Image: FC Dallas via Twitter
03/22/2023
FC Dallas earned their second win of the season! Just like before it was at their home, and it was a come from behind win. This time it was against Sporting Kansas City. The game was full of excitement for FC Dallas supporters! It had goals from two of their superstar offense players and two penalty kick saves from Maarten Paes (affectionately known as the "Dutch Cowboy")!
Recap:
Dallas conceded early in the match. Daniel Salloi scored Sporting's first goal (and so far, only goal) of the 2023 MLS season in the 11th minute. Alan Velasco leveled the game in the 55th minute after a nice lay off from Sebastian Lletget. Sporting almost took the lead again in the 64th minute. They were awarded a penalty kick. Maarten Paes made the save but his movement before the kick prompted the ref to call for a retake due to encroachment. Sporting tried again but Paes once more made the save to deny them the lead! Jesus Ferreira scored the winner in the 84th minute after a cross from Geovane Jesus.
Image: FC Dallas via Twitter
Alan Velasco's Goal:
Velasco scored his second of the season and just like before, it was the goal to kick off a come-back win! Although Lletget played the final pass to earn the assist, the goal was the product of multiple Dallas players.
Nkosi Tafari is the first player seen in the video making a pass. Ferreira dummied over the ball, allowing Lletget to pick up the pass. Lletget gave the ball to Ferreira, who then chipped it over to Velasco further up the field. Velasco dribbled towards the box and passed to Lletget at the edge of the box. Lletget immediately gave the ball back to Velasco, who then took the shot and scored!
Image: FC Dallas via Twitter
Maarten Paes' Double Save-
Goals weren't the only things talked about after (and maybe during) the game. Goalkeeper Maarten Paes earned Man of the Match honors after the match after saving two penalties. To make this even more impressive, Sporting used two different players to take the pks. William Agada took the first penalty. Paes guessed correctly and dove to his left to block the shot.
The ref whistled for a retake, citing encroachment. Rather than have Agada try again, Sporting opted for a change and Erik Thommy took to the spot this time. Once again though, Paes saved the attempt.
Image: FC Dallas via Twitter
Jesus Ferreira's Goal-
Ferreira scored his third of the season! He currently leads the FC Dallas Golden Boot race. Paul Arriola passed the ball to right back Geovane Jesus. Geovane crossed the ball to Ferreira, who took the shot. Sporting's goalkeeper John Pulskamp saved the shot but was unable to hold onto the ball. The ball bounced back into the path of Ferreira who took the shot again and this time scored in the 84th minute!
Image: FC Dallas via Twitter
Thoughts-
In four games, Dallas now has 7 points and are currently listed as 4th in the Western Conference. Once again, this was a come-back win, showing that the players on this team have the drive to fight back. Jesus Ferreira and Alan Velasco are the top offensive players on the squad so far. The team has a lot more work to do though to become a true contender for the cup this year.
The defense needs to become stronger. So far, they've allowed 4 goals in 4 matches. They've yet to earn a clean sheet. The offense needs to improve as well. More players need to score. Dallas has six goals so far this season and they've only come from three different players.
Dallas' start to this season hasn't been bad but they need to continue to work on themselves.
By Toros95
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