MLS Playoffs
Too Young to Fail? Dallas Will Rely on Kids in Playoffs
FC Dallas coach Oscar Pareja and team captain Matt Hedges both view the squad's youth as a source of strength as the team prepares to face Vancouver in the opening match of the 2014 MLS playoffs.
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER'S postseason tournament begins tonight with a very unpredictable single-elimination matchup between a youthful FC Dallas club and a Vancouver Whitecaps side that played terrific soccer in recent weeks to surge into the playoffs.
Vancouver enters the game (9pm ET, MLS Live) with four wins and a draw in its last five to claim the final playoff position. Most impressively, the Whitecaps have played fantastic defense during that stretch, not allowing a goal in four straight games.
FC Dallas, on the other hand, has been inconsistent this season with long winning and losing streaks. At times it has looked like a viable MLS Cup contender but at other times the squad seemed very young and vulnerable.
Which FC Dallas team will show up? Team captain Matt Hedges is optimistic.
“I think in the middle of the season we had that long streak where we had a couple of guys out injured and we were rotating the lineup a lot,” Hedges told American Soccer Now. “Once we got the guys back we were more consistent."
Those trying times, Hedges suggested, may prove beneficial in the long run.
"During that losing streak we also got a bunch of young guys experience and it really helped toward the end of the season, he said. "It should be positive to have all those guys with experience as we head into the playoffs and if we need to make any lineup changes, we know we that we can trust all those guys.”
FC Dallas coach Oscar Pareja is in his first year at the helm and has engineered a remarkable turnaround. A former FC Dallas player, and star, Pareja served as coach for the Colorado Rapids in 2012 but left to take the FC Dallas job when Schellas Hyndman stepped down after the 2013 season.
The Colombian-born Pareja believes he laid the appropriate groundwork for a success playoff run throughout the year.
“My approach to them is one game at a time with the same intensity and importance,” Pareja said. “Sometimes it’s a difficult task to accomplish but that’s the way I can make [the players] understand that is the way you have to play this game. It’s always with urgency and responsibility. I hope to keep developing them as a group and treat this stage with the importance that it has.
“I am just going to keep doing the same job with them. I don’t change much. I just make them feel confident that they have earned this responsibility to be in the playoffs. That for sure is exciting.”
The FC Dallas core includes fullback Kellyn Acosta, 19, Victor Ulloa, 22, Tesho Akindele, 22, Andres Escobar, 23, and 22-year-old Colombian attacker Fabian Castillo—one of the league's most explosive players.
While it may seem counterintuitive, Hedges feels that that the team's youth will be a source of strength.
“I look at it as an advantage,” Hedges said. “A lot of the guys are only a few years into the league and they are excited to play. I don’t think the playoff atmosphere will faze them at all. It’s the playoffs and we know it’s a big deal but we are preparing the same way we do for every other game.”
Hedges, 24, is one of the youngest captains in MLS and the tall central defender has enjoyed a very strong season in which he has anchored a backline that has been among the best in the strong Western Conference.
Pareja knew Hedges would grow into the captain's role as the season progressed.
“We decided at the beginning of the year to build this project and base it on a young roster to give the possibility of [young players] to grow together,” Pareja said. “I gave Matt that responsibility. I saw it as a way for him to grow into it. I knew that he wasn’t ready for it—normal, because he is young. But I knew that it would be important for him to succeed in those shoes.
"I think he has done a great job for that part. I have seen him growing.”
The teams have played three times this year, resulting in one win for both teams, and a tie. Vancouver won the most recent contest—a 2-0 victory on October 4.
Hedges believes the key will be playing with a high defensive line, forcing turnovers, and relentlessly pressuring Vancouver’s midfield.
“We just need to come out and press them high,” Hedges explained. “I think if we can do that and win the ball up high, we will get our chances. With Fabian and Andres, if we can get the ball to them out wide, we will be really dangerous.
“The mood is positive. We’re looking forward to the playoffs. It’s the first time in a couple of years we’ve been there. We’re all excited and we’re ready to go.”
Brian Sciaretta is an American Soccer Now columnist and an ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter.
FC Dallas coach Oscar Pareja is in his first year at the helm and has engineered a remarkable turnaround. A former FC Dallas player, and star, Pareja served as coach for the Colorado Rapids in 2012 but left to take the FC Dallas job when Schellas Hyndman stepped down after the 2013 season.
The Colombian-born Pareja believes he laid the appropriate groundwork for a success playoff run throughout the year.
“My approach to them is one game at a time with the same intensity and importance,” Pareja said. “Sometimes it’s a difficult task to accomplish but that’s the way I can make [the players] understand that is the way you have to play this game. It’s always with urgency and responsibility. I hope to keep developing them as a group and treat this stage with the importance that it has.
“I am just going to keep doing the same job with them. I don’t change much. I just make them feel confident that they have earned this responsibility to be in the playoffs. That for sure is exciting.”
The FC Dallas core includes fullback Kellyn Acosta, 19, Victor Ulloa, 22, Tesho Akindele, 22, Andres Escobar, 23, and 22-year-old Colombian attacker Fabian Castillo—one of the league's most explosive players.
While it may seem counterintuitive, Hedges feels that that the team's youth will be a source of strength.
“I look at it as an advantage,” Hedges said. “A lot of the guys are only a few years into the league and they are excited to play. I don’t think the playoff atmosphere will faze them at all. It’s the playoffs and we know it’s a big deal but we are preparing the same way we do for every other game.”
Hedges, 24, is one of the youngest captains in MLS and the tall central defender has enjoyed a very strong season in which he has anchored a backline that has been among the best in the strong Western Conference.
Pareja knew Hedges would grow into the captain's role as the season progressed.
“We decided at the beginning of the year to build this project and base it on a young roster to give the possibility of [young players] to grow together,” Pareja said. “I gave Matt that responsibility. I saw it as a way for him to grow into it. I knew that he wasn’t ready for it—normal, because he is young. But I knew that it would be important for him to succeed in those shoes.
"I think he has done a great job for that part. I have seen him growing.”
The teams have played three times this year, resulting in one win for both teams, and a tie. Vancouver won the most recent contest—a 2-0 victory on October 4.
Hedges believes the key will be playing with a high defensive line, forcing turnovers, and relentlessly pressuring Vancouver’s midfield.
“We just need to come out and press them high,” Hedges explained. “I think if we can do that and win the ball up high, we will get our chances. With Fabian and Andres, if we can get the ball to them out wide, we will be really dangerous.
“The mood is positive. We’re looking forward to the playoffs. It’s the first time in a couple of years we’ve been there. We’re all excited and we’re ready to go.”
Brian Sciaretta is an American Soccer Now columnist and an ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter.
