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When FC Dallas came from behind to beat expansion side Montreal, 2-1 on April 14, one reason they did so was FCD head coach Schellas Hyndman switching from the 4-4-2 formation he employed in the first half into a 4-1-4-1 for the final 45 minutes of play.

Bruno Guarda was one of two changes made to start the second half and as FCD’s central attacking midfielder, the ex-SMU star definitely had a solid game. So when he started in Saturday’s 1-0 loss at Vancouver, it surprised few. However, the performances between the Montreal and Vancouver game couldn’t have been more different in the eyes of his head coach.

“Bruno was put into a position I thought he did well when he was here and we played Montreal of getting forward, getting aggressive and going to goal. I didn’t think he had the same intensity and the same focus of getting forward and being a difference maker [against Vancouver], but again you’re going in from going off the bench where you don’t know if you’re starting to I know I’m starting,” Hyndman said. “Probably the tension, the anxiety buildup on him, I thought he played very tentative and wasn’t aggressive enough for that position going forward.”

The FC Dallas Reserves left Sandy’s America First Field wet and cold, but with three points in tow courtesy of a comprehensive 3-0 victory over their Real Salt Lake Reserves counterparts on Tuesday. With the win, the FC Dallas Reserves move to 3-1-0, their nine points good for a share of the Central/Mountain Division lead alongside the Houston Dynamo, while the RSL Reserves’ third straight defeat dropped the Utah side to a disappointing 0-4-1 halfway through their 2012 MLS Reserve League calendar.

Rainy conditions in the first half made for some slippery footing, hearty challenges and tense moments, culminating with a 34^th minute altercation that followed Dallas forward Ruben Luna’s sliding challenge into RSL goalkeeper Kyle Reynish, which resulted in a yellow card shown to the Dallas attacker. Luna would help move the scoreboard shortly thereafter in the 41^st minute, his lobbed ball across the six finding midfielder Jonathan Top, who slammed a side-volley past Reynish and inside the bottom left corner to put the visitors up 1-0.

The FC Dallas Reserves doubled the advantage shortly after halftime off a penalty kick opportunity, created in the 49^th minute when RSL defender Chris Schuler clipped Luna inside the box. Midfielder Bruno Guarda would earn a caution for dissent shortly after the foul, but he was composed enough to bury the spot kick low and inside the right post seconds later to put Dallas up 2-0. Five minutes later the visitors tacked on a third, as defender Mike Ambrose swung a ball in from the left wing to on-rushing striker Scott Sealy, who placed his re-directed header off the right post and in.

Tensions once again rose to the forefront in the 80^th minute, when RSL Reserves forward Paulo Junior was shown a red card for a reckless challenge in the center circle against Top, followed shortly thereafter by Guarda’s ejection for making contact with the referee in the ensuing scrum. The Claret-and-Cobalt’s best chances of the day came in the 88^th minute from midfielder Jordan Allen, but the RSL-Arizona Academy product saw both of his shots from within 10 yards blocked by a scrambling Richard Sanchez, who entered the match at goalkeeper at the halftime break and combined with starter Chris Seitz for the shutout.

The FC Dallas Reserves will resume play with a road challenge against Sporting Kansas City Reserves (1-1-1) at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park on Tuesday, May 1 (7:30 p.m. CT).

MLS Reserve League Box Score

Real Salt Lake Reserves 0 : 3 FC Dallas Reserves

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

America First Field – Sandy, UT

Scoring Summary:
FCD – Jonathan Top (Ruben Luna) 41
FCD – Bruno Guarda (penalty kick) 49
FCD – Scott Sealy (Mike Ambrose) 54

Disciplinary Summary:
FCD – Ruben Luna (caution, Reckless Tackle) 34
FCD – Bruno Guarda (caution, Dissent) 49
FCD – Bruno Guarda (ejection, Unsporting Behavior) 80
RSL – Paulo Jr. (ejection, Reckless Foul) 80

Real Salt Lake Reserves (4-4-2): Kyle Reynish (c) (Lalo Fernandez 67); Terukazu Tanaka, Leone Cruz, Chris Schuler, Chris Estridge (Carlos Salcedo** 75); Yordany Alvarez, Enzo Martinez (Jordan Allen** 60), Jonny Steele, Sebastian Velasquez; Paulo Junior, Emiliano Bonfigli

Substitutes Not Used: Taylor Bowlin*, Luis Gil

FC Dallas Reserves (4-4-2): Chris Seitz (c) (Richard Sanchez 45); Alex Lee, Matt Hedges (Aaron Guillen** 88), Mark Barone*, Moises Hernandez; Jonathan Top (Flavio Guzman** 81), Bruno Guarda, Victor Ulloa, Michael Ambrose; Scott Sealy (David Robledo** 60), Ruben Luna

Substitutes Not Used: Bryan Leyva
*Guest player
**RSL-Arizona/FC Dallas Academy player

Referee: Alex Krelo
Referee Assistants: Hamed Sadeghi, Alan Jimenez
4^th Official: Brad Jensen

It was a solid win by FC Dallas on Saturday night, beating the expansion Montreal Impact 2-1 at FC Dallas Stadium in a game that was eventful to say the least.

