2023 FC Dallas Player Recaps: Jader Obrian

Obrian had six goals in 2023, up from his disappointing 2022 campaign.

Our 2023 FC Dallas player recaps continue with attacker Jader Obrian.

The 28-year old completed his third season with FC Dallas, where his production was back up after a disappointing 2022.

Stat breakdown

Obrian ended the season with six goals and five assists. Not quite his 2021 numbers of nine goals and four assists, but 2023 felt like a season where Obrian was finally finding his footing under head coach Nico Estevez.

Obrian had ten shots on target in 2023, which puts his strike rate at 60%. But the shots not on goal were always rough to watch. When he came off the bench in Game Two against Seattle, he quickly scored a great goal off a turnover in the midfield. He had a golden opportunity to get a quick brace a moment later, but he scuffed an open shot on goal.

Highlight

I’ll give you two of my favorites here: the playoff goal against Seattle and a header against Columbus in September.

That goal against Seattle felt like a moment that we’ve been waiting for from Obrian. The same goes for this one against the Crew. He seemed to be better at putting himself in places to score more in 2023.

Will he be back in 2024?

He’s not as expensive as some other attackers on the roster, like Jesus Jimenez, but his total compensation of roughly $480k is one that will require the team to think a bit about as they move through their roster moves this month.

My gut still tells me we’ll see his contract option picked up for next season.

Photo via FC Dallas

Final thoughts

At this point, I think it is fair to say that we know what we are getting out of Obrian. He defends fairly well up the field, forces some turnovers at times that help lead to chances on goal, and when he isn’t overthinking things, he tends to score goals. He’s not going to be a guy that we can expect 12 or 15 goals a season out of, but he is one that will contribute enough.

I found myself wanting to see him on the field more in 2023. His speed and aggression were something that was needed at times, and when it paid off, like in the two goals we showed above, it was fun to watch.