FRISCO - Composure, character, belief and teamwork.
Oscar Pareja has preached them all season so it’s only fitting that those four attributes led FC Dallas back to the playoffs with a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Los Angeles.
“The boys kept their composure and showed a lot of maturity and character,” said Pareja. “Well deserved, I thought we deserved the points and deserve to be in the playoffs. It’s great to bring the playoffs back and well deserved for the whole community.”
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS - FC Dallas 2, LA Galaxy 1
The comeback, against a Galaxy team that was 14-0-4 when scoring the first goal this season, puts an exclamation point on the remarkable job done by Pareja turning FCD around in his first year at the helm. FCD’s 51 points are seven more than the team earned in 2014, though the Colombian is quick to note that the job is not over yet.
“It feels great. This is home…My commitment was to bring the playoffs back this year and we’re here,” said Pareja. “I feel great, but the job is not done yet. There are a lot of things to work on and I really think we can qualify third and fight for that spot and have a long run in the playoffs.”
Pareja has preached confidence and letting the game reward you. With that in mind, it’s fitting that David Texeira and Castillo were the goal scorers. One player has had the confidence all season while the other is showing that even with a rough first half of the year, you can always turn things around.
MATCH RECAP - FC Dallas 2, LA Galaxy 1
“Every player wants to fight for big things, for trophies, so that’s the most important thing,” said Texeira. “When you play, you want to win things. You have to have hunger. You have to believe. He says you have to believe that we’re a good team and anything is possible. That’s what we’re doing every match, we show it on the field and we believe in ourselves.”
Now let’s see how far this team can go.
