FC Dallas versus LA Galaxy
5/30, 10:30 PM EST, ESPN +
FC Dallas head to Los Angeles less than three weeks after the enthralling 3-2 victory at the Toyota Stadium. FC Dallas will looking to pick up 3 points again ahead of a key top of the table clash against the Galaxy’s neighbors LAFC this weekend.
FCD head to the Golden State following a 1-0 shut-out in Toronto. The victory in Canada was the perfect response to FCD’s disappointing draw with Vancouver the week before where they let a 2-0 lead slip in the dying minutes. Fans were starting to question the team’s character and discipline, not to mention concentration, but all those questions were answered Friday night.
Dallas set-up in a 4-3-3 and looked to cause as much traffic as possible in the midfield. They were happy for Toronto to have over 70% of the possession, but showed they could deliver the clinical moment when it mattered. Dallas showed that they are also comfortable dabbling in the ugly side of the game to get the win, picking up 7 yellow cards, 4 of which were awarded for time-wasting towards the end of the game.
Maxi Urruti continued his impressive form by bagging his 6th goal of the season, deflecting a shot at goal from Kellyn Acosta into the net. The hero of the match was undoubtedly returning goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez. The form of Jimmy Maurer had been one of the stories of the season. While Jimmy was between the sticks FC Dallas had the best defense in the league. Jesse needed to prove himself, and when Oscar gave him his chance Friday, on his birthday, he gave it his all with a season high 9 saves, some of which were truly outstanding, particularly the penalty save from Giovinco.
La Galaxy have been one of the league’s strugglers this season, but they have improved their record recently by picking up maximum points in their last two matches. They beat Montreal Impact 1-0 thanks to a goal from Ola Kamara. All the headlines, however, were from a stunning red card to Zlatan after slapping Michael Petrasso. Galaxy followed it up with another 1-0 win in the California Clasico against San Jose. That puts Galaxy in 7th place in the west with a record of 5-6-1. The wins, although hardly against the league’s elite opposition, will have given LA much needed boost in confidence, particularly for the defensive pairing of Michael Ciana and Jorgen Skjelvik. Zlatan will be available to play after serving his suspension and will no doubt have a point to prove after failing to ignite the MLS after his epic debut. Galaxy will be without Jonathan and Giovani Dos Santos who have been called up for Mexico.
This Dallas team continue to be an enigma, but they still have the best defense in the West and have only lost once. Oscar Pareja has shown he is happy to change the line-up and formation based on opposition. It will be interesting to see how he approaches the match. He may opt for a similar approach to the game against Toronto, to clog the midfield and prevent LA from having any creative freedom. On the flip-side LA have looked meek going forward. In the match against San Jose, Alessandrini’s 82nd goal was the first shot on goal in the entire match. LA have often not looked comfortable in possession, so Oscar may see them as a team that is there for the taking, and take it to LA with a direct positive approach. This could only play in LA’s hands, however, who will no doubt look to absorb any pressure from FCD and try and steal another smash-and-grab victory as they have in their last two games. FCD will be without their captain Matt Hedges who has been suspended for accumulating yellow cards. If they do manage to grab the win on Wednesday it will be their 100th road win in their history.
FC Dallas
LA Galaxy
