Were we quick to write off the Leagues Cup for FC Dallas in 2026? Absolutely.
Following a 1-0 win on Saturday night over Chivas de Guadalajara, in a very Chivas-friendly environment at San Jose’s PayPal Park, FC Dallas got the spark they needed to extend their winning streak and shutout streak. Maybe this tournament isn’t that bad after all.
Let’s dive in.
A very Dallas performance
This one felt very much like most road games have felt this season. Dallas sits back, lets the other team have the lion’s share of the ball and will then look to counter where they can.
In the first half, Chivas had roughly 75% of the possession. Dallas was chasing the game a bit more than we’d like, but the difference was in the quality of attempts that Chivas was getting when they were able to get into the Dallas penalty area. While Chivas had nine shots in the first half, only one of them was actually on target.
“It was a bit chaotic in the first half. We knew that they were going to have the lion's share of possession. Most teams do against us, and we're okay with that. It's more about what we do with our limited possession, and we're a very vertical team that wants to get the goal fast, and we pride ourselves on transition and counterattacks. And when we won the ball in the first half, we weren't clean enough to get out of that to the third fourth pass that gets us going forward with velocity. We were turning it over too quick. I think it was maybe nerves, obviously the crowd heavily, Chivas fans, the stadium was electric, so really good exercise for us to play in this away game, so to speak.“ - Eric Quill on the performance
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