Until the 73rd minute Tuesday night in Frisco, Tex., D.C. United had manufactured few opportunities against FC Dallas. At best, it seemed, United would claim one point at a venue where it had not won in 16 years.
Dallas, TX
Taxi Fountas’s second-half strike gives D.C. United rare win at FC Dallas
United (8-9-5) had gone 0-6-2 in its previous eight matches at Dallas (8-8-5); its most recent win had come in September 2007. With 12 games left, D.C. has surpassed last year’s MLS win total.
Fountas, the club’s leading scorer last season, broke the deadlock after collecting Mateusz Klich’s pass at the top of the penalty area. His initial shot was blocked by sliding defender Sebastien Ibeagha, but the ball caromed back to Fountas for a 17-yard one-timer that he curled into the far lower corner.
Fountas made his first start since returning from Greek national team duty; he came off the bench in the previous two matches. He was one of seven new starters Tuesday.
With his team playing for the second time in four days and facing another game Saturday, D.C. Coach Wayne Rooney decided to shuffle his lineup.
“I wanted fresh legs on the pitch,” he said. “It’s always a gamble when you make so many changes, but I felt the lads were ready to give me energy. The lads who came in all did a good job.”
Most notable was his decision to replace goalkeeper Tyler Miller with Alex Bono, whose only previous action this year had been in the U.S. Open Cup.
Rooney encourages his keepers to leave the penalty area, a risky tactic designed to extinguish threats and restart attacks. Miller had handled the responsibility well until recently, when he conceded two goals after charging out of the box and was beaten on a shot from beyond midfield.
“The decision on Tyler was the exact same as the other players,” Rooney said. “Of course, it gets highlighted a bit more because he’s a goalkeeper. … But I just felt having fresh minds on the pitch as well as fresh legs would give us the best chance of winning.”
Both teams were missing their leading scorers: While United’s Christian Benteke (eight goals) served a yellow-card suspension, Dallas’s Jesús Ferreira (10) is with the U.S. national team, for which he has posted consecutive hat tricks at the Concacaf Gold Cup.
Attacker Yamil Asad made his second start of the year, and forward Kristian Fletcher, 17, made his first of the season and the second of his career.
The first half was largely forgettable. United played with greater urgency and focus than it did Saturday, when it conceded two goals in the first half against Nashville and lost, 2-0. Creativity and execution, though, were lacking, and genuine opportunities were scarce.
Bono was tested in the 16th minute, when Bernard Kamungo warded off Donovan Pines and rushed into the box. Pines did just enough to throw Kamungo off-balance, and Bono stepped up to thwart the low bid. Otherwise, United shielded him from any threats and canceled Dallas’s transition forays.
Kamungo was at it again nine minutes after intermission, but after a display of terrific footwork in the box, he missed badly.
Seeking to reverse the momentum, Rooney made three changes in the 68th minute. Nigel Robertha returned from a three-month injury layoff, joining substitutes Klich and Andy Najar. United’s energy level improved. Klich worked well with Lewis O’Brien in midfield. Then came the goal, Fountas’s fifth of the season.
In the 89th minute, Dallas’s Jáder Obrian squandered a golden chance to tie it, missing from 16 yards. In the ninth of 11 minutes of stoppage time, Dallas substitute Tsiki Ntsabeleng hit the crossbar from 14 yards.
Here’s what else to know about United’s win:
United is expected to acquire a 2024 second-round draft pick and a conditional $50,000 in 2024 general allocation money from the New England Revolution for the rights to Ian Harkes, multiple people familiar with the trade said.
The 28-year-old midfielder from Northern Virginia, who began his pro career in Washington in 2017, is returning to MLS after 4½ seasons with Scottish club Dundee United. D.C. extended a formal offer before he left in 2019, so it retained his league rights.
Harkes made 163 appearances across all competitions in Scotland and helped the club earn promotion in 2020. It was relegated this spring.
Revolution Coach Bruce Arena coached Ian’s father, John, at the University of Virginia (1985-87) and with D.C. United (1996-98).
With a yellow card deep in stoppage time for time wasting, Klich crossed the league threshold for cautions and must sit out the next match.
On Saturday, United will host Inter Miami (5-13-2), which is winless in nine straight following a 2-2 home draw with Columbus on Tuesday. Miami has yet to formalize the signing of Lionel Messi, who is tentatively slated to make his debut July 21 against visiting Mexican side Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup.