The wait is over, the 2026 regular season is finally here. No more preseason caveats. No more “it’s just fitness related.” No more lineups that look like someone played with a random lineup generator.
Saturday night, FC Dallas will square off for the first time in the regular season against Toronto FC. This is the first real point of data for this team in 2026, so let’s dive into what will matter and be worth watching when the players take the field.
The free stuff tells you what happened. A paid subscription tells you why it happened, what it means for FC Dallas, and what’s coming next—before anyone else catches up.
Can this group rekindle Fortress Frisco?
Last season, home form at Toyota Stadium wasn’t nearly fortress-level that we’ve seen in the past. We saw a couple of early losses at home before finally getting in a win in Petar Vermes’ final game as manager of Sporting Kansas City (still love that we helped end things for him there), and then we didn’t see another home win until mid-July.
That kind of span is never fun, especially when there were three straight losses at home.
Opening Day at home against an Eastern Conference team that didn’t make the playoffs in 2025 is the right place to be. It is a match you should win. You may not have to look great in doing so, but it should be a W after 90 minutes.
If this team is serious about taking the leap forward like manager Eric Quill wants, it needs to start with:
- Early positive tempo…not sitting back and defending for the first half
- Assertiveness in possession…basically making sure things move forward consistently
- A clear ‘dog-like’ identity
Three points on Saturday doesn’t define the season. But dropping points at home early again? That is how you quietly dig yourself a big hole that will be more difficult to come out of after the FIFA World Cup break in the summer.
Petar Musa is the Guy. Full Stop.
We learned earlier this week that the club held firm on not selling the Croatian striker this winter. Now, he has to go out and deliver again for a third straight season.
This is his second season with Quill as his manager. The system is more set than it has ever been here for Musa. Expectations should be higher as a result.
Alongside him, Logan Farrington enters his third season as his strike partner. The direct runs, the chaos factor that he adds to the field, that is what helps Musa operate between center backs. The more these two are on the same page, the better.
For Dallas to truly improve in the attack this season, they’ll need:
- More service inside the penalty area for Musa to be his dangerous self
- Set pieces into spaces where he or Farrington can finish things off
- Taking more chances in and around the penalty area. You can’t score if you don’t shoot after all. Basically, no more games with one to three shots on target.
I think we all can say we don’t want slow build-up plays from the midfield, that die with a turnover or a poor shot from 30 yards out. Put teams under pressure and create chances inside the box. This club has finishers, get them into dangerous spot and let them cook.
The defense doesn’t get a pass anymore
We’ve talked about this defensive group a lot this preseason. A lot. And now it all counts.
We know the defense will be more set in the 3-4-3 (or 5-2-3 as I like to call it) this season. While that group didn’t get a ton of new additions, it should be more stable this year due to the continuity of the group.
Toronto FC was a team in 2025 that was tough to breakdown, especially towards the end of the season when they had eight straight draws. They’ll sit back and absorb pressure, spread you out and pick their moments.
The Dallas defense doesn’t need to be elite right away, but they do need to be:
- Cohesive
- Cleaner in their build-out moments
- And above all, communicating with one another at all times
If this defense takes even a modest step forward, like we saw at the end of last season, the ceiling of this team jumps up in a big way.
Identity Check: Dogs or not?
Quill constantly wants his players to be “dogs” or have “dawg mentality.” We love it. We appreciate the energy and vibe.
But now is a put up or shut up moment.
Opening day is weird and emotional. Quill compared it to a playoff game on Tuesday. It is loud. It is chaotic. It will indeed be sloppy more times than not. The team that wins second balls and competes in the 50/50 battles will set the tone.
Again, Dallas doesn’t have to be perfect here, they just need to dictate their game from the opening whistle. Make that statement for themselves, but also to show the rest of the league that they mean business this season.
If they get pushed around at home, though. Yeah, that will be a red flag that we’ll be discussing come Monday.
Early-season Sharpness
It’s Week 1. Or Matchday 1 as MLS will lovingly call it. There will be rust. There will be heavy legs. But there is a difference between “early-season legs” and “we’re not ready.”
Here are some key things to watch here:
- Speed of passing
- Defensive recovery runs
- Coordination in pressing as a unit
This is where that continuity piece comes into play. If this group truly benefits from so many returning players and a lower roster turnover, the cohesion should be noticeable.
The Bottom Line
Let’s be honest for a moment. Opening night isn’t going to decide if FC Dallas wins the Western Conference. But it absolutely sets a tone.
We need to see:
- Fortress Frisco return
- Musa cooking inside the penalty area
- The defensive group returning to a level we love
- And each player showing us what kind of ‘dog’ they are
The preseason disclaimers are gone after this game. It all counts from here on out.
And if this team really wants to host a playoff game in 2026 (and they really do, trust me), it starts with not farting around with games like this in February at home.
The free stuff tells you what happened. A paid subscription tells you why it happened, what it means for FC Dallas, and what’s coming next—before anyone else catches up.
