FC Dallas sees their season end in 1-0 loss to Seattle Sounders

FC Dallas’ 2023 season comes to an end after losing 1-0 to Seattle Sounders FC in the 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs Round One Best-of-3 series on Friday night at Lumen Field.

Seattle got a first half goal from Albert Rusnák in the first half to seal the victory and the series. FC Dallas is now 15-26-10 all-time in the MLS Cup Playoffs. It was also the 11th matchup (3-6-2) against the Sounders which is the most for Dallas against any single opponent. 

Both sides traded blows early on but it was a turnover in the midfield after Sebastian Ibeagha cleared the ball up the field that led to the Sounder’s only goal. In the 36th minute, João Paulo collected the ball that Ibeagha cleared up the field and immediately played it on to Rusnak in the penalty area, who put in a one-time shot on Maarten Paes and beat him at the near post.

FC Dallas struggled from then on to get any chances on goal until the 89th minute.

Instant Reaction: It was hard to go into this one without two Designated Players (Alan Velasco and Jesus Ferreira). If anything, the only way FC Dallas would have had a shot in this one was had it gone to penalties. It is a disappointing end to a pretty tough season for FC Dallas too. We’ll certainly be diving into everything in the coming days though.

Man of the Match: Maarten Paes did enough on the night, except for on the one shot he didn’t save. Still, Paes was vital this season.

What’s next for FC Dallas: A couple months of offseason is ahead for the club now. Fun.