When Dallas gaffer Schellas Hyndman made two changes to start the second half, bringing on Bruno Guarda and Bobby Warshaw for Andrew Jacobson and Hernan Pertuz, respectively, few thought it was anything more than a tactical adjustment. And since those changes signaled a shift from the 4-4-2 formation that FCD had employed in the opening 45 minutes to more of a 4-1-4-1 in the final half of play, no one thought that those two substitutions could be injury-related.

However, injuries are exactly what had happened, something Hyndman discussed after the game.

It turns out Jacobson was having some issues in his back and leg after getting kicked more than a few times by the hard-fouling boys from Montreal. As for Pertuz, he had a foot swell up and was unable to answer the bell for the second half.

“Pertuz got kicked over on the sideline and just wasn’t able to go. He fought his way through the first half but we knew something was wrong,” Hyndman said. “When we brought him up here [to the locker room at halftime], the foot was swollen and he just couldn’t go. AJ took a few hits, more of the back and leg that was bothering him.”

Obviously, if these injuries keep one or both of these guys off the field for any significant period of time they are big negatives for Dallas. No matter whether it’s been at left back or at right back, where he has started each of the last two weeks in Hyndman’s 4-4-2, the Colombian defender Pertuz has been a rock-solid addition to the FCD backline.

Some might have questioned why Jair Benitez, who normally starts at left back for Dallas, wasn’t back in the first 11 for the Montreal game, but the answer is simple. If Hyndman is anything, he’s consistent, especially when it comes to winning. When a formation and a lineup works, if all of those same 11 players are available the following week, it’s a safe bet he’ll employ the same look barring something unforeseen.

That’s why Pertuz was in the starting lineup against the Impact and Benitez was on the pine. Pertuz has earned his playing time and will be until he slips up or Jair plays his way back into the first 11 through a string of strong performances in training... pending injury of course. Pertuz might be relatively new to MLS and to this club, but he’s already more than shown his value and if he’s not available for a while, it would definitely be a big loss.

Ditto for Jacobson, who after a rough start to the season, seems to have found himself and is no longer trying to do too much in the middle of the field. Some feel he might best serve this team as the holding mid with Warshaw possibly starting in the linking role but that’s a whole other discussion. The fact of the matter is that he and Daniel Hernandez form a steady if not a bit nard-nosed tandem in the middle of the yard and if A.J. is out for a while, that too would be a big loss.

Of course, the Dallas midfield is already a bit thin with David Ferreira out for about the next two months, as is Andrew Wiedeman, after both of them underwent recent surgeries. Ricardo Villar is week to week. Help is on the way as Jackson is thought to be arriving this week but it’s unknown what his current fitness level is, but if he’s ready to roll, he can definitely provide help in very short order.

We’ll find out more about the condition of Jacobson and Pertuz on Monday. Hopefully the news is good.

Even with Ricardo Villar out for this Saturday’s game with Montreal, FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman has options when it comes to who could fill in for him at the No. 10 role. Of course, he could plug homegrown player Bryan Leyva in there, even Bruno Guarda or Bobby Warshaw would be a possibility. We’ll just have to wait and see which option he chooses come Saturday.

“Yeah, Bruno’s a possibility. Warshaw’s a possibility but we’re also getting Daniel [Hernandez] back. If we stay in the 4-4-2, it could be Daniel and AJ side-to-side holding midfielders and then we’ll add on another striker, which now gives us what we’ve had before as that attacking midfielder,” Hyndman said. “So we’ll just have to wait and see. Right now with the reserve game, you’ve seen the last few practices we’re lower numbers. Today the boys really got a good workout in, a good hour-45 minutes of good work and I was really pleased with that.”

FC Dallas returns to the field at FC Dallas Stadium on Thursday night against New England. Dallas gaffer Schellas Hyndman was asked about a wide array of subject matter on Tuesday afternoon and here’s what he had to say.

How rusty did you feel Carlos Rodriguez and Brek Shea were in the 4-1 loss at D.C. United on Friday?

Hyndman: I think Carlos was probably a little bit more ready to go. Brek, we talked about it, I think he had a lot more mental frustration because U.S. was expected to go through where I don’t think anybody expected Panama to go through. So I think there was a little bit anguish in there and frustration. As far as fatigue, I think it showed more in Brek than in Carlos.

With Daniel Hernandez suspended for the New England game, do you go with either Bruno Guarda or Bobby Warshaw in his place or do you have other options at d-mid?

Hyndman: I think those are good options. Going to a 4-4-2 is another option. Whether it’s Pertuz, George John or somebody else that can go in there, I think we need a ball winner there because that what Daniel Hernandez does. We’ve been trying different things in training and we’ll finish it up tomorrow.

Fabian Castillo looked like his old self in training on Monday. Is he ready to return?

