FRISCO - It’s good to be 20 years old.
Kellyn Acosta won his race to fitness after a muscle injury a month ago earning a spot in Oscar Pareja’s starting lineup in Sunday’s unforgettable playoff win over Seattle, but he wasn’t expected to finish the match.
“What Kellyn did tonight, you can’t even imagine what he went through,” said head coach Oscar Pareja. “He was pushing himself to the limit and tonight if I dreamed about having him for 70 minutes, it was very optimistic. Kellyn kept pushing and that’s the character of these guys.”
If 70 minutes was a dream, then what Acosta accomplished must have been a gift from the heavens. The 20-year-old Homegrown played the full, grueling 120 minutes in FCD’s penalty kick win. If you believe him, he could’ve gone even longer.
“Honestly, I felt good. I just felt fit,” said Acosta. “I honestly could play another 30 minutes if it wasn’t for cramping. It was a good game and I didn’t have to do much, my backline did a lot of the work which made my job a little bit easier.”
One player who can certainly sympathize with Acosta’s effort is fellow Homegrown midfielder Victor Ulloa. In last season’s 1-1 playoff draw against Seattle at Toyota Stadium, the Wylie-native went a full 90 minutes after picking up an injury just days earlier.
“It just shows our character. We love this team and we’ll die for this team,” said Ulloa. “We love this city and it just shows how much we love this club. We’ll do anything.”
Of course with the crowd on Sunday night at Toyota Stadium, anything is possible.
“It was amazing and I think that was the loudest the crowd has ever been. We could definitely hear it and feel it on the field. It played a big role in our win today.
