FC Dallas head into Saturday night's contest against the Colorado Rapids having won four of their last five games in all. Their lone loss in that stretch came Wednesday when they fell 2-0 to Mexican Primera Division club Tigres UANL in Monterrey in the second leg of their friendly series -- but the Hoops still captured the Rio Grande Plate on penalty kicks.
In their last MLS action, last Saturday at Real Salt Lake, FCD won 1-0 in a game that saw Hoops forward Abe Thompson score his first goal of the year in second-half stoppage time. It was the Hoops' second consecutive win away from Frisco.
Colorado is also coming off a victory in their last match, a 1-0 home win against Houston on Wednesday. The Rapids got all the scoring they would need on the evening in the 35th minute when Nicolas Hernandez scored his fifth goal of the year.
The Hoops and Rapids have played twice so far this season. The sides played to a 2-2 draw in Denver on April 15 after FCD blew an early two-goal advantage and settled for a tie. On June 24, they met at Pizza Hut Park and the Hoops prevailed 1-0 on Kenny Cooper's sixth tally of the season in the 32nd minute.
"It's a tough game," said FCD head coach Colin Clarke. "There are a lot of games left for us in the Western Conference. It's another home game for us and we'll be looking to get three points. It's a team we always have good battles with."
FCD is an impressive 8-2-1 so far this season at home, and all-time has a sparkling 13-4-2 record on their home field against Colorado. Another trend not in the Rapids' favor is that only six of their 23 goals so far this season have come on the road.
Despite his team's great home mark against their next Western Conference foe, Clarke knows the Rapids are always a force to be reckoned with.
"They have some good players," he said. "(Terry) Cooke is having a great year out wide on the right. (Jovan) Kirovski and Nicolas (Hernandez) are scoring important goals for them. It will be a battle and it is one we look forward to."
Clarke's players also acknowledge that Saturday's Western Conference tilt will be hard-fought, much like every other meeting between the two squads.
"It will be a tough game," said FCD defender Chris Gbandi. "They're always one of our toughest opponents. They're playing well right now and have all of their players healthy."
Hoops midfielder Ramon Nunez agreed. "It's going to be a tough game," he said. "Our mentality is going to be to try to come out and get an early goal. That way, our job will be easier throughout the rest of the game."
The FCD players also know that like their own squad, Colorado brings a number of offensive options to the table.
"They've got some firepower," said midfielder Richard Mulrooney. "Clint (Mathis) is starting to find pretty good form. Kirovski and (Kyle) Beckerman can both hit some long shots."
Added Gbandi: "They have guys up front that are scoring goals for them. They also have a guy like Cooke who is very good at crossing the ball. They're a very good team and are strong and aggressive. Hopefully the weather is nice and hot tomorrow so we can get them running around a bit."
Speaking of Cooke, who leads MLS in assists with 10, the Hoops know he is one player they need to keep an ever-watchful eye on come Saturday night.
"He hits a great ball," said Mulrooney. "If he were on my team and got the ball outside, I would make runs in the box because he can find players well. Knowing that if he gets the ball wide, we know that we need to put pressure on him. He's hitting some great balls. I rate him very highly. I think he's a good player."
Saturday's affair will be the last MLS match for FCD before the All-Star break, but they will play on Wednesday against the Charleston Battery in a fourth-round U.S. Open Cup match to be played on the Battery's home field at Blackbaud Stadium. Finishing the first half of the season on a high note is important for the Hoops.
"It's definitely important," said Nunez. "We want to finish with as many points as we can before the All-Star break. We're going to take a couple days off. Then we have to come back and do it all over again and play the second half of the season."
The Hoops-Rapids match, set for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff, will be a nice opener to what shapes up as a great evening for Dallas-area soccer fans. After the completion of the league match, English Premier League club Everton FC will face Mexican Primera Division side Club America at Pizza Hut Park, with kickoff set for 8:30 p.m. CT.
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
