The two-game California road trip wraps up for FC Dallas on Wednesday night when they take on the San Jose Earthquakes.
Both teams are coming into this match off losses on the road last weekend. Let's dive into San Jose and what they bring to Wednesday’s game, and how FC Dallas can start picking up some points again on the road.
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Key Player: Cristian Arango
If Cristian Espinoza is out for this game like he was for the Quakes over the weekend, then the focus shifts to Arango. He leads the way for the Quakes with ten goals on the season with a nearly 80% shot conversion rate.
Key Matchup: Osaze Urhoghide vs Cristian Arango
We don’t officially know if Urhoghide is going to be fit enough to start on Wednesday night after returning from an injury that kept him out of the lineup for the better part of a month and a half here. But, for the Dallas defense on the road, they need him back in the starting lineup against a guy like Arango.
Availability Report1:
Suspended: none
Out: Noel Buck (lower body), Cristian Espinoza (lower body), Paul Marie (Upper body)
Questionable: none
On Loan: none
International duty: none
Quick Notes:
Previous meeting in 2025: The two sides met only a few weeks ago in Frisco, with San Jose coming away with a 4-2 win thanks to some second half red cards.
Recent history vs FC Dallas at home: The Quakes have a pretty resounding home record against FC Dallas over the years, going 18-8-12. San Jose is also unbeaten in their last eight home games against FC Dallas (3-0-5).
Recent form: Since the two clubs squared off last month, San Jose has struggled with losses in Minnesota and Austin (in the USOC), with draws against NY and LA. Overall, San Jose only has three wins in their last 12 matches.
Potential Lineup:
San Jose will be looking to rebound after a dismal effort in Minnesota last weekend.
Daniel - Romney, Wilson, Rodrigues - Costa, Leroux, Harkes, Jones, Bouda, Arango, Judd
Keys To Three Points over San Jose
- Bend but don’t break: We know the defense is going to give up possession and chances in this one, but collectively the group has to find a way to limit mistakes in the build up play, not cough up penalties, and find ways to limit the number of quality chances that the Quakes get on goal.
- Get back to the wing play: Let’s not forget, San Jose gave up two goals to FC Dallas in the previous meeting. Dallas was able to get wide in that match and force mistakes in the back at times to convert into chances on goal. While the loss of Lucho Acosta for this one is a big one, there are still enough talented players in the midfield that can step up and spread this San Jose defense out in a manner that causes some chaos.
- Play with your backs against the wall: A four-game losing streak is never fun for anyone, but at some point it has to come to an end. The way Dallas plays on the road this season mostly keeps them in games. They need to play with a chip on their shoulder in this one and prove that they still have some fight left in this season.
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1 Note: MLS has a injury report deadline that doesn’t hit until the day before each game. Our scouting reports will include last week's report and will be fully updated the day before with our injury report for FC Dallas.
