FRISCO, Texas — (AP) — The Vancouver Whitecaps scored three goals in the first half and beat FC Dallas 3-1 on Saturday night.
“We are very disappointed. We want to win. We have our stadium packed with our fans and we just want to win for them," FC Dallas head coach Nico Estevez said. "This is why we work every single week. We work every single week to get a win for our fans. We put a lot of effort there. We had a bad moment last year during the season, and this year the bad moment is coming early in the season. We will regroup and get this right to give wins to our supporters.”
The Whitecaps opened the scoring in the 25th minute when Mathías Laborda tapped a right-footed shot to the bottom left corner of the net. Brian White assisted on the goal and then scored on a header about four minutes later.
“There's just a severe lack of intensity from the start, and then you're gonna punch first or get hit. And we keep getting punched first. It's hard to come back when you're down two goals, one goal or three goals," FC Dallas defender Nkosi Tafari said. "We haven't scored first in any game this season yet, so it's kind of hard to win with that kind of an outcome.”
Sebastian Lletget's header-goal in the 40th minute pulled FC Dallas within 2-1.
“Yeah it’s not one you want to celebrate, you just want to get back to the halfway line and just get the next one. But we conceded too early right after we scored and then it’s very tough to get back into the game," Lletget said. "This is a tough one, not gonna lie. This one hurts because losing three in a row, with this team, we know we’re better than this.”
About two minutes later, Ryan Raposo played a cross to Fafá Picault, who headed the ball in front of the six-yard box and it bounced past diving goalkeeper Maarten Paes from just inside the left post to make it 3-1.
Yohei Takaoka made two saves for Vancouver.
Vancouver (2-0-1) has won two straight while Dallas (1-3-0) has lost three in a row.
FC Dallas have a bye week and then hit the road to face in-state Copa Tejas rivals Austin FC from Q2 Stadium on Saturday, March 30 at 7:30 p.m. CST.
“I want to come back here tomorrow and solve things with the team as soon as possible," Paes said. "It’s also maybe good to get some days to think and change some headaches about yourself personally, and the team as well, to come back strong.”
Highlights from the match are posted below:
2nd half
90' + 4: Match ends. Vancouver Whitecaps defeat FC Dallas, 3-1.
84': Vancouver substitution: Javain Brown comes in for Ryan Raposo.
83': FC Dallas substitution: Herbert Endeley comes in for Sebastian Lletget and Eugene Ansah comes in for Ema Twumasi.
72': FC Dallas substitution: Tsiki Ntsabeleng comes in for Patrickson Delgado. Vancouver substitution: Ali Ahmed comes in for Fafa Picault.
63': FC Dallas substitution: Bernard Kamungo comes in for Sam Junqua.
60': Vancouver substitution: Luis Martins comes in for Alessandro Schopf and Sebastian Berhalter comes in for Pedro Vite.
46': Second half starts. Vancouver leads, 3-1.
Halftime: FC Dallas 1, Vancouver 3
- Possession: FC Dallas 51%, Vancouver 49%
- Shots (on goal): FC Dallas 4(2), Vancouver 4(3)
- Expected goals (xG): FC Dallas 0.43, Vancouver 1.29
- Fouls: FC Dallas 7, Vancouver 6
- Yellow cards: FC Dallas 0, Vancouver 1
- Red cards: FC Dallas 0, Vancouver 0
Halftime concession: Key Lime Pie parfait
Key West Key lime cheesecake with graham cracker crust, toped with whipped cream. Available in the Winners Club.
I'm not a big "key lime pie" fan, so this one wasn't for me. But, for those who are, this will be a big hit.
1st half
41': Vancouver goal. Fafa Picault headed in a cross from the right flank. Whitecaps extend lead back to 3-1.
39': FC Dallas goal. After Dante Sealy drew a foul in the final third, Jesus Ferreira played a free kick into the box, which was headed in for a goal by Sebastian Lletget. FC Dallas trails 2-1.
28': Vancouver goal. Fafa Picault crossed the ball into the box and it was headed home by Brian White. Whitecaps lead 2-0.
24: Vancouver goal. Whitecaps lead 1-0. Brian White cut a pass across the box and found Mathias Laborda on a trailing run.
1': Match has started.
FC Dallas vs. Vancouver: Pregame
Starting XI
Tale of the tape
- FC Dallas enters the match with a three points and a 1-0-2 (win-draw-loss) record. Vancouver enters the match with four points and a 1-0-1 record (win-draw-loss)
- FC Dallas' record at Toyota Stadium against Vancouver is 8-3-2 in MLS regular season action
- This will be the 30th total time FC Dallas and Vancouver have faced each other. FC Dallas overall record against the Whitecaps is 12-8-9
Ferreira 23 going on 50?
Jesus Ferreira, who turns 23 years, 83 days old as of Saturday, can become the youngest player in MLS history to score 50 regular season goals. Ferreira sits at 49 and the previous record was set by Diego Fagundez, who now plays for LA Galaxy.
Don't concede first, don't concede first
FC Dallas has allowed the first goal of the game in all three matches so far this season. In 2023, FC Dallas conceded first in 19 of 34 (approximately 56%) regular season matches and boasted a 4-6-9 (win-draw-loss) record in those games.
When scoring first in 2023, FC Dallas was 7-5-1 (win-draw-loss). Two matches in 2023 finished as scoreless draws.
Who reigns in Texas? Map shows Lone Star State's most popular MLS team
According to Vivid Seats' data, FC Dallas is the most popular club in Texas, claiming 74 of the 254 counties in the Lone Star state. The Houston Dynamo are favorites in 44 Texas counties, mainly in the southeastern and southern area of the state. Austin FC, the newest club of the three, came in with 33 counties, mainly in Central Texas.
FC Dallas kit bracket: Which one is your favorite?
Throughout the 2024 season, on FC Dallas match days, I will post a poll on WFAA's YouTube community page, asking which kit you think is better. The winner of the FC Dallas kit bracket will be chosen on Decision Day, Oct. 19.
All of the polls will be listed in this story.
Poll will close on Saturday, March 23.
Poll will close on Saturday, March 23.
New season, new food
FC Dallas unveiled its new concession items earlier this month for the 2024 season, which of course includes monstrous items for all the foodies out there! You can check out what's new on the menu here.
Learn the FC Dallas chants!
At the FC Dallas matches, you'll hear some songs chanted throughout the game. If you want to learn them and grow your #DTID (Dallas 'Til I Die) fandom, click here for a breakdown of each song and the corresponding lyrics.
FC Dallas vs. Vancouver: How to watch, listen on radio
TV:
- MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+.
- 7:30 p.m. CT
Radio:
- English: All FC Dallas matches will air in English on the official FC Dallas app. FC Dallas broadcasts also return to Talk Radio 1190 and the iHeartRadio app in 2024.
- Play-by-play: Owen Newkirk, Analyst: Steve Davis, Sideline: Garrett Melcer
- Spanish: All FC Dallas matches will be available in Spanish on the official FC Dallas app.
- Play-by-play: Carlos Alvarado, Analyst: Raffa Calderon
Check out wfaa.com/fcdallas for FC Dallas coverage all season long.
More FC Dallas coverage: