FRISCO – After Roland Lamah opened the scoring in the 5th minute of Saturday’s 3-1 win over Toronto FC, there was just one person on his mind.
As he ran to the corner flag, he pulled up his jersey to reveal a white undershirt that read, “Forever in my heart Tioté, my brother.” Ivorian player Cheick Tioté collapsed and passed away two weeks ago while training with Chinese club Beijing Enterprises. He was 30-years-old.
It was a special moment for Lamah to pay honor to his longtime friend. The two met when they both moved to Anderlecht in Belguim. Lamah and Tioté also went on loan to the Netherlands together.
“I want to play for him,” Lamah said. “He was my good friend. I dedicate the first goal, the second goal and every game to play for him.”
But after Lamah finished scoring his two goals, Maxi Urruti also revealed something with his goal celebration. After Urruti blasted a shot just under the crossbar to make it 3-1, he grabbed the ball and tucked it under his shirt.
The striker and his wife are expecting their first child - a baby boy.
“I think it’s the best goal that I’ve scored,” Urruti said. “Because I could celebrate it for my kid and my wife. The celebration was really important to me.”
Now, focus for FC Dallas shifts to a July 4 match with D.C. United at Toyota Stadium. United will roll into Texas after a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Montreal Impact in Québec.
“We need to recover for that game and try to focus on that game,” Urruti said. “We need to get another three points to continue moving up the table. We have an opportunity to be at the top of the table so we need to play our best game.”
