So FC Dallas had an interesting night Saturday night.
Coming off of back-to-back defeats, the Hoops got off to a rocking start with Fabian Castillo scoring :29 seconds into the match, the fastest goal in team history. Castillo then doubled the lead with a second goal under 10 minutes later and Blas Perez made it 3-0 within the first 30 minutes.
But then came the rain and the lightning and a three-hour rain delay. The match finally picked up around 11:40 at night, 20 minutes before the MLS curfew. And with just a few minutes remaining, FC Dallas found itself trying to hold to a now 3-2 lead thanks to two late goals from Toronto forward Giovinco.
But FC Dallas held on for a weird victory, their first win in almost a month, and in the early goings, when the match was business as usual, the Hoops looked like their usual, dominant selves. And now the trick is keep the momentum from that win going on the road at Colorado this weekend.
The biggest issue with FC Dallas in their struggles the past few weeks have been on the attack. In the three match winless streak, the Hoops only amassed one goal, which came off of a corner kick at Portland. The main catalyst for the attack, midfielder Mauro Diaz, has again missed significant playing time this season, and it’s incredibly clear that the team has no one in the middle that can match what Diaz does. And it’s unclear when he’ll be back on the pitch.
But Saturday might have shown that the Hoops are finally figuring out how to play without Diaz. The first two goals came in the run of play. The first came from a great pass from Moises Hernandez to Castillo, who easily beat his defender and beat the keeper. The second came from another long pass to Castillo, who made a great bending shot.
And so far this season it’s been a team effort. Three players have scored multiple goals this season for the Hoops and seven players have recorded at least one assist. Ironically, Diaz has yet to record an assist.
Of course, another help in the win was the return of defender and captain Matt Hedges to the back line. He missed the Colorado loss due to a knock in practice and it showed, with the team giving up four goals to a team that came into the match without a single one. While Toronto did manage to get two, thanks to two really good goals from Giovinco, everything felt a little bit easier at the back for FC Dallas with him in there.
So now the hope is that this trend continues and that this wacky win this past weekend results in another win Saturday in a revenge match and a long run to get back to the top of the league table. And hopefully this offense that has so much potential and attacking options can find a way to capitalize on that for the rest of the season, with or without Mauro Diaz.