San Jose Earthquakes defender Carlos Akapo (29) and FC Dallas Dante Sealy (11) battle for the futbol at Toyota Stadium in Frisco TX on Sat Feb 24, 2024 (AP News photo)
By William Espy
The San Jose Earthquakes started their new season in Frisco, Texas as they visited FC Dallas at Toyota Stadium. Last season, the two teams were only separated by two points in the standings, with Dallas finishing 7th in the Western Conference while the Earthquakes came 9th.
The Quakes had one notable change this season, which was easy to see even before kickoff. As part of their 50th-anniversary celebration, they’re wearing red on their kits to honor the original Earthquakes franchise instead of the usual blue.
The Earthquakes started with a 4-3-3 formation a slight change in the lineup from last season due to the departure of Jamiro Monteiro who moved to Gaziantep of the Turkish Super Lig on a free transfer earlier this month, while Dallas was running a 3-5-2.
The Earthquakes got out to an early 1-0 lead when Cristian Espinoza brought the ball into the offensive third of the pitch down the right side and passed it into the box to Jack Skahan who shot the ball but Maarten Paes made a sensational save for Dallas.
Unfortunately for Dallas, Benjamin Kikanovic would get a secondary scoring chance on the rebound, and put it in the back of the net in the sixth minute.
The first card of the game was given to Carlos Gruezo when he pushed a Dallas player in a fairly dangerous position. The shot was deflected wide, and Dallas got another set piece with a corner which they played short and nothing came of it.
Dallas would tie it up in the 25th minute off of another corner opportunity, when Asier Illarramendi had a great touch around the defender in front, and followed it up with a shot that Daniel had no chance to save for the Earthquakes.
Illarramendi had another great scoring chance in the 34th minute, but his header went just wide. San Jose would get a second booking just before halftime when Rodrigues made an unnecessary tackle from behind.
At halftime, it seemed clear that Dallas had outplayed the Earthquakes in nearly every aspect besides the scoreboard. Dallas led in possession, shots, and shots on target, many of which came as the result of set pieces, The expected goals though, much like the scoreboard, were even after 45 minutes.
The second half remained scoreless early, and substitutions started in the 61st minute when Dallas brought Ema Twamusi on and he immediately created a scoring chance for his team. Luchi Gonzalez countered with some substitutions of his own in the 65th minute, bringing on two debuting players Vitor Costa and Preston Judd.
Daniel was forced to make some big saves in the second half to keep his team in the fight, and he could be seen getting frustrated with his defenders in the 72nd minute. Gonzalez made some more substitutions in the 73rd minute, bringing in Amahl Pellegrino and Alfredo Morales onto the pitch.
Despite some quality scoring chances from both teams, we entered the last ten minutes before stoppage time with a 1-1 tie. In the 83rd minute, Nico Estevez made another substitution for Dallas bringing Eugene Ansah into the game. In the 84th, Gonzalez made one more of his own, Michael Baldissimo.
Nkosi Tafari took a hit to the face during play in the 87th minute, and despite protest was forced to leave the pitch with the trainers due to potential concussion concerns. He quickly rejoined play after he was deemed healthy enough to continue.
Four minutes of stoppage time were added as either team looked to score a late go-ahead goal and walk away with three points rather than one. Dante Sealy did just that for Dallas, scoring in the 93rd minute. In the 95th minute, San Jose had one opportunity to equalize but they were unable to convert and Dallas walked away with a 2-1 win, and three points. Although it was a heartbreaking loss for Earthquakes supporters, Dallas deserved the win.