Hyndman: Yeah, I think he’s an important piece of the strike force. He’s a player that we’re counting on to help us on one of the flanks. Whether it’s the speed that he brings, the quickness that he brings, the speed from the flank, I think what it does is it helps us with a lone striker to have another two players that are attacking from the flanks whether it’s Brek [Shea] or it’s Fabian. I think he’s important for Blas to play better and our strike force to play better. I thought he looked a lot better as far as coming off that injury.

You put your guys through the vaunted tunnel of love drill on Monday. Was that done as a way to punish them or did you feel they needed some extra fitness work?

Hyndman: I never use punishment to motivate. I think there’s a lot better ways of motivating players than punishing. I’m not sure how much you get out of it if you’ve got everybody upset. Nobody wants to be punished, especially adults. That was purely a fitness thing. There was a game coming up on Thursday. I think there has been some characteristics that have been repeating-late in the game getting scored on, second half struggling, end of the first half struggling. I think we’ve done a really good job in preseason but if you look at our schedule, a lot of teams have had breaks, off weeks and very few teams have had so many games back-to-back. We played late on a Sunday but then we turn around on the road on a Friday. Then you come home. There’s not a lot of rest time, so there’s not a lot of recovery time or opportunities to do a little bit more work. So I took that opportunity to work us a little bit. We’ll go through some physical testing on Friday for the guys who didn’t play on Thursday. Then we’ll go through physical testing on Monday for the guys who did play on Thursday. So I think we need to know where we are on fitness level.

Another thing FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman was asked about after practice on Tuesday morning was midfielder Bruno Guarda, who missed several weeks while being suspended for what was termed a violation of team rules by a club official. Guarda returned to the pitch last week in Florida and was back on the training field on Tuesday.

When originally asked about the situation that led to the ex-SMU standout’s suspension Hyndman was uncharacteristically tight lipped about the whole situation. He did, however, open up a bit about it on Tuesday.

“Bruno’s situation is something I thought we as a club dealt with. I’m not really in a position to discuss the situation. I think Bruno embarrassed himself, embarrassed the club, and I think right now he’s on a slope that is going up and he’s got to regain people’s trust and he’s got to regain the image that we all remember, and what we liked of Bruno,” the FCD coach said.

After talking to FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman last week, one thing was readily apparent - he’s not terribly happy with the depth his club has as is currently constructed. So, that brings the question: Will Hyndman make a trade this week? Here’s a look at why he might make a deal this week to bolster his roster:

This team needs some more depth, specifically in the midfield

No doubt about it, depth could be an issue for this team in 2012, specifically in the midfield. Ricardo Villar has battled injuries all through preseason. Daniel Cruz never was healthy and has now left the club, and who knows where Bruno Guarda stands with Hyndman and the club’s other brass after his suspension not all that long ago? Andrew Wiedeman has had a solid preseason but his six goals did come against college kids, so how much can one really read into that? Homegrown player Bryan Leyva has made strides in his fitness but how much can we really expect from him this year. Fellow FCD Academy product Victor Ulloa only recently returned from a foot issue.

There is some precedent for a trade

Hyndman has never been afraid to pull the trigger when he feels like it’s necessary. Remember the trade of Heath Pearce to Chivas USA last February? That was necessitated by completely different reasons, but Schellas has never been afraid to make a deal if he feels like it would improve his club. Just listening to his tone last week, it sounds like he could finally be at that point. French midfielder Geoffrey Tulasne did OK during his trial but didn’t exactly set the world on fire and while the club has Scott Sealy on their roster, who can also play midfield, he might best serve this club by providing depth up top.

FCD has some pieces of value

While this might sound like heresy to some, besides the obvious draft picks and allocation money, FCD also has another resource they could choose to trade-one of their homegrown players. Left back Moises Hernandez might be one possibility here as he hasn’t done a ton to set himself apart from the other five homegrown players. Talented young goalkeeper Richard Sanchez is another possibility along with Leyva and even young striker Ruben Luna. Sure, it might send the Dallas supporters into a complete state of panic, but teams trade prospects all the time in other sports, especially in baseball. And considering FCD currently has six homegrown players on their roster, there’s a very good chance that only one of them or maybe even two ever pan out anyway. That’s just a simple law of averages, so why not get something for one of them while the club still can?

It would shake things up a bit

Hyndman isn’t too happy with the lack of internal competition on his club. What better way to shake things up than with a trade? Seeing someone new come in and maybe even one of their own head out of town could reinforce to the entire roster that no one’s job is truly safe.

The loquacious gaffer lamented earlier this preseason that his club’s chemistry remained a work in progress and that the room was nowhere near as tight as it was in 2010, when they made an unprecedented run to the MLS Cup. Part of that dip in chemistry might be the tough circumstances they endured in 2011, but it could also be largely attributed to a change in personnel. A club with chemistry that could be better, and also one that doesn’t have much in the way of internal competition heading into the season, sounds like a recipe for possible disaster later in the year if things continue on their current path.

A FC Dallas side made up of reserve and home grown players fell to Toronto FC by a 3-0 scoreline in the 3rd game of the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic on Thursday night.

