Mauro Manotas arrived in Houston, Texas on May 13th, 2015. The Colombian striker transferred from his hometown side, Uniautonoma. During the 2015 season, the Dynamo did not give Manotas much respect, as he was just 20 years old. Manotas scored and assisted across his first two US Open Cup games, but never got a look in MLS play. He never started a single game, making ten brief substitute cameos. His longest appearance, by quite a margin, was just 29 minutes. Manotas finished with 102 total minutes, hoping to show the team what they'd been missing in 2016.
At the start of 2016, Manotas continued to play the role of bench depth and US Open Cup starter. In his second USOC start of his career, he scored his second goal. In his third start of the competition, he scored a brace against Sporting Kansas City, totaling 4 goals in his 3 starts. It was still not enough to get a look in the real games. Finally, after 1.5 years of playing almost no role in MLS play, Manotas made his first MLS start on August 14th vs. Toronto FC. In said first ever start, Manotas played a perfect ball over the top for a Cristian Maidana goal, almost as if he deserved some looks earlier in his career. Finally, he did earn more starts with this performance. On September 9th, Manotas scored the elusive first MLS goal for the club. Two matches later, he put the league on notice versus Portland. Manotas was selected to take a first half penalty kick, and drilled it. In the 73rd minute, he fired home a left footed shot to retake the lead. Just about 12 minutes later, Manotas slid home a third on the breakaway to complete the hat trick. Two matches later versus Colorado, he volleyed home a first-time goal and added a low free kick consolation later on. Houston finished in last, but it was clear that this was a legit goal scorer going forward.
In 2017, Manotas had his minutes doubled. His first goal in his first season as a regular starter came against Minnesota United on a clean turn and shot. He then notched a brace soon after in a home match against Orlando City. Mauro Manotas and Romell Quioto were brewing a formidable attack in Houston. He scored a heads up goal in which Houston played Manotas in behind on a quick free kick, interestingly in a NYCFC home match at the University of Connecticut. Manotas hit double digit goals for the first time in his career, scoring 10 and assisting 5 on the season. Houston was much improved, finishing fourth in the West. They defeated SKC in the playoffs, then knocked at the door of Portland. Mauro Manotas subbed into the second leg in Portland, stepping into a shot with his first touches of the match, then skidding a match-winner into the bottom corner. The Dynamo went out in the WCF against Seattle.
In 2018, Manotas reached completely new heights of scoring. He ended up with 19 goals, good for fourth in the MLS Golden Boot Race, only behind the league's very best. Manotas changed his shirt to the No. 9 from his previous #19. In the opening match of the campaign, Manotas scored against the eventual Golden Boot winner, Josef Martinez and Atlanta United. In April, he crashed the back post to score one in San Jose. In the following match, he beat Toronto FC just three minutes into the match. His first multi-goal performance took place in Kansas City, firing his team in front off the high press under two minutes in. The first half brace was completed when DaMarcus Beasley squared it for a tap in. In mid-September, Manotas scored another two against Portland, a team he had been terrorizing in past seasons. On Decision Day, Houston killed a 2-0 deficit against LA Galaxy in a match LA had to win to make the playoffs, with Manotas ending their season at 79' in a 3-2 win. His 19 goals were not enough to qualify for the playoffs.
Though, all the while, Houston was making a surging run in the 2018 US Open Cup. In the Quarters, Manotas bagged a brace in a 4-2 victory over Sporting Kansas City. In the Semis, Houston played to a wild 3-3 draw with LAFC. Manotas scored one of the goals in the match against LAFC, his fourth of the tournament. Houston went on to win 7-6 in penalties, advancing to the Final. There, they faced off with Philadelphia Union in search of hardware. Just four minutes in, Manotas lost Jack Elliott and got down low for a header to take an early lead. Twenty minutes later, Mauro Manotas virtually shut the match down with a lovely left footed finish. Houston won the trophy after a 3-0 win against the Union, meaning Manotas' time in Houston did not go without bearing fruits. He won the USOC Golden Boot with 6 goals. He also set single-season club records for MLS goals (19) and goals in all competitions (25).
In 2019, Manotas was off to the races again with an impressive run and finish in match one. He upped his playmaking ability during this campaign, putting up double assists in two separate matches across the opening months. He finished with 8 assists. On May 4th, it was yet another brace for the forward as he smashed two past Dallas. In August, he singlehandedly came back against the Rapids down 2-0, scoring on a run in behind, then equalized with a left footed shot inside the area. Manotas' 13 goals was not enough for the playoffs again, as they finished 10th.
Manotas finished up his impressive career in orange and black during the pandemic year that was 2020. It was easily his worst season for the team. It seemed as if it would be another productive year after scoring an equalizer against the LA Galaxy in the opening match, but the stoppage in play clearly killed the momentum Houston's No. 9 had. He only scored two more the rest of the way, with 2 assists as well. His last ever goal for the club took place in his last ever match with the club, scoring a Decision Day goal against Colorado. In December, Houston sold Manotas to Liga MX's Club Tijuana for $4m. He is currently still just 28 years of age, playing for Mexico's Atlas. He has been linked with a return to MLS, including Columbus last year, so perhaps we do see him back in the league one day. His three-year span between 2017-2019 was truly something special, scoring 42 goals and assisting 14 across that span. Mauro Manotas comes in at #65.
YEAR | CLUB | MINUTES | GOALS | ASSISTS |
2020 | HOU | 1,327 | 3 | 2 |
2019 | HOU | 2,539 | 13 | 8 |
2018 | HOU | 2,633 | 19 | 1 |
2017 | HOU | 2,063 | 10 | 5 |
2016 | HOU | 1,054 | 6 | 1 |
2015 | HOU | 102 | 0 | 0 |
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