FRISCO, Texas -- For long stretches on Wednesday night, FC Dallas had their midfield maestro back and it was all good: Mauro Diaz's cutting passes and daring runs opened up the Vancouver Whtiecaps defense with ease.
But then Diaz had a momentary lapse in judgment. Late in the second half of FCD's 2-1 victory, Diaz -- who had subbed off in the 79th minute -- stepped onto the field during a scuffle, and on Friday, the MLS Disciplinary Committee handed the Argentine a one-game suspension.
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So, on Sunday night in the first leg of their Western Conference Semifinal series against the Seattle Sounders, Dallas will have to play without their attacking wunderkind.
“He could have (made a difference),” said team captain Matt Hedges. “Better to have him than not. It’s disappointing. We could have used him.”
The loss is tempered by the fact that Dallas played most of 2014 without Diaz, who suffered a knee injury against D.C. United on April 26 and struggled to get back into the lineup for the remainder of the regular season. In total, he made only 17 appearances in the regular season and only made one start after returning to action.
“I think that’s a good thing that we got so many games without him,” Hedges said. “We got a strategy that was really successful for us.”
“We have faced that much adversity during the year that this is not new for us,” said head coach Oscar Pareja.
The question then is: Who will replace Diaz in the lineup?
Based on past lineups and performances, Pareja has a number of options. First in line are international playmakers Andres Escobar and David Texiera. Escobar came on late for Diaz on Wednesday, whereas Texiera was an unused substitute for the game.
Escobar played in 23 games this season, tallying two goals and four assists. After struggling in the first half of the season, the Colombian winger came on strong in the second half of the season, especially at key times when other attacking options were struggling with their form.
But after starting the final 13 matches of the season, he was left out of the starting XI against Vancouver, and only subbed -- for Diaz -- to play the final stretch.
“Andres was needing a little break," Pareja explained. "He is full now again. He has trained well.”
Texiera, on the other hand, only started nine games in 2014, but two of those games were against Seattle, in which he scored three of his four goals.
“David is a professional who has adjusted very well,” Pareja said. “He obviously produced for us.”
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Diaz may not be the only player that Dallas has to replace. Both midfielder Victor Ulloa and goalkeeper Chris Seitz needed treatment at different times during the game, and Ulloa had to leave in the 76th minute.
“Today was a good day,” Pareja said. “Victor trained almost full today. Chris is feeling better. His flexor was bothering him (on Wednesday).”
Peruvian international Raul Fernandez would be the first option to replace Seitz in goal, if needed. Pareja would need to decided between Kellyn Acosta and Adam Moffat to replace Ulloa, and he hinted that Acosta -- who came on for Ulloa on Wednesday -- might have the edge over Moffat, who is just returning from injury.
“[Acosta] is in his best moment right now,” Pareja said. “He is healthy. No doubts. He can step on the field anytime.”
