FC Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand tomorrow night, when they host Minnesota United.
If there is something quick to say about Minnesota United, it is this: don’t sleep on this team. Sure, they’re not going to make a ton of headlines in this league for big wins or having a flashy style of play. They grind out results.
The Loons enter Wednesday’s match with more to prove after downing the Portland Timbers at home over the weekend 2-0.
For Dallas, this is where discipline meets opportunity. After two straight draws at home, if they drop more points here, suddenly that ‘nice homestand’ on the schedule starts to look like a massive opportunity missed real fast.
Potential Lineup & Tactic Style:
The Loons are possibly the one team in MLS that is truly comfortable without the ball. The Minnesota defense is organized, while their midfield and attack will find ways in transition to make you pay. If Dallas comes in with another sluggish start and play a predictable style, the Loons will be happy to grind this one out to another frustrating draw.
- Offensive tendencies - Against Portland, Minnesota was back to their usual self on the ball. In other words, they gave up possession and didn’t give a damn that they did. When they got into dangerous spots, they were efficient. Kelvin Yeboah, Tomas Chancalay are their weapons up top. They also have James Rodridguez (if he can ever get fit enough)
- Defensive shape - As we’ve mentioned above, they’ll happily give up the possession and then make you pay for it. Their backline is physical and organized.
Key Player: Tomas Chancalay
It would be easy and SEO-friendly to go out and say James Rodriguez here, but given that the Colombian has struggled with fitness since arriving in Minnesota, we’re going to highlight Chancalay, who can cause a lot of headaches for the Dallas backline on Wednesday night.
Key Matchup: Nicholas Romero vs Petar Musa
Romero has had some good nights this season, last over the weekend against Portland. And some bad nights, like a blowout loss against Vancouver.
If Dallas’ midfield can find Musa early with his back to goal or slip him in behind on diagonal runs, Romero is going to have another one of those bad nights.
Availability Report1:
Suspended: none
Out: Michael Boxall (lower body), Peter Stroud (lower body)
Questionable: none
On Loan: none
International duty: none
Quick Notes:
All-time at Dallas: The Loons are 3-5-2 in all-time regular season meetings at Toyota Stadium, including last year’s 2-1 victory.
Current form: The Loons are unbeaten in their last four matches, winning three in a row to boot.
Where they're at in the standings: Thanks to the three-game winning streak, Minnesota sits one point (13 points overall) and one spot above Dallas (6th overall).
Three keys for FC Dallas
- Win the turnover battle in the middle third: Minnesota’s attack runs on transition, similar to Dallas. Pereyra and Gene are dangerous when they can spring forward quickly off a defensive mistakes. The Dallas midfield has to be sharp, connected and not gift the Loons easy moments, like we’ve seen in recent weeks at home. A sloppy giveaway will quickly become a chance for Minnesota.
- Get Musa involved early and often: You always ride a hot hand. Always. But Petar Musa needs service and he needs it early in the match. If you get him into space around the Minnesota penalty box, he will create chances. But if he is chasing the ball in his own defensive end, the plot is going to be a bit lost on the night.
- Don’t let them settle into their defensive shape: Again, Minnesota is comfortable letting you have the ball for large stretches of the game. But it is what you do with the ball that matters. Dallas needs to be quick and sharp on the ball and not allow Minnesota to settle into their defensive shape. Instead, Dallas needs to bring out a high-press early and force the Loons into uncomfortable moments quickly.
Want to know how Dallas should line up to exploit exactly what we just
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1 Note: MLS has an 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.
