Ratings
- A1 – Very good, could play higher
- A2 – Strong potential to play higher
- B1 – Good, strong player at level
- B2 – Potential to be strong player at level
- C – Average for the level, rewatch
- D – Below average, don’t follow up
Player profile:
- Nationality: American
- Age: 20
- Date of birth: 17/12/1999
- Current Club: FC Dallas
- Career: FC Dallas
- Position: 10 (AM)
- Secondary position: Central Midfield / Right Wing
- Preferred foot: Left
Paxton Pomykal dazzled with his performance against Minnesota United, playing a pivotal role in his side’s victory. The player was given a licence to roam and covered every blade of grass to help dictate the play for his side and fulfil his defensive duties. The youngster’s work rate was second to none, making himself a constant nuisance for the opposition whilst occasionally winning the ball high up the field due to his clever cutting of passing lanes .
He started the game fairly quietly but then began to drop deeper to involve himself more in his team’s build up play and this is where he sprung to life. On the day, he was able to drive forward with the ball at his feet but also demonstrated excellent vision to find his teammates, playing key roles in three of the goals that they scored. As the game wore on and others tired around him, he kept going, showing some great pieces of skill and dictating the tempo of the game. He needed to take a little more care with some of his passes in the final third but aside from that it was an excellent display. At 5’8 he lacks a physical presence, but makes up for it with his technical ability and work rate and these were key to his success.
Rating: A1
Player profile:
- Nationality: American
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 24/12/2000
- Current Club: FC Dallas
- Career: FC Dallas, Tulsa Roughnecks (L)
- Position: Striker
- Secondary position: 10 / Central Midfield
- Preferred foot: Right
Playing the first 75 minutes of this game as a box to box midfielder, before moving back to his natural position as striker for the remainder and put in a promising performance on the whole. The Colombian born player showed some real quality in possession, bringing composure to the midfield in an otherwise hectic match. At stages he looked slightly unsure in his new position but this subsided and he was able to have a very positive impact, with some smart turns and good drives from midfield. His impressive technique shone through when passing and he created some good opportunities for his teammates.
He could have perhaps demonstrated more urgency in possession at times and when defending he had a tendency to be too passive, despite making one crucial recovery tackle late on. Physically he is fairly small, but seemed to be strong and fast when running with the ball and showed good desire. Overall, an exciting performance from the American 19 year old.
Rating: A2
Player profile:
- Nationality: American
- Age: 21
- Date of birth: 11/06/1998
- Current Club: FC Dallas
- Career: FC Dallas
- Position: Right Back
- Preferred foot: Right
Reggie Cannon put on a professional display at Right back for FC Dallas. He showed a high level of ability in possession, driving forward well and picking his passes accurately. In his side’s system, the full backs were encouraged to make underlapping runs towards the oppostion penalty area and this suited the powerful defender’s game well as he drove forward on many occasions, even managing to go all the way and score.
The American enjoyed playing on the front foot and was aggressive in defence and positive in attack, always looking to move the ball forward. For a young player, he seemed to have a good understanding of his role, tucking in to help his central defenders and timing his runs well. However, he was caught ball watching once or twice and made a couple of loose passes in good positions. Physically the 21 year old is of average build but showed a good burst of acceleration. An accomplished performance overall from Reggie Cannon.
Rating: A2
Player profile:
- Nationality: Colombian
- Age: 25
- Date of birth: 07/02/1995
- Current Club: FC Dallas
- Career: Millonarios, FC Dallas
- Position: Left Wing
- Secondary position: Right Wing / 10
- Preferred foot: Right
Santiago Mosquera is an exciting player who enjoys dribbling at defenders and creating chances for himself and his teammates and this match was no exception. The Colombian wide man is very creative with the ball at his feet and has the ability to bring the ball under his spell and beat the oppositon defender very quickly. He is fairly composed in possession and showed a willingness to drift inside to find an opening or hug the touchline and use his pace. His work rate was, in tune with the rest of FC Dallas team, to a very high standard and he put a shift in to win the ball back regularly for his side.
Despite being relatively small height wise, the winger is quite stocky and put his strength to good use to get the better of his opponent. The quality of the winger’s final delivery was varied and he could improve the level of his game drastically with more consistency. Mosquera did manage to get his name on the scoresheet from what seemed an impossible angle from out wide, and it’s unlikely that anyone apart from the man himself can say whether it was a shot or cross. If it was in fact on purpose, then he showed incredible vision and inventiveness to find the back of the net. Overall, a solid all round match for the Colombian who faded in and out of the action before being substituted on the 75th minute.
Rating: B1
Player profile:
- Nationality: American
- Age: 24
- Date of birth: 25/05/1995
- Current Club: FC Dallas
- Career: FC Dallas
- Position: Goalkeeper
- Preferred foot: Right
The game against Minnesota was a particularly disappointing one for the FC Dallas number 1 Jesse Gonzalez. In a match that ended 5-3, neither goalkeeper came out well. It got off to one of the worst possible starts for Gonzalez whose kick went straight to the opposition striker, but he showed a good reaction to get out quickly and make the save, however, shortly after he mistimed a punch that lead to a goal. In a game where Dallas dominated possesion, Gonzalez only had a few saves to make but it was his bad decision to come out that lead to them conceding a second. In fairness to the American he could do little to stop the third goal and showed good resiliance to pick himself up and continue to play out from the back. He made some okay claims but rarely looked confident in the game. At 6’4 and with a solid build he is a good stature for a goalkeeper but unfortunately overall had a very poor match.
Rating: D
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