The preseason camp is in the books and the regular season is coming up fast. For FC Dallas, the roster looks more settled than it did at this point a year ago, but that does not mean all of the major questions have been resolved. Progress in 2026 will depend less on the tinkering and experimentation, and more on the actual execution.
The club has some clear storylines surround them heading into opening day against Toronto FC. The defense has to find ways to show measurable improvements, following back-to-back seasons where they gave up 50+ goals. Petar Musa has proven to be ‘the guy’ in the Dallas attack for the last two seasons, but who is going to support him? And lastly, the debate about the club’s decision not to sign a new Designated Player before the start of the regular season adds a really intriguing layer over this entire roster.
Here are three key questions FC Dallas must answer before the regular season begins this weekend.
Who can step up and help Musa?
I’ve gone back and forth over a couple of questions outside of these three, but this one continues to linger on my mind more than the rest.
We know Musa is going to lead this team in goals. He’s proven over the last two seasons that he can step up in any match, against any team in the league.
But, the last two seasons have also shown us that he needs a partner to also carry the load. If he’s scoring 15-20 goals this season, having someone else add in 8-12 of their own is what this team needs to reach a different spot in the overall standings when things are said and done.
Thankfully, we’re at year three for Logan Farrington. The Big Dawg has had a solid preseason so far, scoring multiple goals in multiple games.
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Sure, the competition hasn’t been as good as he’ll see in regular season play, but goal scorers need confidence and finding the back of the net consistently in the preseason can help them build that confidence up.
If Farrington can double his output from last season, which would get him to 10 goals and six assists, I think this attack will be humming along nicely.