The defeat pushed FCD down to second in the group with four points, three points above both BK Hacken and Orlando City, who face off in the second match of the night. Though Dallas maintain a three- and five-goal advantage, respectively, over their group foes, they must still await the result to find out if they'll play the Houston Dynamo in the consolation match at 5 pm CT, also on March 3.

SCORING SUMMARY:
TOR -- Luis Silva, 35'
TOR -- Luis Silva, 40'
TOR -- Ryan Johnson, 82'

FC Dallas Lineup: Seitz, M. Hernandez, Ibeagha, Hedges, Ulloa, Warshaw, Tulasne, Guarda, Villar, Wiedeman, Luna.

Updated for status as we see it right before Florida camp.

The Roster Dance is a long running feature of 3^rd Degree. It is an effort to break down the FC Dallas roster into its various components with all the trialists and draft picks competing for spots. The Roster Dance includes things like nationality, age, status, green cards, and anything else that might impact space on the roster and the players that might fit into it.

Last updated: 2/24/12

Senior Roster (18 to 20)

For now MLS rosters hold at up to 30 players. Players 1 to 20 are on the senior roster and have to fit in the salary cap. (MLS teams may carry only 18 players on this senior roster if they wish)

FCD has 8 international slots in 2010 with 8 currently filled.

1	David Ferreira	32, Colombian F/M. (8/9/79) Got his green card.
2	Daniel Hernandez	New 5 year coach/player deal. 35, US M/D (7/23/76)
3	Jair Benitez	33, Colombian LB, (1/11/79). Green card.
4	Blas Pérez	(I1) Panamanian striker, turns 31 this year. (3-13-81)
5	Brek Shea	20, US Nats MF. (2/28/90).
6	Ugo Ihemelu	28, US D. (4/3/83)
7	Kevin Hartman	37, US GK. (5-25-1974)
8	Zach Loyd	24, US Nats M/D. (7-18-87)
9	Fabian Castillo	(I2) 19, Colombian striker. (6-01-92)
10	Ricardo Villar	(I3) 32, Brazilian, AM. (8-11-79) working on green card
11	Andrew Jacobson	26, US DM. (9-25-85)
12	Hernan Pertúz	(I4) 22, Columbian U23, D. (3-31-89)
13	Chris Seitz	24, US GK. (3-12-87)
14	Bobby Warshaw	23, US M/D. (11-21-88)
15	Carlos Rodriguez	(I5) 21 year old Panamian M/D from Tauro FC. (4-12-90)
16	Bruno Guarda	26, Brazil MF. (2/6/86). Green card
17	Scott Sealy	T&T F. 30, Previously with KC and SJ. (6/4/81) green card.
18	George John	US CB. (3/20/87) Not currently on FCD roster. Spot saved?
19	Dogba	(I6) Ange Pacome Dogba Gnagbo.Ivory Coast F
20	Open Spot	Sports 19 and 20 don’t have to be filled.
--

Players occupying roster spots 1-24 will earn at least $42,000 in 2011.

Off-Budget Roster (10)

Roster Spots 21 to 30. Generation adidas, developmental players, and home grown. Players 24 and under that don’t count on the salary cap. MLS teams can have a maximum of 10 off-budget players.

21	Matt Hedges	UD D, 2012 1st pick. (4-1-90) Senior roster?
22	Andrew Wiedeman	(Ga1) 22, US versatile. F/M/D. (8-22-89)
23	Bryan Leyva	(HG1) 20, Mexican U20 MF (2/9/92) green card.
24	Ruben Luna	(HG2, I7) 19, Mexican U20 striker. (2-10-92)
25	Victor Ulloa	(HG3) 19, US Midfielder. (3-4-92)
26	Moises Hernandez	(HG4) US D, former U20 (3-5-92)
27	Jonathan Top	(HG5) 19, US striker. (1-26-93)
28	Richard Sanchez	(HG6) 17, Mexican keeper, US Citizen. (2-28-94)
29	Christian Ibeagha	22, Former US U17 from OK (born Nigeria). (1-10-90)
30	Alex Lee	2012 supplemental pick, D from Maryland.
--	Ian Kalis	2012 supplemental pick from SMU. Injured? Still on roster, not traveling.

Players occupying roster spots 25-30 will earn at least $32,600 in 2011.

Other Players

Anyone connected, rumored, tried out, waived, training invited, or signed as a short term player.

Jack Stewart	Late 2011 defender depth, didn’t stick in 2012
Rodolofo Espinoza	30 year old Mexican M, spring trial.
Kleyner Bejarano	a.k.a. Kleyner Bejarano Colombian D, spring trial
Scott Gordon	23 year old US D, spring trial
Daniel Osorno	Formerly of Puebla, AM/F
Nicolás Gianni	a.k.a. Nicolas Cridani. 29, F/M
Daniel Cruz	Colombian, M didn’t play well in 2011, injuries cost him in 2012.
Marvin Chavez	Traded to San Jose.
Walter Hines	M, preseason trialist
Martin John	LB, preseason trialist
Joe Madigan	M, preseason trialist
Jackson	Brazilian M, on loan to Cruzeiro
Mykel Galindo	Waived in off season.
Edson Edward	Waived in off season.
Josh Lambo	Former Ga GK, waived in off season.

