After going up 2-0 in the 2nd half, FC Dallas conceded 3 straight goals in a road loss to Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium. Petar Musa’s record-breaking goal in the 64th minute wasn’t enough to fend off Idan Toklomati and Co.
Lineups and Tactics
Dallas remained in their 3-4-3 formation, with a couple of changes from their previous match. In goal, Daniel earned his 5th start of the season for the Burn. The backline saw one change as Lalas Abubakar replaced Sebastien Ibeagha at CB.
The midfield remained the same. Shaq Moore (LWB) and Herman Johansson (RWB) started out wide as wingbacks, with Christian Cappis and Kaick paired together as dual 8s. Kaick’s counterpart, Ramiro, remained out of the starting XI, despite having started 20 games this season.
Up top, Logan Farrington earned his 2nd straight start at ST, and his 17th total start of the season. Musa was available off the bench and would eventually see the pitch in the 60th minute. Patrickson Delgado replaced Santi Moreno at CAM, for his 10th start.
Charlotte sported a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Kristijan Kahlina earning his 28th start in goal. The backline consisted of David Schnegg (LB), Henry Kessler (CB), Morrison Agyemang (CB), and Nathan Byrne (RB).
Brandt Bronico (CDM) and Ashley Westwood (CDM) were paired together as defensive midfielders, with Pep Biel playing a more forward role at CAM. Westwood, the former Aston Villa midfielder and current Charlotte captain, earned his 24th start.
Up top, Idan Toklomati started as the team’s lone striker, with Allan Saint-Maximin (LW) and Liel Abada (RW) out wide on the wings. Most notably absent from the starting XI was Kerwin Vargas, who had 3 goals and 4 assists prior to the match.
The Game
The Burn jumped out to a 1-0 lead, just 22 minutes into the game. After stringing together 10 consecutive passes, Delgado worked the ball out wide to Johansson. The Swedish wingback continued his run up the right side before crossing the ball into the box, where a sliding Farrington tapped it in for the opening goal.
Just over 40 minutes later, Musa subbed onto the pitch and immediately made his impact felt in the 64th minute. Joaquín Valiente played a through ball to Moreno into the box, whose pass took a deflection off of Kessler before finding Musa all alone on the far post.
The Croatian forward tapped in his 1st goal of the game to extend Dallas’ lead to 2-0. His 19th goal of the season set a new FC Dallas single-season record for the club, which was previously held by Jason Kreis (‘99), Kenny Cooper (‘08), Jesus Ferreira (‘22), and Musa himself (‘25).
Despite the historic night, Charlotte had plans of their own. In the 70th minute, Saint-Maximin took on 2 defenders before playing a cross into the box. That pass found Toklomati, who managed to beat Ibheagha to the ball for his 1st goal of the game, which cut the lead to 1.
“We’re all upset,” Head Coach Eric Quill said. “We played beautifully, had the game in hand, and then dropped our guard and got punished for the first goal. The momentum shifted to their side, and their belief grew. We let that momentum swallow us up and never regained control to build it back on our side.”
Minutes later, Harry Toffolo netted the equalizer. In the 74th minute, Toklomati’s corner kick found Toffolo sandwiched in the air, between a pair of Dallas defenders. Miraculously, the defender found a way to head home his 1st goal of the season.
In dramatic fashion, Toklomati buried the game-winning goal after Charlotte capitalized on some poor defending from Dallas.
In the 1st minute of stoppage time, Biel played a bit of give-and-go with Rodolfo Aloko. Biel continued his run in the box, crossed the ball in front of goal, where Toklomati found the back of the net and secured the 3-2 comeback win for Charlotte.
Statistically, this game clearly favored Charlotte, despite being down 2 goals 70 minutes into the game. The home side finished with a 3.47 xG, to Dallas’ 2.15, and 8 shots on goal to Dallas’ 5. Charlotte edged out Dallas in terms of possession, which aided in mounting their comeback.
My Man of the Match, Logan Farrington, finished with his 10th goal of the season, created 2 chances, and in many respects gave coach Quill a very tough decision with Musa on the bench. When Farrington’s playing well, there are very few players you’d want to sub him off for. Musa is the exception to that rule.
“We’re all disappointed in the match today,” Farrington said. “We went 2-0 up, which was good; we were playing well, but we got a little complacent toward the end and gave them momentum. They have quality players and ended up grabbing three goals, which isn’t good enough from us.”
Up next, FC Dallas welcomes the Seattle Sounders to Toyota Stadium on Wednesday, October 14th at 7:30 pm CT. The Sounders are currently 11-9-8 on the season.