The night was about Messi - but Logan Farrington made quite an FCD impression
FC Dallas' first round draft pick shined as the home team beat Leo Messi and Inter Miami at the Cotton Bowl
Rookie forward Logan Farrington was a beast Monday for FC Dallas – full stop. The 22 year old from Oregon State made quick work of proving he could manage this level, and likely went a long way toward earning himself a place at Toyota Stadium this season.
The usual caveats apply here about friendlies being different from actual competitive contests, and about small sample sizes. Farrington played just 45 minutes.
But the way that young man stacked up the points in his favor was quite impressive.
FC Dallas’ first round draft pick (No. 3 overall) entered in the second half of Monday’s friendly at Fair Park and did exactly what a rookie draft pick needs to do: make an impression. That’s not easy for players coming out of the American college system; even high college draft picks like himself increasingly struggle to establish themselves in a league where quality keeps ticking steadily upward.
So it’s about taking advantage of your opportunities, especially as members of FCD’s technical staff have acknowledged they remain on the hunt for a new, highly rated striker to complement Jesus Ferreira. Translation: He’s got to exploit these opportunities right now, because the minutes in competitive matches will shrink if FCD can identify and sign a front line striker.
Farrington checked a lot of boxes out there, and right away. He proved an effective target presence, especially critical on a night when FCD struggled to build out of the back. Without any bulk of preseason training, and with players in less familiar roles, it’s no surprise that FCD found little joy in their build-outs, which has rarely been a problem in two seasons under Nico Estevez.
Farrington’s hold-up play provided a way out. Most of his battles came against veteran Ukrainian center back Serhiy Kryvtsov, and the rookie won more battles than he lost.
He also drew fouls and created chances through well angled runs. FC Dallas didn’t often threaten Miami after intermission Monday, but when it did, Farrington was usually the instigator or a prime collaborator.
It can be hard for young players to stand out in these matches; there are too many mis-matched parts trying to find some rhythm with other mis-matched parts. That’s why these aren’t always good tests for young players; a fairer evaluation comes when a youngster is handed a role, then surrounded by veterans who understand their own roles and can do more of the problem solving. In other words, it simplifies things for a young player adjusting to a new, much higher level.
Never mind all that for Farrington. He was easily more effective than veteran Ghanaian forward Eugene Ansah, who started the match alongside Jesus Ferreira in FCD’s 3-4-3 setup. (To be fair, Ansah has been a utility knife since last summer’s arrival in Frisco, but has most often deployed on the wing, so target forward is not a completely natural fit.)
The cherry on the cake was this (and I’m borrowing here from (Sad FCD Fan on Twitter): the dude was all DAWG. Meaning, he scrapped like all hell and had zero effs to give. Which isn’t that hard to do, honestly. But if you can “dawg” while also being clever in your movement and skilled on the ball, now you’re turning some heads.
On the FCD post-game show, we talked about how nice it would have been to see Farrington working alongside Ferreira in the first half, with more of the Dallas regulars roaming. If Farrington keeps up the good work, we’ll surely see that combination ahead.