During last Wednesday’s scrimmage at SMU, there were several FC Dallas players who back in the day roamed the pitch at Westcott Field, notably FCD-veterans Daniel Hernandez and Ugo Ihemelu. That 4-0 win over the Ponies was Hernandez’s first game action of the preseason and the longest Ihemelu has played in the first three preseason game.

Other than the scuttlebutt surrounding the team being in a 4-4-2 for the first half, one of the biggest questions to come out of that game was about the one SMU product, Bruno Guarda, who has nowhere to be seen. It could have been a big return to the Hilltop for Guarda after a stellar collegiate career there. Few seemed to notice that the Arlington Oakridge product didn’t play, much less that he wasn’t even with the team there. Once the subject was broached with FCD head coach Schellas Hyndman after Friday’s practice the truth became known.

Guarda had been, according to a club official, suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules. Hyndman didn’t want to discuss the situation at all, which is never a good sign, especially with the soccer sensei being one of the more forthcoming coaches in any sport when it comes to answering tough questions from the leering press.

So what does this mean for Guarda going forward? The answer is a simple one... probably not much. After Daniel Cruz, there might not have been two players who were more in need of a strong showing in preseason than Guarda and fellow midfielder Ricardo Villar.

Cruz never saw the field during preseason due to a knee issue and has left the club. Villar has recently battled a calf issue but has performed pretty well for much of preseason. Hyndman didn’t mince words earlier this preseason when asked what he expects from Guarda leading into this season.

“I think our midfield is getting thinner. We had too many midfielders last year and it hurt us in the balance but I think our midfielders are getting a little thinner as far as numbers. This is an opportunity for Bruno really to step up and make a difference,” Hyndman said. “This is his fourth year. He either needs to get on the field... or is he good enough to go somewhere else... or is he good enough to play somewhere else? Maybe it’s a different division but there’s a big difference when a kid goes to college his freshman year and when he leaves his senior year. He’s been there four years. This is Bruno’s fourth year in MLS, so this is a big year for him.”

The MLS roster freeze deadline is approaching, but a bit closer is FCD’s trip to Orlando, an excursion that the coaches have said will only include players who figure into their 2012 plans. So will that travel party include Guarda or not? Most likely it will. Word is Guarda apologized to his teammates for his transgression as well as to the coaches and the organization, so expect Guarda to be reinstated this week and also expect him to likely be on the roster come opening day.

Had Cruz been healthy during preseason, then maybe this is a story that turns out differently. Fortunately for this SMU product, Cruz’s knee woes came when they did. However, should Guarda make this roster and have another slip up, then all bets are off. Then, we could see him either traded or maybe even outright released.

Hopefully it doesn’t come to that though as Guarda is still a serviceable player who provides depth in the Dallas midfield.

Update: As of Monday, Guarda had not been reinstated and remained away from the team. When asked if there was an update in the situation after practice on Monday, Hyndman replied “That’s something I’m not going to talk about.”

On Wednesday night, FC Dallas head coach returned to a place he knows very well, SMU’s Westcott Field, as FCD faced the Mustangs in a preseason match. Dallas got goals from Andrew Wiedeman, Blas Perez, trialist Jeison Quinonez and Bryan Leyva in the 4-0 win, a result their gaffer was largely pleased with.

“I thought the first half was one of our better performances as far as quick play, combination play and people understanding the structure and coming along with it,” Hyndman said. “I was glad to see the progress.”

The first half featured a lineup that could very much resemble the first 11 that FCD could employ in their March 11 season opener with the New York Red Bulls. One interesting twist was that Dallas came out in a 4-4-2 with Blas Perez and Fabian Castillo paired up top.

“I think Fabian’s a player that likes a little bit more of that freedom. I think we always have a little bit of difficulty when we restrict him because he is so fast, you can’t just leave him alone. I think this would be an important year for him to continue to develop,” Hyndman said. “Whether we go with the two of those guys up front together or if we go with a 4-1-4-1 will evidently be determined by the time the season starts. Where is David? We didn’t have Villar today, which is a player that really settles things down for us and I thought today we did well without those two.”

Perez finished with a goal and an assist, delivering the pass that Wiedeman knocked into the back of the net just six minutes in to give FCD an early 1-0 advantage. And not surprisingly, the Panamanian-born striker earned high marks from Hyndman for his solid half of work against the Ponies.

“Yeah, I thought he was a little bit unlucky. He missed one goal to the left of it and came back with a header, he missed to the left of it again,” Hyndman said. “Then, he ends up scoring on probably the more difficult goal but yeah, he’s that striker that we hoped he would be. And with time and him getting sharper, I think he’ll be that player. I thought the guy that really kind of lit it up tonight was Brek. I think we’ve all been kind of concerned about his heavy legs and his mental state. Tonight it looked like he was really ready to play.”

