Caleb Porter says New England Revolution need to show they are fighters against Houston Dynamo as they look to build on their latest win.

The Revs beat Nashville SC 1-0 at the weekend to move off the foot of the Eastern Conference, snapping a five-match winless streak in the process.

They are just six points off a playoff spot with four games left to play, and Porter is hoping for more of the same mentality to come away with three points.

"We talked a lot last week about just having a better mentality, not being quite as emotional, and just being more steady and having ice in our veins a little bit more," Porter said, as quoted in the Blazing Musket substack.

"We are going to have to, at times, absorb. [Houston] are one of the best possession teams in the league.

"We are going to have to keep the game tight. From here on out, we have to be tough to play against. We are going to keep showing we are fighters, and we are going to be organized."

Meanwhile, Houston clinched their playoff spot at the weekend, despite a 1-0 defeat to Seattle Sounders due to FC Dallas' loss, as they sit sixth in the Western Conference.

It is the second year running they are in the postseason, and head coach Ben Olsen is hopeful they can use that as motivation to get back to winning ways.

"We are excited about being in the postseason and that's a big deal," Olsen said.

"These guys have worked really hard all year to get us into this position. We have a tough team in town in New England, so we have to focus on that as we turn the page on a disappointing result in Seattle."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Houston Dynamo – Griffin Dorsey

The Dynamo held 62.4% possession against the Sounders on Saturday, the 14th time Houston held at least 60% of the ball in 2024, the third-most games on record in an MLS season since Opta began detailed data collection of MLS in 2010.

Griffin Dorsey finished the game with a 100% pass completion rate in that defeat, not misplacing any of his 41 passes in the 80 minutes he was on the pitch.

New England Revolution – Aljaz Ivacic

After conceding multiple goals in each of their previous five league matches, New England secured a 1-0 win over Nashville on Saturday.

The Revolution have not kept consecutive regular-season clean sheets since the opening two matches of the 2023 season, with the second of those coming against Houston, and Aljaz Ivacic will be keen to get another shutout.

MATCH PREDICTION: HOUSTON DYNAMO WIN

New England have won seven of their last nine matches against Houston (D1 L1) dating back to the beginning of the 2014 season. However, the Dynamo's only win in that time came in the last meeting between the sides in Houston, a 3-1 victory in September 2022.

Houston's five-match unbeaten run came to an end on Saturday with a 1-0 loss at Seattle. The Dynamo have not lost consecutive matches in all competitions since losses to Austin FC and FC Dallas in late April.

Meanwhile, New England have lost 13 of their last 17 MLS away matches (incl. playoffs) dating back to the start of October 2023. The Revs have lost their last three on the road, being outscored 9-0 in those games.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Houston Dynamo – 61.1%

Draw – 20.5%

New England Revolution – 18.4%

Austin FC head coach Josh Wolff challenged his team to fight against "adversity" when they host derby rivals Houston Dynamo on Saturday.

Austin are 10th in the Western Conference, and are 10 points behind the playoff spots, with the Dynamo currently sitting in seventh place.

They have won just one of their last seven MLS outings (a 2-0 win over Nashville SC), and are winless in three, though they did draw 1-1 with Los Angeles FC last time out.

When asked if he was still targeting the playoffs, Wolff insisted that his team would fight to the last game.

"More adversity, bring it on," he said. "It's what we have to deal with.

"These guys compete, they have nothing but confidence in what we're doing. We should have more points based on some of the performances, but we keep looking forward and powering on.

"We need a big, big push at home and a big performance, but it's certainly attainable."

Meanwhile, Houston are unbeaten in each of their last four outings, winning two and drawing two, but were unable to hold onto their lead in a 1-1 draw with Vancouver Whitecaps in midweek.

They can make history on Saturday though – a win would set a new record for road victories in a single season, and it would be their first-ever triumph at Q2 Stadium, having lost all five previous visits.

"We're thinking of the game in front of us right now, and we owe Austin," Griffin Dorsey said. "They took six points from us.

"It's a rivalry game in a good atmosphere. It'll be a great night to take three points from them, and [making history] would make it more special."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Austin FC – Jader Obrian

On Wednesday, Jader Obrian notched his team-leading sixth goal of the season, but it was his first road goal in 2024.

The only MLS player with at least six goals this season to have a higher percentage of them coming at home than Obrian (83.3%) is William Agada of Sporting Kansas City (88.9%).

Houston Dynamo – Ezequiel Ponce

Ezequiel Ponce scored Houston's lone goal on a penalty kick in their 1-1 draw with Vancouver on Wednesday.

It was just the Dynamo's second penalty attempt in the regular season in 2024. The club had at least four penalty-kick attempts in each of the previous seven seasons entering 2024.

MATCH PREDICTION: HOUSTON DYNAMO WIN

The Dynamo have recorded three straight road wins in all competitions for the first time since a six-match winning streak away from home in 2011-12. That six-match run is Houston's only road winning streak longer than three matches.

Austin have won three straight matches against the Dynamo, keeping clean sheets in all three wins. The Black and Verde have never recorded four straight regular-season wins against a single opponent.

However, Austin have won just one of their last six regular-season home matches (D2 L3) dating back to late May. They had won five straight at Q2 Stadium prior to this drought.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Austin FC – 33.8%

Draw – 25.7%

Houston Dynamo – 40.5%