Chula Vista, CA. — Preseason is fully underway, and FC Dallas' first travel stint is in Chula Vista, California, where the team will stay for a week. Los Toros will stay at the Chula Vista Athletic Training Center — a 155-acre campus for Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Throughout the week, Michael Ramirez of FCD Digital and Social will give updates on everything going on with the team and its players.
Day Five
There's only two days left on FC Dallas' preseason trip to Chula Vista, and today consisted of two-a-day training sessions, recovery, and Taco Tuesday.
Los Toros are now gearing up for their last preseason match in California on Thursday against LAFC. Everyone participated in training on Tuesday except for Nkosi Burgess, who has been dealing with a groin issue for the last couple of days. He's only being held out for precautionary reasons, and he said he should be good to go in the coming week.
As reported yesterday, the trio of FCD players who returned from the U.S. Men's National Team participated in their first training session with the team, and all three looked like they hadn't skipped a beat. The early session consisted of small-sided drills and competitions, and one player who stood out to me was Thiago Santos, who was a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the pitch. His physicality and size is very impressive, along with his awareness.
Jesus Ferreira looks like he's taken another step up in his game since the end of last season. He looks very quick and fluid on the ball, and his dribbling is so effective in tight spaces within the middle of the pitch.
After the first training session, lunch was followed by a brief rest and recovery period before going back out to the pitch in the evening. The second session focused more on big-picture tactics such as building from the back and utilizing the sidelines when progressing the ball forward. Ryan Hollingshead was flying down the left side of the pitch consistently today, which made me realize how fast he truly is. Dante Sealy even made a comment of how hard it was to mark Ryan because of how quick he is, and he always seems to be one step ahead of the defender(s) he's trying to beat.
The other thing I've begun to notice over the last couple of days is how funny Bryan Acosta is with the guys on the team. It's clear to see why the coaching staff brought him in and why so many players on the team love to be around him. He works hard, stays positive and is a really good teammate by holding others accountable.
The day ended with Taco Tuesday in the cafeteria at the Chula Vista Athletic Training Center. It's a little crazy to think that this trip is almost over. We're under two days away from the preseason match against LAFC, and just a few days away from Sunday's match against Austin Bold at Toyota Stadium.