Another big story of tonight’s game was that it marked the first preseason action of captain Daniel Hernandez, who had yet to play because he hadn’t been cleared for game action. But Hernandez went to the doctor on Monday and was fully cleared, so he made his preseason debut against his alma mater on Wednesday night.

“It was good to see Daniel back there because what he does is he’s a player that finds the ball,” Hyndman said. “People will trust him. They give him the ball. He finds the whole and of course, he has a strong leg to change the point of attack and get the ball forward. This is a very fast field and because it is so fast, they’re used to it but for us, I thought it was a really quick adjustment for us, how quickly they were moving the ball. But I thought Daniel did well.”

FCD has another preseason tilt on Saturday morning against the University of Tulsa and the man in charge admits that in his best Hannibal Smith impression, he loves it when a roster comes together.

“Yeah, I think we’re three maybe four players away from settling on our roster. We’ve got quite a few trialists. We’ve got more trialists coming in, so we’ll continue to look at players and see if we can find that right group of guys together,” Hyndman said.

One other bright spot of note is that Dallas’ first homegrown player, Bryan Leyva, looks like he has made great strides in his fitness and delivered a solid goal in the 65^th minute, the final tally of the evening.

“Yeah, I think Bryan did very well. The thing with Bryan is he’s got to develop his body a little bit better,” Hyndman said. “He’s got a very low center of gravity and he’s quick, but he’s unable to carry that pace for a long period of time. And so, when he’s unable to carry that pace, he just kind of disappears and we need him around the ball more.”

Several Observations from the Scrimmage

-The pairing of Ihemelu and Pertuz in the back is an interesting one: It looks like George John will be rejoining FCD after his loan to West Ham United is over next month, but have to admit the pairing of Ugo Ihemelu and newcomer Hernan Pertuz looks pretty solid. Of course, they don’t quite have the chemistry that Ihemelu and John did, but it’s good to know that if Big George gets injured or is out of the lineup, Pertuz appears to be a more than capable replacement in the back.

-Right mid remains a question mark: Who starts on the right flank will all depend on what formation Hyndman decides to start the season with. If the gaffer goes with a 4-4-2, which would likely pair Castillo and Perez together up top, then it will likely either be Ricardo Villar, Andrew Wiedeman or possibly even newcomer Carlos Rodriguez on the right side. But conventional wisdom says Hyndman will roll out in the 4-1-4-1, which means Castillo is on the right side. Wiedeman has played well this preseason, so well to be considered the backup at that spot, but is he ready for a starting role? That still remains to be seen.

-Where was Carlos Rodriguez? One notable absence from Wednesday’s scrimmage was Panamanian newcomer Carlos Rodriguez, who didn’t see a single minute. It’ll be interesting to see where he fits with this team going forward, whether he’s best suited as a fullback of midfielder since he says he can play both roles, preferably on the left side. Villar also missed the SMU game due to injury and former Mustang Bruno Guarda also didn’t see any time against his former school.

-Hartman Nearly Ready for Battle: Another big positive from Wednesday’s scrimmage was the fact that Kevin Hartman started and played 65 minutes between the posts for FCD. Chris Seitz came in and performed well for the final 25 minutes as Dallas kept the clean sheet against SMU, but it looks like Hartman is ready to roll for the season as the starter, but one has to wonder if Seitz will push him for minutes this season?

-Cruz Gone, More to Follow: According to Hyndman, Daniel Cruz has officially left the team, which is not surprising considering he had missed all of preseason with a knee issue. And after the SMU game, the gaffer let on that more roster cuts would be made before the club heads to Orlando later in the month, and that the next round would likely start on Thursday. Stay tuned for details.

FC Dallas earned a 1-1 draw with the reserve team of famed Argentinean club, River Plate today on the adidas Field at FC Dallas Stadium. Dallas’ goal was scored by midfielder Bruno Guarda via penalty kick in the 72nd minute.

FC Dallas’ goal was set up by Andrew Wiedeman, who received the ball on the right flank and used an inside-out move to go past a defender at the top left corner of the area. The feint freed up Wiedeman’s right foot to deliver a low line-drive cross to the back post, but the attempted pass was knocked down by the arm of a River Plate defender, forcing the referee to point to the spot. Guarda opted to take the kick, beating Rey high to his left to even the score 1-1.

River Plate initially took a 1-0 lead in the 23rd minute. The goal stemmed from a turnover in its defensive third of the field. After gaining control of the ball, River Plate pushed the ball out wide to Vila, who delivered a cross to the near post for Montero. The forward struck the bouncing cross with his first touch, beating FC Dallas goalkeeper Kevin Hartman to the near post.

Dallas nearly equalized just three minutes after River Plate took the lead. Brek Shea received the ball on the left side and bent a cross into the area. The ball skipped by a defender before finding the feet of FC Dallas Homegrown player Bryan Leyva at the back post. Leyva avoided a defender and slid a pass inside to Blas Perez, but the pass was cut out but goalkeeper Servio, who charged off his line to preserve the one-goal lead.

