by Ethan Johnson
July 15, 2007
After a long stretch of not watching/recapping FC Dallas games, it was great to be back in front of the ole TV last night, even if the game was on FSN-SW and not some high-def channel. The story so far: After a long stint of being alone in 1st place, FC Dallas dropped to 2nd, and at the time of this game was trailing Houston by 3 standings points. Would FCD pull into a tie for 1st? Would DCU send FCD home empty-handed? Would FCD be competitive after all of the injury problems they've been having lately? Let's go live to the DVR:
Of course, DCU had their own mini-drama: Jaime Moreno is tied with Jason Kreis (now the coach of Real Salt Lake) for the most goals scored in MLS. Would Moreno break the tie and make history?
The game was frustrating as all get-out, but also extremely exciting. DCU gave a clinic on how to clog up the passing lanes, but FCD displayed some sweet footwork and kept stealing the ball back in clever ways. DCU took first blood in the early going, and while I was pissed that FCD got scored on, they didn't seem to lose much steam over the goal. The bigger issue was the goal by "Just Fred" in the closing moments of the first half. Fred was clearly offside, and FCD played him soft on the expectation that the offside flag would be raised. When are you gonna learn, guys? Play to the whistle, not the call you wanted and didn't get! FCD down 2-0 at halftime.
Things went from bad to worse in the early going in the 2nd half. Luciano Emilio bopped in a score making it 3-0 DCU, and things were looking mighty grim. After Houston going bananas on their previous 2 opponents with 4 goals apiece, and seeing how that really sucks the air out of the opposing team, I was waiting for the hammer to fall. Moreno left the game with a hamstring injury, guaranteeing that history would not in fact be made, but that didn't preclude anyone else from getting their digs in.
Minutes later, the hammer fell. Carlos Ruiz ended his scoring drought and drove in a fantastic goal to end the shutout. I found it interesting that there was no post-goal high-fiving, and so forth. He acted like he'd been there before, but more importantly, I think the team was resolute that the score was 3-1 DCU, and there was work still to be done.
After several near misses and back-and-forth play, Juan Toja found the net, making the score 3-2. Now things were officially interesting.
Toja evened things up and NOW the on-field celebrating was on in full force. After being left for dead, FCD defied expectations and managed to play DCU to a draw. Both teams did their level best to make the score 4-3 in their favor, and the inctredibly awful officiating even tried to pitch in with 4 minutes of stoppage time without anything happening to warrant it. The announcers tried to stretch their imagination as to where that number came from, and concluded that the officials wanted to appease the home crowd. Despicable. And I'm saying this as a fan that wouldn't want charity stoppage time at home just to give FCD an extra chance to eke out a win.
Normally, I'm pretty quiet when I watch soccer games on TV, and save all of the obnoxious shouting and singing for the stadium. When Toja drove in the final goal I shouted YES!!!!! which always surprises Marlena. She cheers for Notre Dame like they can hear her through the television. Anyway, wow, what a fantastic game and a great way to go into the long all-star/SuperLiga break. (OK, short of actually beating DCU.) Seriously - FCD doesn't play another MLS game until August. Mmmmm, sitting outdoors in Texas in August. Can't wait.
I may manage to go see FCD against Pachuca later this month, but otherwise, that's it for FCD recaps until August. I refuse to shell out big bucks for the "Beckham" game, especially when he is nursing an injury and may not do much beyond waving "hi" to the fans and sitting on the bench. Rest up, FCD! <EM>
(Much, much more virtual ink has been spilled by me about Major League Soccer. The fledgling but growing MLS article archive may be found here.)
