Houston was given a gift in their first U.S. Open Cup match this season. The Dynamo were drawn against an opponent that they could easily dismantle for a victory, regaining their confidence in the process.

Now that I actually type that, it actually seems moronic of me to have even thought this Dynamo team would be capable of putting up a good performance against any team. Even if that team was a fourth division, PDL team from Laredo.

I’m going to quickly recap the match before writing a very disappointing review on this poor excuse for a Dynamo team. Laredo Heat made it to this round of the Cup by defeating a second division NASL team in the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Laredo deserves to be praised for coming into Houston and keeping it close.

Laredo could have probably put up more of a fight had they not had a player ejected in the 40th minute. Matthiew Braem was shown his second yellow card just 8 minutes after receiving his first.

This game was supposed to be a morale booster for Houston. After a performance like that, it will have the complete opposite effect.

Alex Lopez scored the only goal of the night, and his first official goal as an Houston Dynamo, in the 31st minute off of a beautiful chip shot. Tyler Deric would be shown a red card in the 52nd minute for stopping a shot just outside of the area. Tally Hall would replace Omar Cummings to fill-in for Deric. That concludes our recap, now for my rant.

After Houston was torn apart by Sporting Kansas City, right before Major League Soccer’s World Cup break, I looked at this game against Laredo Heat SC as Houston’s final chance to build confidence before having a vacation full of doubt.

Houston should not have only defeated Laredo, but they should have annihilated them. This game should never have been decided by a single goal.

However, as should be expected now, the Dynamo would let that chance go by having a horrific performance against Laredo. I don’t care if Laredo was having a Cinderella run, that does not change the fact that they are a Professional Development League team. Houston should not have only defeated them, but they should have annihilated them. This game should never have been decided by a single goal.

Houston controlled possession but what good is that if they can’t score? If Bruin cannot score against a 20 year-old goalkeeper from the fourth tier of American soccer, why should we have any confidence in him scoring against any Major League Soccer goalkeeper?

The loss against Colorado broke my heart, I was angry after losing against Sporting Kansas City, but barely beating Laredo has me feeling disgusted. I have never felt this way about a Dynamo team. Not even during the 2010 season.

The Houston Dynamo have hit rock-bottom. In a way, that may actually be a good thing, because there’s no possible way that they can sink any lower. Houston can only go up or stay in the early grave that it has dug for itself.

Houston will now either host FC Dallas or San Antonio Scorpions in the fifth round of the U.S. Open Cup on June 24 or 25. If they perform like they did against Laredo, get ready for yet another embarrassing result. The only saving grace will be that they will at least embarrass themselves against stronger opponents.