Just before the end of the first half, Hartman kept FC Dallas in the game with a marvelous save at his right post. The play began with another FC Dallas turnover in its own half of the field. River Plate quickly went to goal and got off a low, hard shot from the top of the box. At full stretch, Hartman managed to deflect the shot up with his right hand before smothering the ball with his left.

FC Dallas started the second half with a new lineup. The only exception was recent MLS SuperDraft selection Matt Hedges, who remained at center back. Outside of Dallas’ penalty kick goal in the 72nd minute, the best chance of the half belonged to River Plate, who earned a free kick just outside the box in the 86th minute. Gomez stepped to the kick and hammered a rising shot into the stiff breeze. The ball looked to be headed high of its target, but dipped at the last moment before crushing the crossbar behind goalkeeper Richard Sanchez. The FC Dallas defense quickly ushered the ball away from danger and the match finished 1-1.

Scoring Summary:

RP – Montero (Vila) 23
FCD – Bruno Guarda (PK) 72

Misconduct Summary:

RP – Pugh (caution; reckless tackle) 73

Lineups:

FC Dallas – Kevin Hartman, Jair Benitez, Hernan Pertuz, Matt Hedges, Zach Loyd, Brek Shea, Andrew Jacobson, Bryan Leyva, Fabian Castillo, Blas Perez, Scott Sealy.

FC Dallas (second half) – Richard Sanchez, Moises Hernandez (Kleymar Bejarano 80), Matt Hedges, Christian Ibeagha, Alex Lee, Carlos Rodriguez, Bobby Warshaw, Bruno Guarda, Andrew Wiedeman, Jonathan Top, Jeison Quinonez.

River Plate Reserves – Servio (Rey 45), Vega (Espindula 45), Ruiz (Pantaleone 45), Kranevitter (Macarof 45), Silgvero, Alvarez, Quignon, Cazares (Iberra 45), Solari, Villa (Pugh 45), Montero (Gomez 45).

The Roster Dance is a long running feature of 3^rd Degree. It is an effort to break down the FC Dallas roster into its various components with all the trialists and draft picks competing for spots. The Roster Dance includes things like nationality, age, status, green cards, and anything else that might impact space on the roster and the players that might fit into it.

Last updated: 2/9/12

Senior Roster (18 to 20)

For now MLS rosters hold at up to 30 players. Players 1 to 20 are on the senior roster and have to fit in the salary cap. (MLS teams may carry only 18 players on this senior roster if they wish)

FCD has 8 international slots in 2010 with 8 currently filled.

1	David Ferreira	32, Colombian F/M. (8/9/79) Got his green card.
2	Daniel Hernandez	New 5 year coach/player deal. 35, US M/D (7/23/76)
3	Jair Benitez	33, Colombian LB, (1/11/79). Green card.
4	Blas Pérez	(I1) Panamanian striker, turns 31 this year. (3-13-81)
5	Brek Shea	20, US Nats MF. (2/28/90).
6	Ugo Ihemelu	28, US D. (4/3/83)
7	Kevin Hartman	37, US GK. (5-25-1974)
8	Zach Loyd	24, US Nats M/D. (7-18-87)
9	Fabian Castillo	(I2) 19, Colombian striker. (6-01-92)
10	Ricardo Villar	(I3) 32, Brazilian, AM. (8-11-79) working on green card
11	Andrew Jacobson	26, US DM. (9-25-85)
12	Hernan Pertúz	(I4) 22, Columbian U23, D. (3-31-89)
13	Chris Seitz	24, US GK. (3-12-87)
14	Bobby Warshaw	23, US M/D. (11-21-88)
15	Carlos Rodriguez	(I5) 21 year old Panamian M/D from Tauro FC. (4-12-90)
16	Nicolás Gianni	(I6) a.k.a. Nicolas Cridani. 29, F/M. (3/9/82) starting for Ferreira.
17	Scott Sealy	T&T F. 30, Previously with KC and SJ. (6/4/81) green card.
18	Bruno Guarda	26, Brazil MF. (2/6/86). Green card
19	Daniel Cruz	(I7) 30, Colombian, M. Injured. (5-3-81) May be in roster trouble…
20	Jack Stewart	28 year old US D. (5-29-1983) He gets John’s spot for now.
--	George John	US CB. (3/20/87) Not currently on FCD roster, loan ends in March?
--	Rodolofo Espinoza	(I9) 30 year old Mexican M, Chivas USA 10-11. (6-14-81)
--	Kleyner Bejarano	(I10) a.k.a. Kleyner Bejarano Mena 22, Colombian D. (9/16/89)

Players occupying roster spots 1-24 will earn at least $42,000 in 2011.

Off-Budget Roster (10)

Roster Spots 21 to 30. Generation adidas, developmental players, and home grown. Players 24 and under that don’t count on the salary cap. MLS teams can have a maximum of 10 off-budget players.

