In front of a sellout crowd at Toyota Stadium, FC Dallas finally secured their first win in over a month, defeating St. Louis CITY SC 2-0 on Saturday night. However, the main highlight of the evening was Maarten Paes, the goalkeeper who set a new record in the club’s history.
Maarten Paes, now 26 years old, became the fifth goalkeeper in FC Dallas history to reach 250 saves. Thanks to his stellar performance that morning, Paes’ total saves now stand at 253! His heroic display made him the star of the victory.
The match began slowly, but a pivotal moment occurred in the 28th minute when FC Dallas was awarded a penalty after Paul Arriola was brought down in the box by Joakim Nilsson. Jesus Ferreira calmly converted the penalty, scoring his third goal of the season and putting Dallas ahead.
St. Louis nearly equalized a minute later with a header from Nökkvi Thórisson, but Paes made a crucial goal-line save. Ten minutes later, Paes was at it again, making an acrobatic save from a Joao Klauss shot from outside the box. Paes recorded four saves in the first half alone.
In the second half, FC Dallas struggled to maintain possession in the first 20 minutes, but they eventually settled down and controlled the game. In the 71st minute, Petar Musa nearly assisted Farrington’s second goal with a no-look pass after chipping the ball to himself along the touchline, but the goal was disallowed for offside after a video review.
Dallas extended their lead in the 81st minute with Nkosi Tafari’s first goal of the season, heading in a perfect ball from a Sebastian Lletget corner kick. This sealed an important victory for FC Dallas.
The new era under interim manager Peter Luccin looks promising. While there were moments reminiscent of this season’s previous performances, the team showed significant improvement. This win is a positive start and brings new hope to the fans.
Man of the Match: Maarten Paes. Without a doubt, Paes was the star of the evening with his eight spectacular saves.
With his outstanding performance, many Indonesian football fans are hopeful that Paes will soon be called up to the national team. His skills between the posts could be a valuable asset for the Garuda Team. Hopefully, Paes will soon get the chance to represent his homeland and strengthen the Indonesian national team.
