San Diego FC continued their impressive run, defeating FC Dallas in a nail-biting match played on a scorching night in Frisco, Texas. This hard-fought victory marks San Diego’s fourth consecutive win and allows them to maintain their one-point lead over the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Western Conference. With 20 matches played and 14 still to go in the regular season, San Diego is truly demonstrating why they are considered one of the best teams in the MLS.

The heat was a significant factor, with temperatures reaching 96 degrees Fahrenheit on the pitch for the 7:30 PM local time kickoff. Both teams had played on Wednesday night, with FC Dallas at home and San Diego traveling to Vancouver. The first 20 minutes of the match reflected the conditions, feeling sluggish as players battled the Texas heat.

However, San Diego broke the deadlock in the 25th minute. A throw-in from Luca Bombino on FC Dallas’s side of the pitch found Jeppe Tverskov, who deflected the ball off his knee to Onni Valakari. As Valakari attempted to retrieve the ball, he was tripped inside the penalty area by Patrickson Delgado, resulting in a penalty kick. Anders Dreyer confidently stepped up, sending his shot to the left of the diving goalkeeper for his 9th goal of the season. Notably, San Diego boasts an undefeated 8-0-0 record when scoring first.

Your Anders Dreyer Game Break

Anders Dreyer’s impact this season has been immense. He now ranks 11th in the league for goals and is the number one player in the league for goal contributions, according to Football Reference. Goal contributions are a significant factor in determining the Landon Donovan MVP Award in MLS. Last year’s winner, Lionel Messi, had 31 goal contributions in 1489 minutes of play , while Luciano Acosta won in 2023 with 27 goal contributions. Dreyer, with 21 goal contributions in just 1761 minutes, is on track to surpass his 23 goal contributions from the 2023-2024 Belgian League season with Anderlecht. His current stats, including 9th in xG (8.7), 2nd in xAG (8.4), and 5th in progressive receptions (171), suggest he will be a strong contender for the Landon Donovan Award at the end of the season.

Back To The Action

As the first half drew to a close, FC Dallas began to press. In the 35th minute, Luciano Acosta appeared to score from outside the penalty area, but VAR ruled him offside. Just a few minutes later, FC Dallas found their equalizer. As San Diego played out from the back, a pass from CJ dos Santos to Oscar Verhoeven led to Verhoeven passing to Manu Duah. With Anibal Godoy out due to the Gold Cup and Alejandro Alvarado injured, midfielder Duah faced pressure from Delgado and passed the ball back towards San Diego’s goal. Petar Musa capitalized on the loose ball, skillfully navigating around Ian Pilcher and slotting it into the back of the net for his 7th goal of the season. At halftime, FC Dallas led in shots (9 with 2 on target) compared to San Diego’s 5 shots and 1 on target, despite San Diego holding 61% possession.

The second half saw Tomas Angel replace Manu Duah, and the ball movement seemed to pick up for both teams. In the 53rd minute, Bernard Kamungo of FC Dallas had a goal disallowed for offside. Shortly after, the Toros roared back. Ian Pilcher’s pass intended for Anders Dreyer was intercepted by Petar Musa. Musa dribbled and passed to Acosta, who then found Shaq Moore near the left post just outside the penalty area. Moore quickly passed to Musa in the 6-yard box, whose shot was blocked by Dos Santos, but the rebound fell to Sebastian Lletget, who buried it for FC Dallas’s second goal, his first of the season.

Chucky Lozano Provides the Spark

Trailing 2-1 as the hour mark passed, San Diego FC desperately needed a spark. Chucky Lozano, back on the bench after missing recent matches due to injury , was the obvious choice to provide it. In the 71st minute, Lozano replaced Alex Mighten, and his presence was immediately felt. Following an FC Dallas free kick that was headed out of the penalty area by Franco Negri towards Lozano , Lozano retrieved the ball at midfield, cut inside, and dribbled before finding a wide-open Milan Iloski. Iloski passed to Dreyer in the penalty area, who laid it back due to pressure. Iloski then sent the ball towards goal, where a charging Chucky Lozano fired it into the net for his 6th goal of the season, with Iloski earning his first assist.

Any other team might have been content with a point on the road , but with at least 14 minutes remaining, San Diego pushed for the win. They maintained relentless pressure on FC Dallas. In the 86th minute, after an FC Dallas clearance, Chris McVey retrieved the ball and passed it to Anders Dreyer. Dreyer found Franco Negri near the penalty area, who kicked the ball out to Jeppe Tverskov, and Tverskov then passed to Chucky Lozano on the far side. Still in the penalty area, Lozano shot towards goal, but both Milan Iloski and Tomas Angel were unable to convert.

Nine minutes of stoppage time were added, giving San Diego ample opportunity. In the 90+6 minute, Chucky Lozano deflected the ball off Shaq Moore for a throw-in at midfield. The throw-in went to Tverskov, who passed it to Dreyer. Dreyer then played it back to Tverskov, who advanced it down the far side to Jasper Loffelsend. Loffelsend delivered the ball into the penalty area to Dreyer, who with a touch and turn, passed centrally to Tomas Angel. Angel, steadying the ball, turned and fired it into the back of the net for his third goal of the season and a dramatic game-winner. This was also Angel’s second consecutive goal.

San Diego FC finished the match with 62% possession and 14 shots, with 2 on target. Even more impressively, they remain undefeated with a 9-0-0 record when scoring first. Their road form is also strong, with a 6-0-4 record this season and four wins in their last five away games. After 20 games, San Diego FC has collected 39 points, putting them in a tie for second across all of MLS. They’re also tied for the most wins with 12 and hold a share of the best goal differential at +16. With these numbers, San Diego FC is now eyeing significant expansion team milestones, specifically the 17 wins achieved by St. Louis City in 2023 and the 57 points recorded by LAFC.

San Diego FC will return home on Saturday to face the Houston Dynamo. This will be their first league match at home since playing the LA Galaxy on May 24th. San Diego will enjoy a stretch of home games this month, playing four of their next five matches at home. Look out for a preview of this match on Chromaniacs and a written preview from me on this Substack on Friday.