2011 Aug 20 2011 Aug 20
FC Dallas 0 - 1 Seattle Sounders FC
Pizza Hut Park, Frisco, TX
Goals:
16' SEA: Mauro Rosales (Fredy Montero)
Dallas: Kevin Hartman; Zach Loyd (Jeremy Hall 24'), Jackson (Fabian Castillo 73'), Ugo Ihemelu, Jair Benitez; Marvin Chavez, Daniel Cruz, Daniel Hernandez (Bruno Guarda 81'), Brek Shea; Ricardo Villar, Maicon Santos.
Substitutes not used: Chris Seitz, Bobby Warshaw, Jack Stewart, Andrew Jacobson.
Seattle: Kasey Keller; Zach Scott, Jeff Parke, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Leo Gonzalez; Mauro Rosales, Osvaldo Alonso, Erik Friberg (Brad Evans 63'), Lamar Neagle; Mike Fucito (Pat Noonan 78'), Fredy Montero (Alvaro Fernandez 68').
Substitutes not used: Terry Boss, James Riley, Tyson Wahl, Roger Levesque.
Match report from Ron Stickney:
Seattle Sounders FC moved ahead of host FC Dallas into second place in the league table with a 1-0 win, the first ever Sounders FC win in Texas. Mauro Rosales scored the lone goal of the match, and Kasey Keller needed a couple of critical saves late to preserve the shutout.
It was another hot road match, with the thermometer at 100 Fahrenheit at kickoff.
Dallas goalkeeper Kevin Hartman broke the MLS record for matches played with his 379th.
The first two fouls called were given yellow cards by rookie MLS referee David Gantar. Dallas midfielder Daniel Cruz earned the first one with a way late tackle on Osvaldo Alonso. Seattle midfielder Erik Friberg got the next one when he tripped Marvin Chavez after a fair tackle.
16' SEA: Rosales (Montero). The lone goal came on a Seattle counterattack. Lamar Neagle's pass to the middle wasn't a good one, but Ugo Ihemelu misplayed it into the path of Fredy Montero. Three defenders congregated around Montero, and he slipped a pass to Rosales on the right. Rosales shot first touch from the 18-yard line and beat Hartman to the lower near corner. 1-0 Seattle.
Dallas immediately looked to Brek Shea for the tying goal. Keller claimed a cross to the far post before Shea could get it. Shea tried twice from the top left corner of the penalty area, missing the top near corner by a foot the first time and seeing Keller save his second try. Seattle defender Zach Scott had the job of marking Shea the whole match and did quite well at it, pressuring Shea on his shots and preventing other chances. It would be fair to give Scott the nod for man of the match, although Keller would put in a strong bid with some late heroics.
At 21' Seattle netted the ball when Jhon Kennedy Hurtado headed in Rosales' 35-yard free kick, but Hurtado was a step offside on the play and was flagged for it.
Dallas had to spend a substitution early when Zach Loyd suffered a leg injury. He was replaced by Jeremy Hall, just acquired from Portland by trade.
At 26' Dallas got a shot from a free kick after Daniel Hernandez dove, but Ricardo Villar missed the goal by two yards.
Ihemelu was cautioned at 27' for crashing into Mike Fucito, who got a bloody nose from the foul and had to have a cotton plug installed in his nostril by the trainer.
Dallas' best shot of the half came at 31' when Ihemelu headed Hernandez' long free kick sharply at the top center of goal, and Keller did well to knock it over the bar.
Dallas continued to pressure Seattle's goal for the rest of the half, and Hurtado and Keller dealt with the crosses when they had to.
In the final minute of the half Seattle had a couple of free kicks within striking zone, the second one a 19-yarder by Montero that was on frame to force Hartman's only save of the match. At the end of the half a cross from Neagle gave Fucito a stretching shot from seven yards but he couldn't keep it down.
At the start of the second half it looked like Dallas were worth a goal. Jair Benitez worked Scott to and fro near the left corner to earn a cross/shot that hit the crossbar at the far corner and stayed in play. A few minutes later a touch by Maicon Santos put Chavez in on goal up the middle, and Hurtado defended well to knock it wide for a throw-in.
A big break came for Seattle at 56'. Cruz got his second yellow card of the match for diving near the top of the arc while being fairly defended by Friberg and Alonso, reducing Dallas to ten men. Dallas still pressured Seattle for the remainder of the match, but the pressure was eased just enough to allow Seattle to prevent a goal.
Around the hour mark Shea earned a header from a long throw-in, but Scott was there to pressure it off target. Chavez crossed to the far post for Santos' header, but he was off balance and it was an easy save for Keller. A 30-yard free kick by Benitez hit the wall and went over.
For Seattle, a 30-yard free kick was touched to Montero for a shot, and the Dallas wall deflected it wide. From the corner kick play, Jeff Parke's header to Montero gave him a try at a bicycle shot that went wide.
