FRISCO, Texas --
On Saturday afternoon at Pizza Hut Park, the 18 players remaining in Sueno MLS Dallas 2008 took to the field to face Sole Roll under-23 team in a match that could help determine who will be in the final group. The Sueno MLS team prevailed 4-1 thanks to a pair of goals from Cuban-born forward Yaikel Perez, but he was far from the only star of the day for the group.
In the sixth minute, 18-year-old forward Ezequiel Franco made it 1-0 after converting a penalty kick. The native of Buenos Aires, who has played second division soccer in his home nation, was taken down inside the box by an opposing player. He calmly stepped up to the spot and punched the ball into the right side of the net for the goal.
Then, 10 minutes later, Franco set up the second goal. That was when he strolled up the right flank and saw Perez open to the left of the goal. Franco found his teammate and Perez coolly knocked it into the right side of the goal.
And in the 22nd minute, Franco and Perez nearly hooked up for another score. The Argentinean found his teammate streaking toward the goal and placed his pass perfectly but Perez's shot was saved by the opposing 'keeper.
After Sole Roll cut the lead in the 27th minute, when a shot from about 20 yards out beat goalkeeper Raul Herrera, the Sueno MLS team again increased the lead to two goal in the 68th minute through a true was a work of art.
Jose Funes, a 16-year-old midfielder from Arlington, Texas, hit a rocket from about 30 yards out that bounced before streaking into the right side of the net to make it 3-1. Funes' day ended a bit prematurely when he twisted an ankle in the 75th minute but he was still all smiles afterward.
"It was a good game," Funes said. "On my goal, I asked for the ball and shot it. I hoped it went in and it did. I'm proud of my goal. I think I did pretty well until I twisted my ankle. During the time I was in there, I got to score and was happy with that."
And just before the final whistle, Perez struck again. His second goal of the day was set up when 18-year-old midfielder Fernando Garza found him unmarked on the left side of the field. After a well-placed pass from Garza, Perez then beat the opposing 'keeper inside the far post to make it a 4-1 contest.
"It was a very good week for me," Perez said. "I've been training hard with my trainer the entire week. It's been a hard week but knowing that I had this opportunity helped me prepare myself to play as well as I did today. I feel that I played very well today."
Another player who played a key role on Saturday for the Sueno team was 23-year-old defender Alex Fischera. A former player at Rutgers, Fischera was quite vocal on the back line and did a great job of organizing the defense before leaving the match in the 71st minute.
"I felt comfortable back there," Fischera said. "I have played in a few Latino leagues, so I felt comfortable with these guys. They were responding well to me during the practice session. We got out here today and they asked someone to step up and lead the team. I just felt like I could do that. I felt confident in myself."
FC Dallas head coach Steve Morrow spoke to the group briefly before kickoff. Then after the match, FCD assistant coaches Jorge Alvial and Marco Ferruzzi addressed the group, but it was Chris Clarke FCD's director of youth development, who coached the squad, that delivered the news of the day when he informed the group that each of them had been allotted four tickets for the FC Dallas-Los Angeles Galaxy match later Saturday night at Pizza Hut Park, a sellout.
The Sueno group also got some more great news when they learned that FCD officials wanted to see them play once more this week, likely against the Hoops reserves before they made a decision on who would make the cut.
Perez, the ex-member of the Cuban national team, is eagerly anticipating that next match. "I think it's great and is a great opportunity for us to play against FC Dallas," Perez said. "This is a dream come true for all of us and we're looking forward to it. I know that I will have to continue the preparation that I've had but also step it up a level to take advantage of this great opportunity."
After the match, Ferruzzi offered his thoughts on what he had seen.
"There is definitely some young talent out here and some guys that have good ability on the ball," Ferruzzi said. "I think in the right environment, some of the younger kids could mature into something. It will be interesting to see what they look like in a few years. In a certain environment where they're going to get pushed with a higher competency level, you would like to see what's going to happen with a couple of them in a few years."
Several players were impressed with how well the squad performed considering they only have one full training session together as a unit.
"The whole team played well," Fischera said. "It's great to see that after one training session together that we can click like that. We have another test and another game coming up here. I'm excited about that too. Let's take on some better people. The competition was good today. I was happy to see the result today. It was really nice out there."
Added Perez: "I think it was a good game," he said. "We had a lot of good communication. We won 4-1 and I think it was a good game for everybody."
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
