FC Dallas finished the 2024 regular season with a 2-1 win over Sporting Kansas City.
Lineups:
FC Dallas: Maurer, Junqua, Farfan, Ibeagha, Arriola (Twumasi); Show (Delgado), Illarramendi, Lletget; Kamungo (Ferreira), Velasco (Ntsabeleng), Musa (Farrington)
Subs not used: Paes, Tafari, Gonzalez, Ansah
Sporting Kansas City: Pulskamp, Leibold, Fernandez (Castellanos), Voloder, Ndenbe; Rodriguez, Radoja (Bassong), Thommy; Vargas (Pulido), Agada, Salloi (Afrifa)
Subs not used: Schewe, Rindov, Flores
Scoring Summary:
FCD: Musa (Illarramendi, Velasco) 16’
FCD: Fernandez (own goal) 40’
SKC: Agada 89’
Misconduct Summary:
SKC: Leibold 28’
FCD: Musa 53’
Stats
Graphics via x.com/MLSStat
FC DALLAS POSTGAME QUOTES
Interim head coach Peter Luccin
Takeaways from the game…
“I will say that I'm happy to at least win the game. That's fantastic because it was in front of our fans. They (fans) push us every time, and that connection they have with the players is fantastic. So I will say that unity is the only good thing that I saw is that connection between players and fans. It was unbelievable. It was fantastic.”
On how he keeps the team motivated…
“So for me if you don't have motivation, even if you are not on the field, maybe it's because you don't deserve to play in that sport and at that level. Even in practice, you go out there, you step on that field, it's to compete, and it is a beautiful sport that we are playing. So that's why tonight we saw high energy, but the quality was not so great from our players.”
Midfielder Sebastian Lletget
On ending the season with a win…
“For the sake of our fans and for our pride as a team and as a club, we wanted to finish off on a good note. We know we have a lot to work on. This was not the season that we had hoped for, this was not the season that we worked for, That is the reality, we just have to keep going.A lot of changes are, sadly, going to be made. It's just the way the game works, and now it's about recovering and training.”
On the mentality of the team…
“At times, we showed a lot of glimpses of a winning mentality, a lot of character. When Peter Luccin took over, that was his biggest message to us, changing the culture and the mentality of this club and wanting to win, we showed that at times, but it just wasn't as consistent as we would have liked. That's something that we have to work on from day one of preseason.”
On earning the second goal…
“The ball dropped in a very uncomfortable position for the defender. I was looking for Petar. He's a big body. He was up against the Sporting KC right back. I clipped the ball to the back post and thankfully it went in.”
Forward Logan Farrington
On being named El Matador’s Player of the Year…
“It's amazing. They've shown great support throughout the year, they’re always cheering for us. They're always giving us the best momentum, the best effort, they have our backs. Just every time I step on the field, I try to give that back. So I'm glad that they thought I did that, and hopefully next year I can give even more.”
On what this game meant despite being eliminated from playoffs…
“Yeah, it's always disappointing for the last game when there's nothing technically to play for, but we have our pride to play for. We're in front of our fans. They've been really good to us all year, and for them to come out to show support like that, that’s who we’re playing for. We owe it to the fans, our families, and everybody that supports us to get a win for them and end the year on a good note.
On what he’s learning from his rookie campaign…
“Learn and adapt to the game. There are a lot of experienced guys here and I'm gaining experience every day. Hopefully I can build on this experience next year and just get even better.”
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