Keller turned in a nice save at 72' after Chavez cut back from the end line for a shot from 10 yards aimed at the far post. Parke cleared a couple of dangerous crosses, and substitute Pat Noonan cleared a Dallas free kick. Chavez worked for a shot from above the arc, but in the end he missed the target wide by two yards.
Seattle substitute Brad Evans came close at 85', bending a shot around the far post a foot too far.
It was hang-on time for Seattle when they conceded a 28-yard free kick at 88' after a marginal foul. Benitez missed two yards over the bar. Scott blocked Shea's shot after a dangerous cross by substitute Fabian Castillo early in four minutes of added time.
Neagle had a chance at an insurance goal when Noonan sent him in from the right, but he missed wide of the near post, leaving Rosales holding his head after running up the middle to get wide open on the doorstep. Both Neagle and Scott then cramped up with a couple of minutes of added time left.
Dallas came closest at the death after Scott was yellow-carded for deliberate handling on a tactical foul. Keller punched the long free kick away, but substitute Bruno Guarda fired it on goal up the middle. Keller dove to one-hand the hard shot just wide of goal for his best save of the match, and Dallas had no chances left.
Statistics:
DAL SEA
Shots: 25 11
Saves: 1 5
Corners: 11 3
Fouls: 19 22
Offsides: 0 2
Misconduct:
3' DAL: Cruz cautioned for a late tackle on Alonso
7' SEA: Friberg cautioned for tripping Chavez
27' DAL: Ihemelu cautioned for a reckless foul from behind on Fucito
56' DAL: Cruz cautioned for diving and sent off for his second caution
60' SEA: Montero cautioned for no apparent reason
62' SEA: Hurtado cautioned for a tactical foul
90' SEA: Scott cautioned for deliberate handling, a tactical foul
Referees: David Gantar; Philippe Briere, Anthony Vasoli; Tyler Ploeger
Attendance: 11,635
Postmatch Quotes
Seattle Sounders FC
Sigi Schmid - Head Coach
Thoughts on the game: "I thought it was game where Dallas had more control of the game than we did but it was the same thing when we played in Seattle, we had more than they did. That was a game we were unfortunate to lose while tonight was a game we were fortunate to win. I thought we did well, we scored the opening goal, and we had some good chances early on and also later in the game."
Talk about the play of Kasey Keller and how big did he come up tonight: "Not big, he came up huge. He made a huge save at the end of the day for us. He also dealt a lot with the crosses and made sure we stayed marked up."
Talk about the goal scored: "It was a good play. Lamar got the ball on the left and looked inside for Fredy and found him with the ball. Ugo may have got a little touch on it. Fredy then drew in the defenders and found Mauro and he finished it home past Kevin."
Kasey Keller
Thoughts on the game: "For us, we haven't been used to the heat at all. Today in Seattle was the first day over 80 degrees. Coming in here, having it be in the 100's it is a little bit much. It was a tough game. We didn't play as well as we should have. We scored a goal early and hung on for dear life. In the end if you're going to win games in the playoffs you need to win games like this. It was a good show for us today but we could have played better."
How big of a win is this with the MLS season coming to an end here in the next two months?: "It's nice that we can jump ahead of Dallas but we know there is a lot left to play in the season. It's more of a confidence thing where you know you can go in and win on the road against a team that is in good form. We know we can play better, but at the end of the day we know both teams are most likely going to be in the playoffs and that is when it really counts."
FC Dallas
Schellas Hyndman - Head Coach
General thoughts on the game: "I thought it was a well fought match by both teams. There was a lot on the line. We had beaten Seattle on the road, 1-0. Then, a little bit of a mistake on one of our defenders gave them a chance in front of the goal. From that point in time we were trying to play catch-up. Our guys created a lot of opportunities, created some corner kick opportunities and in the second half, we really went at them. Unfortunately, we got called for a second yellow on Daniel Cruz, which made it really difficult for us. Our players showed a lot of character to continue to play, continue to go forward and continue to put Seattle and Kasey Keller under pressure. The thing you always have to be concerned about is character and attitude. Tonight we put everything we had on the line and came up a little bit short."
Daniel Cruz
How do you feel following your first start for FC Dallas?: "I feel very bad because it was the first time I played here for our supporters. We lost the game and it was a decisive moment in the game when I went out, when I got the red card. To see how FC Dallas pushed Seattle with only 10 men was nice to see."
Ugo Ihemelu
On changes to the back line: "We just have to adjust. It comes down to communication and trusting the guy beside you. We're going to have to build that trust and just get an understanding as quickly as possible because games are coming quick right now."
Was fatigue an issue?: "You kind of get into a rhythm when you're playing these games. We're not training too much. We're just getting games to play. You can't blame it on fatigue. You have to just keep grinding. You have to keep going. You can't really stop and use it as an excuse. Other teams are playing games too. Every game you've got to turn it on a little bit, focus and go to work."
