MATCH PREVIEW: Quakes host FC Dallas in last home game before World Cup break

The San Jose Earthquakes return home on Saturday, May 16, to host FC Dallas. The match, presented by Plug and Play, is the team’s last home game before MLS takes a break for the FIFA World Cup this summer. Kickoff from PayPal Park is set for 7:30 p.m. PT and will air globally on Apple TV (English/Spanish), as well as via local radio on KSFO 810 AM (English) and La Kaliente 1370 AM (Spanish). 

San Jose is coming off just their second defeat of the season, a 3–2 loss to Seattle Sounders FC in a back-and-forth battle at Lumen Field on Wednesday night. Nick Fernandez and Nonso Adimabua teamed up for their first MLS goal and assist, respectively, with the latter intercepting a pass and supplying the helper to the former in the second minute for the finish. 

After Seattle scored two unanswered goals to take the lead, Preston Judd came off the bench to draw San Jose level at 2–2 in the 68th minute, his sixth goal in his last five MLS matches to tie a club record. However, the Sounders got a late 89th-minute winner from none other than Osaze De Rosario—son of Quakes legend Dwayne De Rosario—to hand San Jose a gut-punch result.  

"I think obviously we're disappointed," Fernandez said. "We thought we deserved more from the game, but at the same time, it's a quick turnaround for Saturday, so we're not going to dwell on it too long."  

The defeat snapped an eight-game unbeaten run in league play, a 10-game undefeated streak across all competitions and marked the first time in 13 league matches (15 in all competitions) that San Jose conceded three goals in a game. Still, the Quakes remain level with Vancouver Whitecaps FC atop both the Western Conference and Supporters' Shield standings with 29 points apiece, and their 9-2-2 record stands as the best start in club history. Both of San Jose's losses this season have come against the Sounders.  

The Earthquakes’ clash with Seattle marked game two of five in a grueling May 9–23 stretch—coming on the heels of eight matches in just 28 days. With the schedule showing no mercy, rotation has been inevitable, but while the team has felt the absences of Timo Werner and Niko Tsakiris, the Black and Blue have been able to lean on reinforcements like Paul Marie (four assists in last three games from the wing), Fernandez (2g/2a across all competitions when filling in at the No. 10 spot) Jamar Ricketts (three assists from the wing) and Jack Skahan (3g/2a in all competitions). 

Saturday's opponent presents its own set of challenges. Sitting seventh in the Western Conference at 5-4-4, FC Dallas comes to PayPal Park as a side that has shown a knack for grinding out results, with their four draws on the season a testament to a team that is difficult to put away.  

Up front, Dallas is as dangerous as any attack in the West. Forward Logan Farrington has five goals on the season, while Croatian international Petar Musa has been one of the most lethal strikers in the league, netting 11 goals in his last 12 matches. It was Musa who did the damage the last time these two sides met, bagging a brace in a 2–2 draw at PayPal Park last July. Most recently, Dallas dropped a 3–2 result at home to Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Wednesday night in their final home match before the World Cup break. 

“Musa has been a proven goal scorer in this league,” Quakes Head Coach and Sporting Director Bruce Arena said. “He's one of the top goal scorers in MLS. He's been outstanding. I think he has 11 goals to date, and he's a very good player. It'll be challenging to deal with him on Saturday.” 

There are more than a few threads connecting these two clubs. Farrington and Quakes winger Jamar Ricketts were both selected in the first round of the 2024 MLS SuperDraft and were teammates at Ventura County Fusion during the 2023 USL League Two season. Quakes Academy Director Luchi Gonzalez spent time at FC Dallas as both head coach and academy director, and once coached Dallas right back Shaq Moore, who would go on to represent the U.S. Men's National Team alongside San Jose left back DeJuan Jones.  

The urgency of Saturday's match cannot be overstated. A win over FC Dallas keeps San Jose firmly in the Western Conference and Supporters’ Shield races, while sending the fan base into the summer with the kind of momentum a group with genuine championship aspirations will need when MLS returns to PayPal Park in July.