FC Dallas heads west this weekend for another difficult road test against one of the surprise teams in the Western Conference, the San Jose Earthquakes. Both teams are coming off tough losses in the midweek, and will be looking to rebound on the penultimate weekend before the league’s FIFA World Cup break.
As Dallas kicks off their nine-game road trip, they’ll also be looking for their first road win in San Jose in nearly a decade. San Jose has been one of the most dangerous attacking teams this season, thriving in transition and piling up goals. Dallas will need to stay compact defensively, survive the early pressure and find a way to be clinical when it matters.
Let’s dive into some notes, predictions, and more.
TL;DR: Match Preview
Quick hits before kickoff.
- Score prediction: FC Dallas 1 - 1 San Jose Earthquakes
- Key player to watch: Santiago Moreno - Expect him to be more active on Saturday night after coming off the bench Wednesday. Dallas needs their second DP to start contributing more.
- Why this game matters: This is the first game in a nine-game road trip. Even though there is a break after next week's game for the World Cup, Dallas will want to get off on the right foot for this road trip.
FC Dallas Notes:
All-time vs San Jose: Dallas and San Jose have matched up 76 times across all competitions. Dallas’ record versus San Jose is 22-31-23, with a 108-134 (includes early MLS penalty kicks) goal differential favoring San Jose.
Road record at San Jose: FC Dallas holds a 8-18-13 all-time regular-season road record against San Jose. Dallas has scored 46 road goals against San Jose. San Jose has scored 67 goals at home versus Dallas. Dallas last won at San Jose on July 8, 2016. A Maximiliano Urruti goal sealed the win for Dallas that night.
Homegrown clock: Both Michael Collodi and Nolan Norris have gobbled up a good amount of minutes in 2026. Collodi has played the full 90 in each match, while Norris has been in and out of the lineup. Norris also has one goal on the season. Caleb Swann also made his debut off the bench in New York. Together, they have played 1955 minutes. To add more perspective here, Dallas HGPs only accounted for 1775 minutes in 2025.
Drew Epperley
Notable season stats:
- FCD is 7th in crosses in MLS with 157.
- The Burn are 6th in total distance covered in MLS with 514.71 km (941.20
miles). - FCD is third in MLS in aerial challenges won with 190.
- FC Dallas is 9th in MLS in xG with 21.74.
- FCD is 5th in MLS in shot efficiency with 3.26.
- Musa is 3rd in MLS in xG with 9.18. He also ranks tied for 4th in MLS in shots with 45.
Potential FC Dallas Lineup:
Given the rotation on Wednesday night and that this is the third game in seven days, expect some new faces in the lineup.
Projected Starting XI
Formation: 3-4-3Availability & Disciplinary Report
Suspended: none
Suspended with next yellow card: Osaze Urhoghide
Suspended with next two yellow cards: Nolan Norris
Season-ending injury list: Kaka Scabin
Out: Anderson Julio (Lower leg), Bernard Kamungo (lower leg)
Questionable: none
On Loan: Tsiki Ntsabeleng (Mamelodi Sundowns FC), Enes Sali (Al-Riyadh), Malachi Molina (Nashville SC), Geovane Jesus (North Texas SC), Enzo Newman (North Texas SC)
Unavailable (off-roster): Daniel Baran, Jaidyn Contreras
International duty: none
San Jose Notes:
Key player for San Jose: Preston Judd
Drew Epperley
Disciplinary Report
Suspended: none
Suspended on next yellow card: none
Availability Report
Out: Vitor Costa (lower body), Earl Edwards Jr. (lower body), DeJuan Jones (lower body), Niko Tsakiris (lower body), Timo Werner (lower body)
Questionable: none
International duty: none
How to watch
Big game this week for FC Dallas. Before we get into it, members have the full scouting report, projected lineups, and injury report. If you want to go into Matchday actually knowing what to watch for, now's the time.
