FC Dallas in Carson: 3-1 Loss Wasn’t Fair

FC Dallas head coach Nico Estevez felt like everything went against the team last night as the Galaxy took care of business at home.

On a perfect evening for soccer in Carson, California, FC Dallas battled courageously but ultimately fell apart under pressure as the Los Angeles Galaxy secured a comfortable 3-1 victory.

For the vast majority of the match though, until a second yellow to Nkosi Tafari sent the defender to an early shower, FC Dallas stood level with the home side.

It didn’t start that way - the early goal, with the Galaxy easily turning Marco Farfan and Sam Junqua around, was a bit too easy to cough up. Truly, the score looked a lot like the first Real Salt Lake goal on Saturday.

But Dallas didn’t lose their cool, continued to battle and get their footing in the match. That led to some opportunities, ultimately a stunning goal from Patrickson Delgado from inside the Galaxy’s box on a cross from Farfan. The youngster is playing lights out.

While Nico didn’t acknowledge it as being part of the game plan, FCD looked to foul Riqui Puig as much as possible when he got the ball, bodying him and trying to get him off his game. It’s probably a good strategy, shades of Hack-a-Shaq years ago, but the persistent fouling put Dallas in a hole likely from the ref’s perspectives. Early yellow cards set the tone that Dallas would pay for.

A PK was given on a breakaway for the Galaxy that seemed a bit harsh, but Maarten Paes saved the ball twice. While it looked like the third was the charm for LA, the go ahead goal was ruled offside.

The moment gave Dallas even more confidence, and they begin to have continued spells of possession going into the second half. The team pinged the ball around and had some decent opportunities that they could not capitalize on.

The second half though witnessed the squad fall apart. Another PK, also a bit harsh, wouldn’t be saved by Paes. Later, Tafari earned his red card with a second yellow on a strong challenge. At that point, while the team tried to claw their way back into it, Galaxy found wide open spaces to attack with ruthlessness, leading to dazzling runs by Puig and a third goal from the superstar.

When the whistle blew, Dallas players looked defeated in more ways than one.

“Everything was against us today,” Nico said after the match to media. “The 3-1 loss is too much.”

While he didn’t outright criticize the refs, he wanted to go back and look at those calls, yellow cards and penalty kicks. Why did the referee have to make those decisions?

Are there positives from the match despite the loss?

Yes, I learned last night that Patrickson Delgado’s strong play has put him on the radar of the Ecuadorian national team, though he didn’t make the final cut. He continued that form last evening, something perhaps for other players to try to meet as the team moves forward.

Maarten Paes is likely the best player on the team still, keeping Dallas in games that they may not deserve to be in. Marco Farfan too is playing very well and deserves more accolades. Petar Musa is dangerous and not far from scoring with limited opportunities.

There continue to be signs of a decent team underneath the ups and downs of this season so far, but it is clear they need more from the bench and more from other veterans.

Now, the squad needs to reset and look to another difficult venue and team at Los Angeles FC on Saturday.