The regular season is in the books for FC Dallas as they downed the Colorado Rapids 3-1 to lock up the Western Conference number two seed.
FC Dallas dominated this game from start to finish. The first half saw the hosts outshoot the Rapids 17-0, the most shots in a single half this season by the Burn.
But it was the Rapids who got on the board first in the opening minutes of the second half when Georgi Minoungou found Morgan Whittaker at the back post for the Rapids’ first shot and goal of the game.
Dallas kept knocking in the second half and nearly tied it up on what would have been Petar Musa’s 23rd of the season had it not been call offside. In the 75th minute, Dallas finally got the breakthrough they were looking for as a corner kick was cleared out by Colorado to Kaick. The Brazilian quickly played a ball back into the mix for Joaquin Valiente, who hammered home his third goal of the year.
Kaick wasn’t done on the night, as he found his fifth goal of the season in the 88th minute after Nolan Norris played a perfect long ball up the field for him to handle and beat a defender before firing a rocket of a shot into the back of the net.
Then in true Dallas fashion, they added a third in stoppage time when Logan Farrington set up Santiago Moreno for his fifth goal of the year.
Key Moments
14‘ - Early chance in the penalty area for FC Dallas. Petar Musa gets a clean look on the ball but his first shot of the night goes over the goal.
21’ - Foul in the penalty box. Petar Musa taps the ball off to Kaick who collides with a Colorado player. After a long delay it was determined Dallas earned a corner kick.
29’ - Colorado got a chance on a fast break with Paxten Aaronson. He crossed a ball to Saied Abu Farchi, who forced Daniel to make a massive diving save. But Farchi was ruled offside on the play.
43’ - A great give and go by Valiente and Musa, but Musa‘s attempt goes just wide.
45’ - POST! Daniel Job gets in behind the Colorado defense and then pulls it back and takes a shot that rattles off the post.
47’ - Goal Colorado. After zero shots in the first half, Colorado makes the most of their first attempt with Morgan Whittaker getting an easy finish off a cross from Georgi Minoungou.
68’ - GOAL! Musa finally makes a breakthrough but the offside flag is up. Valiente is the man in the offside position. Geez.
75’ - GOOOOOOAALLL!!! Finally on the board! After a corner kick is headed out, Kaick finds Valiente streaking into the penalty box. Valiente called his own number and ties the game.
87’ - Big chance! Moreno gets a clean look at goal but his shot is right at the Colorado keeper.
88’ - GOOOOOAAALLL!!! Kaick adds one more! Nolan Norris plays a ridiculous long ball and Kaick rips it from at the top of the penalty box for his fifth goal of the season.
90+2’ - GOOOAL! Moreno adds an insurance goal! Colorado committed players forward and Dallas gets a transition goal as Logan Farrington found Moreno open in the penalty box for his fifth of the season.
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Instant Reaction
This felt very much like a typical FC Dallas finish to the season, didn’t it? A dominant first half that followed up by a goal given up to start the second half. It just felt for a moment it was going to be that kind of night.
But, this group continues to impress with the resiliency and ability to keep fighting for the full match. Yes, this game could have easily been 6-1 or even more with the way they were playing in the final 10-20 minutes. If you are going to go into the playoffs with some sort of momentum, this is a good way to do it.
About the Subs
The first sub came in the 57th minute when Nolan Norris came on for Sebastien Ibeagha. In the 67th minute, Quill made two more subs by bringing on Santiago Moreno and Ran Binyamin for Daniel Job and Bernard Kamungo. Shortly after the tying goal from Valiente, Logan Farrington and Sam Sarver came on for Valiente and Herman Johansson.
Man of the Match
The goal and assist for Kaick makes this an easy call tonight.
Where does this fit into the season
Aside from the first five minutes of the second half, this was another dominant performance at home. The win pushes Dallas to 58 points on the season, the best finish since 2018.
What’s next for FC Dallas
FC Dallas will be off for a week, due to the November FIFA window. The club will begin its playoff run in a Round One series against the Portland Timbers.
