one in the final (1:2), and also scored in two of the three playoffs games against RSL. He’s a reliable scorer for the knockout rounds.

During the regular season, Houston Dynamo has been the best home team in the league (11/4/2) conceding only 11 goals in 17 rounds, so I’m sure that this first home game with the fans support will give them a big boost. They have been fairly impressive so far this season.

On the other hand, Sporting KC got two great wins against St Louis City SC which was a surprise because they finished eighth in the regular season and their opponents came top. They just don't have the consistency to assume it will continue playing at a high level. For me SKC have not been at their best over the past year.

They were very close to not qualifying for the playoffs, as they finished 8th with only 1 point advantage with Portland who didn't qualify. A crucial game for the qualification was the penultimate round against RSL where they won 2:3 and all was easier thanks to a red card to the hosts at 2’.

For them to have a chance here, I feel their front three of Alan Pulido, Daniel Salloi and Johnny Russell all need to be at their best. Between them, they have scored well over half of their side’s goals this season, so it really is an effective trio that links up so well together.

However, their defense isn’t reliable as they have conceded 51 goals in 34 games.

Away to St Louis, Sporting KC won the midfield battle and were clinical with their finishing. They will need something similar here, but I see Houston as stronger in the centre and they also have home advantage. SKC has been a very weak traveler during the season: only 3 victories and 8 defeats in 17 rounds.

Houston Dynamo are in the midst of a purple patch at the moment and will look to make the most of their excellent form. The likes of Corey Baird and Amine Bassi can be lethal on their day and will need to be at their best this weekend. Although Sporting Kansas City have peaked at the right time this season they’ll be up against a formidable opponent on Sunday. Houston Dynamo have been the better team this season and I expect them to win this game.

休斯顿迪纳摩队在西部排名第四，为了达到这个阶段，他们付出了一些努力。然而，公平地说，这是当之无愧的。在三局四胜制系列赛的第三场比赛中，他们不得不在点球大战中击败皇家盐湖城队。

所有三场比赛都很紧张，其中两场进入点球，所以我认为他们有正确的心态参加淘汰赛-不要忘记他们还在9月份赢得了美国公开赛杯，在决赛中以1:2击败国际迈阿密。

在之前的季后赛中，他们应该在第二场比赛中击败皇家盐湖城(预期进球1.26,RSL 0.81)。然而，他们的头号射手巴西(他在三场季后赛中打进2球，状态非常好)在大喊大叫中错失了第一个点球，最终休斯顿输掉了本轮比赛。在第三场比赛中，他们的机会和预期进球数(0.95)也比韩国队(0.30)多，但直到点球大战才确定出线。

休斯顿有三名球员非常突出。首先，埃雷拉在中场的冷静和意识对球队的发挥至关重要——他控制着节奏，很好地解读比赛，并能通过他聪明的传球发动进攻。

然后是阿达伯托·卡拉斯奎拉，他通常在右路首发，但也会在最后三分之一的位置出现。我认为他是一个危险的人，因为他有得分和创造的能力，所以堪萨斯城体育需要消除他。

最后，我也看到了这场比赛的重要球员，前锋阿明·巴西，他在美国公开赛杯半决赛(3:1)中打入三球，在决赛(1:2)中打入一球，并在与RSL的三场季后赛中的两场比赛中进球。在淘汰赛中，他是一个可靠的得分手。

在常规赛中，休斯顿迪纳摩是联盟中最好的主场球队(11/4/2)，在17轮比赛中只丢了11个球，所以我相信在球迷的支持下，首场主场比赛会给他们很大的鼓舞。本赛季到目前为止，他们表现得相当出色。

另一方面，KC竞技在对阵圣路易斯城的比赛中取得了两场伟大的胜利，这是一个惊喜，因为他们在常规赛中排名第八，而他们的对手则排名第一。他们只是没有足够的稳定性来维持高水平的比赛。对我来说，SKC在过去的一年里并没有处于最佳状态。

他们非常接近没有资格进入季后赛，因为他们只领先开拓者1分，排在第8位。预选赛的一场关键比赛是在倒数第二轮对阵RSL的比赛中，他们以2:3获胜，多亏了东道主在2分时吃到红牌，一切都变得容易了。

他们要想在这里有机会，我觉得他们的前三名普利多，萨洛伊和拉塞尔都需要处于最佳状态。他们俩本赛季的进球数超过了球队进球数的一半，所以这真的是一个有效的三人组，他们可以很好地结合在一起。

然而，他们的防守并不可靠，他们在34场比赛中丢了51个球。

客场对阵圣路易斯的比赛中，KC竞技赢得了中场之战，他们的射门也很冷静。他们也需要一些类似的东西，但我认为火箭的中锋更强，而且他们也有主场优势。SKC在这个赛季一直是一个非常弱的旅行者:17轮只有3胜8负。

休斯顿迪纳摩目前正处于紫色补丁的中间，他们将会充分利用他们的出色状态。像科里·贝尔德和阿明·巴西这样的球员在他们的比赛中可能是致命的，本周末他们需要发挥出最好的状态。尽管堪萨斯城体育本赛季在适当的时候达到了顶峰，但他们将在周日面对一个强大的对手。休斯顿迪纳摩是本赛季更好的球队，我希望他们能赢得这场比赛。