21	Matt Hedges	UD D, ‘12 1st pick. (4-1-90) Senior roster?
22	Andrew Wiedeman	(Ga1) 22, US versatile. F/M/D. (8-22-89)
23	Bryan Leyva	(HG1) 20, Mexican U20 MF (2/9/92) green card.
24	Ruben Luna	(HG2, I8) 19, Mexican U20 striker. (2-10-92)
25	Victor Ulloa	(HG3) 19, US Midfielder. (3-4-92)
26	Moises Hernandez	(HG4) US D, former U20 (3-5-92)
27	Jonathan Top	(HG5) 19, US striker. (1-26-93)
28	Richard Sanchez	(HG6) 17, Mexican keeper US Citizen. (2-28-94)
29	Scott Gordon	23 year old US D, 3rd round pick in 2011. (4-6-88)
30	Christian Ibeagha	22, US U17 from OK (born Nigeria). (1-10-90)
--	Alex Lee	2012 pick, D from Maryland. Just arrived in camp.
--	Ian Kalis	2012 Supplemental Draft pick from SMU. Injured?

Players occupying roster spots 25-30 will earn at least $32,600 in 2011.

Other Players

Anyone connected, rumored, tried out, waived, training invited, or signed as a short term player.

Marvin Chavez	Traded to San Jose.
Walter Hines	M, preseason trialist
Martin John	LB, preseason trialist
Joe Madigan	M, preseason trialist
Jackson	Brazilian M, on loan to Cruzeiro
Mykel Galindo	Waived in off season.
Edson Edward	Waived in off season.
Josh Lambo	Former Ga GK, waived in off season.

Four years is a fairly important length of time. Of course, there are four years in high school and in most cases, college usually consists of four years, at least that’s how long most student-athletes have in terms of eligibility.

That number also looks to be an important one for FC Dallas midfielder Bruno Guarda, who is now entering his fourth full season in Major League Soccer. The SMU product broke into MLS in 2008 when he had a goal and an assist in 12 games, nine of which were starts in year one of the Schellas Hyndman era.

In 2011, the Brazilian-born midfielder appeared in 11 games, including five starts and contributed two assists but also saw his share of minutes in the US Open Cup and during FCD’s rather lengthy stay in CONCACAF Champions League.

“Last year was a good year,” Guarda said. “When there were chances to play-Open Cup, CONCACAF, I stepped my game up and contributed to the team.”

But he enters 2012 needing a breakout year if he is to stick with FCD not just beyond this season, but maybe for the entire year. At least that’s how his coach sees it.

“This is an opportunity for Bruno really to step up and make a difference. This is his fourth year,” Hyndman said. “He either needs to get on the field, or is he good enough to go somewhere else, or is he good enough to play somewhere else? This is Bruno’s fourth year in MLS, so this is a big year for him.”

Of course, this being a big year isn’t lost on the versatile 25-year-old Brazilian.

“You’ve always got to come to the first day working as hard as you can and doing everything the coaches ask you for and bring everything you can to the pitch when you have a chance to play like the scrimmage we have [Saturday] morning,” Guarda said.

In 2010 and even for much of last year, midfield depth was a huge strength for Dallas. However due to trades and personnel moves, that depth is now not once at the level it once was, a fact the FCD head coach is more than aware of. Such a lack of depth makes it even more crucial for him to get all he can out of every midfielder on his roster.

“I think our midfield is getting thinner,” Hyndman said. “We had too many midfielders last year and it hurt us in the balance but I think our midfielders are getting a little thinner as far as numbers.”

Guarda joined FCD almost four years ago after a stellar collegiate career at SMU and almost immediately there were questions about his ability to adjust to MLS from the college game, an adjustment that has been a rough one at times for the ex-Mustang.

“Yeah, it goes fast,” he said. “Every time I get a chance, I give everything coach asks for.”

But if there’s one thing he has showcased, it’s been his ability to not just play as an attacking mid, his primary role on the Hilltop, but also his knack for also playing at the holding spot, something he did several years back as a fill-in for former Dallas captain Pablo Ricchetti.

“Whatever they want me to play, I can do any position in the middle-center, attacking mid, defensive mid, linking. [I can] adapt a little bit and then play the game, it depends on the formation we’re playing, 4-4-2 or 4-3-3,” Guarda said. “I’ll be more than happy to play any position that coach wants me to.”

However, like every member of the FCD roster, he is far from content to be a bench player. Instead, he wants to be in Hyndman’s first 11 each and every week. That might remain a tall order, especially with a former league MVP in David Ferreira starting at the No. 10 spot and Dallas captain Daniel Hernandez, also a fellow SMU product, starting at the holding spot.

Still, Guarda is undaunted and continues to set his goals quite lofty, even in the light of playing time that has been hard to come by in his first three full seasons as a professional.

“I’m just waiting for the chance to be a starter. Every player here of course on the roster is wanting the same thing, I want-to play every game, every minute and give everything you can to help FC Dallas,” he said.

FC Dallas has upped the ante on their little video's and this one made me chuckle.

Bobby Warshaw has a kicking problem.