Petar Musa scored a first-half goal, rookies Patrickson Delgado and Logan Farrington scored two minutes apart in the second half and FC Dallas earned a 3-1 victory over Los Angeles FC on Saturday night.
“This victory will help us gain more momentum for the final games of the season," said Interim head coach Peter Luccin. "Our goal is to make the playoffs, and we will not give up. We will play every game like a final and finish the season strong.”
THE MOOSE BREAKS FREE
Musa netted his 15th goal in his first season in the league when he scored unassisted in the 28th minute and Dallas (10-13-7) took a 1-0 lead into halftime.
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He has now scored the opening goal in five MLS matches this year and has found the net in his last five consecutive home games. Musa is tied for fifth place in the MLS Golden Boot race this year, and his 15 goals also rank as the fifth-most in an FC Dallas season.
SONRIE EL FÚTBOL
Delgado used assists from Farrington, who subbed in for Musa 10 minutes after he scored, and Paul Arriola to score in the 60th minute. Farrington took a pass from Jesús Ferreira and scored for a 3-0 lead in the 62nd. It was the fourth goal for both Delgado and Farrington, who has eight assists. Ferreira's helper was his sixth as was Arriola's.
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The Ecuadorian midfielder missed seven regular season matches due to a knee injury. Delgado previously scored against Seattle Sounders FC on June 22.
LAFC (14-7-8) avoided the shutout when Eduard Atuesta took a pass from defender Omar Campos in the 86th minute and scored for the third time this season. It was the third assist for Campos in his first season in the league.
A SEASON TO REMEMBER FOR FARRINGTON
Forward Logan Farrington scored via an assist from Jesús Ferreira in the 62nd minute. Farrington also assisted Delgado’s goal, ranking him first in assists on the team with eight. For the second time in his MLS career, Farrington registered a goal and an assist in a single game.
“I was just trying to be ready, and I wasn’t expecting to come on in the first half. You never know when your name gets called if you’ll be coming on in the fifth minute, 10th minute, or even the 89th minute, you just must be ready," said Farrington. "I’m just happy that I was able to help the team.”
THE GARUDA WALL
Goalkeeper Maarten Paes registered five saves tonight. Paes is now tied in fifth place for most career wins (34) for FC Dallas. Paes is also the third goalkeeper in FC Dallas history to register 10 or more wins in three consecutive seasons with FC Dallas (Matt Jordan and Mark Dodd).
Thomas Hasal finished with four saves in his first start of the season for LAFC.
Dallas is unbeaten in its last 20 league matches when leading at halftime.
UP NEXT: THE RETURN OF PAPI
LAFC travels to play FC Cincinnati on Saturday.
FC Dallas hosts former player and head coach Oscar Pareja and Orlando City SC on Hispanic Heritage Night presented by Toyota. The match will kickoff at 7:30 p.m. CT.
