After Minnesota United found their equalizer late in the game, FC Dallas climbed back into the match and secured a 2-1 win on the road at Allianz Field. The Burn remain 4th in the Western Conference, now with 40 points.
Lineups and Tactics
With Petar Musa out of the lineup due to an injury sustained in their last match, Dallas held a 5-2-3 formation (or 3-4-3, depending on your preference). In goal, Jonathan Sirois earned his 9th start of the season.
The backline saw two changes as Sebastien Ibeagha (RCB) replaced Nolan Norris at CB, and Ran Binyamin replaced Herman Johansson at RWB. Shaq Moore slid over to LCB, and Osaze Urhoghide remained in the middle at CB.
Christian Cappis (CM) made his return to the midfield, replacing Musa in the starting XI. Logan Farrington started up top as the team’s lone striker, paired with Kaick and Joaquín Valiente as dual 10’s. Ramiro was paired alongside Cappis at CM, for his 18th start of the season.
Minnesota retained a 3-4-1-2 formation, with Drake Callender in goal for his 24th start of the season. The backline consisted of Morris Duggan (LCB), Michael Boxall (CB), and Jefferson Díaz (RCB), who all earned an additional start.
Up top, Kelvin Yeboah and Marcus Caldeira were paired as dual strikers, with Joaquín Pereyra playing behind them at the 10. Additionally, in the midfield, Wil Trapp and Nectarios Triantis were paired together as CM’s.
Out on the wings, Anthony Markanich earned his 23rd start of the season at LWB, and Kyle Duncan (RWB) earned his 18th start of the season. Most notably absent from the starting lineup was forward Tomás Chancalay, who is tied for the 2nd-most assists on the team with 4.
The Game
The first 45 minutes of action were relatively quiet. Both teams accrued one shot on target, with Dallas dominating the share of possession with 54% to Minnesota’s 46%. One yellow card was shown to Urhoghide in the first half, which now takes him out of Saturday’s game against the Portland Timbers.
Dallas finally broke through in the 62nd minute. Farrington played a through ball to Valiente, who made a mesmerizing run in behind the defense. The Uruguayan made a couple of cuts back and forth, laid it back off to Kaick, who was all alone in the box, and buried the game’s first goal. 1-0, Burn.
Minnesota found their equalizer in the 73rd minute. After Duncan played in a cross toward goal, Yeboah and Binyamin fought for the ball in a scramble in front of goal. Yeboah’s right-footed shot was deflected off the post. The rebound came right back to him, and he proceeded to score it with his left.
In typical FC Dallas fashion, however, the road dawgs found a way to steal points away from home. In the 84th minute, Sam Sarver found an uncovered Santi Moreno making a run into the box. The Colombian midfielder took a touch with his left foot, buried it with his right, and secured the 2-1 road win for the away side.
“Very happy with the great game we all played,” Moreno said. “From the first minute, you could see how badly we wanted to win. We knew it was going to be a very difficult game, but now we’re thinking about getting into the MLS playoffs with confidence and arriving there believing in ourselves.”
Without your team’s leading scorer, the offense was always going to take a step back. However, my Man of the Match, Joaquín Valiente, finished the game with an assist that led to the first goal. He also created 3 chances and was tied for the most touches in the opponent’s box with 6. Valiente was, in large part, the catalyst without Petar Musa.
Up next, FC Dallas welcomes the Portland Timbers to Toyota Stadium on Saturday, September 12th at 7:30 pm CT. The Timbers are currently 9-10-5 on the season.