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FC Dallas are chasing a treble and American soccer history
Never in MLS has a team won the treble of the North American trophies up for grabs: the MLS Cup, the MLS Supporters Shield and the U.S. Open Cup. But the team that looks closest to such a feat is not a powerhouse club known for winning silverware over and over, like an LA Galaxy. Instead, it’s FC Dallas sitting on the brink of history.
FC Dallas -- the young, tenacious squad loaded with homegrown players -- sits in prime position to conquer all three trophies, starting tonight with the final of the U.S. Open Cup against the New England Revolution. If they win the Open Cup, it could be just the start of good things: with five games left in the MLS regular season, FCD sit on top of the Western Conference with a four-point cushion, putting the Shield and MLS Cup in sight.
It’s a remarkable possibility for a team that has had a long drought of titles -- not since FCD won the Open Cup in 1997 as the Dallas Burn has the team hoisted a trophy, their only one to date. But it’s not entirely surprising either. With a strong focus on developing their own talent through academies and the college draft, FC Dallas has taken a long-term approach and quietly built an adaptable, hungry young squad of core players. That group has been boosted by outstanding performances from imports like the Argentine No. 10 Mauro Diaz and Colombian winger Michael Barrios, and everything is coming together.
There’s still a reason why no team has ever won all three trophies in one year though -- they are all difficult enough individually, let alone attempting to sweep all three. Even a young squad like FCD, which is less susceptible to the fatigue that MLS can inflict, has a very difficult task ahead. But the trophy they have the best shot at is the first one, the Open Cup, and it could build the momentum they need to make history.
The Revs are not exactly a throwaway team, but they sit outside of playoff position in an inferior Eastern Conference table, and their road record has been awful this year to boot at 3-8-5. FC Dallas, who will host tonight’s Open Cup final, have been excellent at home, posting 10-1-4 at Toyota Stadium. On top of it, the Revs are facing a slew of injuries and it’s unclear whether striker Kei Kamara or Je-Vaughn Watson, two important starters, will be fit to play. Dallas are the clear favorites.
The Shield, the next in line for grabs, poses a much tougher challenge though. Though Dallas look comfortable at the top of the table right now, they have four teams within five points nipping at their heels. FCD’s final five matches of the season will be a batch of doozies, as they will have to face the Galaxy twice and a strong new-look Seattle Sounders team that is desperate to win, giving them perhaps the toughest schedule of any team in the fight for the Shield. With Champions League games -- which would probably count toward the treble if it didn't span two different MLS seasons -- FCD have the equivalent of a match every five days until the end of the season, and only two of their remaining MLS matches at home.
FC Dallas is a team that seems tailor-made for tough stretches though and they are in some ways the anti-LA Galaxy, which has been the most successful club in MLS over the past 20 seasons. There are not really any Steven Gerrards or David Beckhams on FC Dallas, an organization that has built their ranks from the ground up, creating a team around a core of local, homegrown players and by being a team that uses MLS’s college draft particularly well. MLS is grueling and having young players providing depth certainly gives FC Dallas an edge.
Though other teams have similarly targeted youth as the path forward, no team has done it as well as FC Dallas. FCD finished the 2015 season at the top of the Western Conference in MLS with six academy players, five from Texas, on their roster. With players like midfielder/defender Kellyn Acosta, goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez and midfielder Victor Ulloa being among those homegrown prospects, Dallas is proof that top talent can be cultivated the old-fashioned way.
Acosta is tied for second in assists on FCD this year and has become a favorite new call-up for U.S. national coach Jurgen Klinsmann. Meanwhile, Matt Hedges was a draft pick out of UNC in 2012 and he is looking like a favorite to be named Defender of the Year, an award he nearly won last season. Tesho Akindele was another draft pick from the Colorado School of Mines, joining FCD in 2014, and he’s third on the FC Dallas goal list (5) and fourth in assists (4).
All the pieces are there for an MLS Cup run -- it just requires getting hot at the right time. No one was predicting the Portland Timbers would win the MLS Cup last year, and yet, they were unstoppable by the time playoffs arrived. If FC Dallas can secure an Open Cup win tonight and find a way to grind out a Shield, there’s good reason to think FC Dallas will have the confidence and gumption to reach the MLS Cup.
Yes, MLS is a tough league and winning three of the top trophies available for MLS teams is even tougher, but FC Dallas’ young squad has as good a chance as anyone to do it.
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