The playoff tickets have been punched and now comes the fight for positioning.
FC Dallas returns home to Toyota Stadium on Saturday night for a big Western Conference showdown against the San Jose Earthquakes. Both teams have already secured their places in the postseason, with Dallas sitting third in the West to San Jose’s fourth place spot. This one is about as close to a six-pointer as you can get this late in the regular season.
And the Quakes aren’t making life easy for anyone these days.
After struggling through part of the spring and summer, San Jose enters Saturday’s match riding a nine-game unbeaten streak. However, four out of the last five games have ended in a draw for San Jose, including three straight against Colorado, Real Salt Lake and Nashville SC.
The two sides met earlier this season in San Jose, with Dallas winning an epic match 3-2, thanks to a last-minute goal from Sam Sarver.
Let’s dive in.
Tactic Style & Shape:
Under Bruce Arena, San Jose has developed into a team that’s comfortable playing directly, attacking quickly and putting opponents under pressure without needing to dominate possession.
The Quakes have recently leaned on a 5-3-2 formation, giving them additional defensive coverage while allowing their outside backs to push forward when possession changes hands.
Defensively, San Jose can drop into a compact back give, making it difficult for opponent to find space around the penalty area. But once they win possession, they’re capable of moving the ball forward quickly rather than spending extended periods building from the back.
San Jose has conceded just five goals over its last five matches, and its ability to stay organized has helped extend the unbeaten streak. But there’s another side to those numbers. Four draws in five matches suggest a team that has become comfortable staying in games without necessarily finding the breakthrough needed to win them.
Key Player: Preston Judd
Timo Werner brings the international reputation, but American striker Preston Judd remains San Jose’s most reliable goalscoring threat.
Judd has enjoyed an excellent season, leading the Quakes with 16 goals and becoming a consistent problem for opposing center backs.
He brings a physical presence around the penalty area, but he’s considerably more than a traditional target forward. He’s willing to run behind defenders, attack crosses and create opportunities through his movement rather than waiting for the ball to arrive at his feet.
Key Matchup: Petar Musa vs. Daniel Munie
With playoff positioning on the line, this feels like a match where Dallas needs its leading scorer to make the difference. Musa enters the game with 20 goals on the season, continuing to rewrite the FC Dallas record books while remaining among the league’s most dangerous finishers.
Standing in his way this weekend will be San Jose center back Daniel Munie.
Munie has become an important part of the Earthquakes’ defensive structure, providing physicality and positioning in he middle of Arena’s back line.
Availability Report1:
Suspended: none
Out: Nonso Adimabua (lower body), Jonathan Gonzalez (lower body), Darius Johnson (lower body), DeJuan Jones (lower body), Niko Tsakiris (upper body), Benji Kikanovic (lower body)
Questionable: none
International duty: none
Quick Notes:
All-time vs FC Dallas: San Jose owns a 31-23-23 record in all-time regular season meetings with FC Dallas. Their road record in Dallas includes a 13-14-10 record.
Current form: The Quakes have gone unbeaten in their last nine, with four out of the last five ending in a draw.
Where they're at in the standings: San Jose sits three points back of FC Dallas and one spot below in the standings.
Three keys for FC Dallas
- Don’t let San Jose set the tempo: Four draws in five games tells us something about this San Jose squad. They were banged up back in the spring when these two last met and they’ll be far more organized and tougher to deal with in this one. Dallas cannot allow San Jose to dictate the match on their terms. They need to move the ball quicker, force the Quakes’ midfield to cover ground and make their back line adjust rather than allowing it to remain comfortable for 90 minutes.
- Make the back five move: San Jose’s defensive shape can be difficult to break down when everyone is positioned correctly. Dallas needs more movement up top out of Musa, Joaquin Valiente, Santiago Moreno and others to create uncertainty across the defensive line. The goal isn’t about getting more players inside the penalty box, it is making San Jose’s defenders decide which players their responsible for more often.
- Win the six-pointer: Both teams are going to the playoffs and it could be an early preview to a series if things go a certain way. Dallas enters Saturday’s game three points ahead of San Jose. Win and that gap becomes six with three games to go. A loss, and San Jose pulls level. The playoffs are coming, now is the time to make sure Dallas enters it with the strongest position possible.
Want to know how Dallas should line up to exploit exactly what we just broke down? Our weekly ‘What to Watch For’ will tackle that later this week. Sign up free and we'll send it to you before kickoff.
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.
