FC Dallas' win over Houston: a closer look
There was more "What worked" than "what didn't" in Saturday's critical 2-0 home victory
In the small picture short term, the “hows and whys” don’t matter a lick. Closer examinations of FC Dallas’ 2-0 win are pointless when considering how badly the team needed a win … along with the boost of spirit and confidence attached to it.
But in the bigger picture – the quest for more of these victories – the “hows and whys” do matter. So let’s look back at Saturday night at Toyota Stadium to see what worked and what didn’t, and what it means going forward.
What worked and didn’t: the lineup changes
Nico Estévez made four lineup changes – a necessary response for a side winless in seven matches coming into Saturday’s Texas Derby. Two of those lineup changes were effective and two were … not so much. Either way, just making the changes was the point; I explained why here.
Marco Farfan coming in for Dante Sealy was instantly impactful. Sealy has a world of raw talent, but his desire to get forward from the wingback position last week was, put kindly, “something less than ideal.”
So Farfan’s desire to get into the attack, his recognition of the urgency of the moment, was precisely what FCD so badly needed.
Farfan saw a midfield turnover and immediately took off from a deep, defensive position. Liam Fraser spotted the run, played the ball forward and, when Griffin Dorsey got tangled up in the chase, the red card completely altered the night.
Farfan was active and tidy otherwise, so that was a big check mark. (As for some Twitter dialogue suggesting Farfan should be the starter at that spot going forward and possibly should have been there all along: I believe the change-out, replacing Sealy, would have happened much earlier but for some ongoing injury misfortune.)
Until something changes, I’d expect Farfan to start; Sealy will be a useful attacking option off the bench.
Two quick points about the 5th minute red card
Although it didn’t result in a goal, that 5th minute sequence that resulted in Dorsey’s red card may be the critical moment of FCD’s season. (We’ll see; they still have to build on this win.) It was the perfect example of what Estévez sought when he changed tactics for ‘24.
As opposed to pressing higher and playing higher up the field, the manager wanted a little higher volume of midfield possession to draw out opposition, then attack the vacated space in behind. In shortest form it was “possess lower, play over.”
From there, Farfan’s cleverness and experience was critical. He was about to lose the footrace to Dorsey, so he did what smart players do in that situation: he stepped in front of the pursuing Dynamo right back. Thus, Dorsey had an instantaneous choice: decelerate, and take his chances that ‘keeper Steve Clark could make a save, or maintain pursuit at top speed and take the chance that he could get tangled up and trip Farfan. He chose wrong — and it may have saved Dallas’ season.
The red card’s hidden value
Obviously, playing a man up for 85 minutes is helpful. But when Dorsey saw red, it significantly degraded Houston’s attack beyond just being a man down.
See, Houston’s whole MO on attack is to flood the middle, and Ben Olsen’s team is very good at it. It works in part because opposition must match the numbers centrally — which leaves the flanks open. The right winger comes inside to join the central forces, but the Dynamo right back (Dorsey) remains steadfastly wide. As defenders get drawn in, Houston can often find Dorsey out wide for (often uncontested) crossing opportunities.
His ejection took away that option, part of the reason Houston managed just two shots all night.
Twumasi’s role: effective in part
Ema Twumasi didn’t work out exactly as planned, but he certainly served a vital function.
As FCD’s right-side wingback, Twumasi was too timid in the attack, especially in the first half, never creating enough real threat from his right side wingback position. He did come alive after intermission, and his aggressive 55th minutes turn at the top of the 18 was a huge factor in Dallas’ massive, breakthrough goal.
It was the kind of moment FCD has failed to exploit too often this year: when presented with an opening, players have too frequently taken the safer, more comfortable and conservative option, a lateral or negative pass rather than driving aggressively at goal or playing quickly forward. Exploiting the gap has rarely been an FCD strong suit in ‘24. Here, Twumasi did just that, and it opened up the game.
But what he did in the first half was just as important.
The Dynamo had one (and really only one) potential path to FCD goal after the ejection: playing over the top to speedy left winger Ibrahim Aliyu. Sebastian Ibeagha has played well recently (and got the insurance goal Saturday) but isn’t the fastest center back. So it was Twumasi chasing down Aliyu on the break, and his ability to do that neutralized the threat.
What didn’t work in the personnel choices
Neither Patrickson nor Paul Arriola, playing underneath Musa in the 3-4-2-1 shape, had a big impact in the attack. They weren’t bad – they just weren’t overly influential in a match where Dallas had plenty of possession. And that was understandable.
Patrickson, having rehearsed all year as a holding midfielder, was suddenly in a new position. Arriola had toggled back and forth this year, sometimes as wingback and sometimes in the spot that Estévez calls “dual 10s.” They were in those spots underneath Musa out of necessity. (If you haven’t been following FCD’s season, those tables are reserved for Jesus Ferreira and Alan Velasco whenever they are healthy enough to be seated.)
What worked in the tactical plan
Nico Estévez started his team in the 3-4-2-1, as mentioned. As Houston bunkered, FCD struggled to create good looks at goal. Best evidence: one shot on target before the half. Not good, Bob!
But Estévez changed the formation at the break, setting up the team in a modified 4-2-3-1 that occasionally turned into a 4-4-2 if Dallas needed to defend a little deeper (which was rare, even as Hector Herrera came on).
With the ball, Bernie Kamungo mostly remained wide on the right, while Patrickson (and then Ferreira when he replaced the young Ecuadorian at 67 minutes) was tasked with drifting inside. So, effectively, as Dallas moved further up the field, the alignment slowly evolved back into the 3-4-2-1 shape FCD knows well now.
A lot of the threat came from Kamungo on the right; with Twumasi as protection behind him, Kamungo could generally concentrate on attack.
In fact, it was Kamungo and Twumasi who combined along the right to help create that first (vital!) goal.
Hidden value: Part Two
Clearly, getting a “W” at home was THE mission. In fact, it was priority One, Two AND Three. But if there was one other small box that needed to be checked Saturday, it was surely “Get Ferreira back on the field.”
Musa’s third goal this year — and a goal in two consecutive matches — provides essential hope that Dallas can reverse its season. But let’s be honest: if FCD is to rejoin the playoff race in a meaningful way, Ferreira and his creative ability will be a unarguable requirement.
Ferreira wasn’t at his best, which was certainly to be expected after missing six weeks. So just getting him back into the flow, moving his timing and confidence into a good place was essential. And even at his “not best” the guy can still pick out a pass.