FRISCO, Texas – Though they locked down stars Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins, FC Dallas couldn’t notch a win – or a shutout – in the first leg of its Western Conference semifinal series against Seattle Sounders on Sunday night, giving up a second half goal to draw the Supporters’ Shield winners 1-1 at Toyota Stadium.
Dallas jumped out to a first half lead, going up on the Sounders when Michel buried a penalty kick in the 34th minute. While they stood strong against Seattle’s biggest attacking names, Dallas allowed an unlikely source to score the all-important equalizer, with Sounders defensive midfielder Osvaldo Alonso nodding home a Marco Pappa set piece for his first MLS goal of 2014 in the 54th minute.
“That’s the most frustrating thing,” captain Matt Hedges said after the game. “We keep their attack relatively quiet and Alonso gets a goal off a free kick.”
The result leaves Dallas behind the eight-ball heading into the Nov. 10 second leg at Seattle. Thanks to MLS’ newly-implemented away goals rule, Dallas needs a road win or a draw with at least four total goals to advance to the next round of the MLS Cup Playoffs, presented by AT&T. A scoreless draw would take Seattle through, and the series would be decided in extra time if regulation of the second leg finishes at 1-1, with the possibility of penalty kicks.
“It’s frustrating not to come out with a victory,” said Dallas head coach Oscar Pareja. “It’s frustrating to give up a goal. It’s frustrating to not create as many chances that give us the possibility to win it.”
While Dallas didn’t get the win it so desperately wanted on Sunday, the team was encouraged by its strong defensive display. The second-highest scoring team in the regular season, Seattle struggled in the attack against fourth-seeded Dallas, who were playing on short rest after beating Vancouver in the Western Conference Knockout Round on Wednesday night.
“I think it show a lot of our character,” Hedges said. “It didn’t look like we had played three games in eight days. Everybody had fresh legs, put in their work and it got us a result."
Now FC Dallas turn their attention to the Nov. 10 second leg at Seattle. After scoring at least one goal in all four of its games against the Sounders this year and with playmaker Mauro Diaz set to return to the fold after serving a one-game suspension on Sunday, Dallas are confident that they can find the back of the net next Monday at CenturyLink Field. If the team does score that away goal, it knows that all bets are off.
“We have 90 minutes and we can score there also,” Pareja said. “It is what it is. The series is open. The first 90, and it’s a tie. We will go to Seattle and trying to do what we can do. This team is not afraid to play anyone.”
