FC Dallas Loses In CONCACAF Semifinals

via FC Dallas

PACHUCA, Hidalgo – FC Dallas fell to Liga MX-side C.F. Pachuca, 3-1, in Leg Two of the CONCACAF Champions League Semifinal on Tuesday night, and was eliminated from the 2016-17 tournament on aggregate score, 4-3.

Dallas survived early pressure from the home side at Estadio Hidalgo, and got their first look at goal in the 16th minute as Kellyn Acosta played a short corner kick to midfielder Michael Barrios. Barrios sent a short pass back to Acosta, who then put a high cross into the box along the back post, but just inches out of the reach of a Walker Zimmerman header.

Pachuca would get their best look of the opening half in the 18th minute on a free kick from distance that took a dangerous deflection off the head of Jonathan Urretaviscaya in the box and just over the cross bar for a Dallas goal kick.

FCD would respond with their best chance of the half in the 23rd minute on the counter attack as Roland Lamah found Colman from the middle of the pitch. The striker split the Pachuca defense and took a hard shot from the 18 yard box that the Pachuca keeper got a piece of and deflected out for a corner.

The Tuzos would take the lead late in the opening frame as Urretaviscaya sent a long cross in from the right side and found Franco Jara beyond the left shoulder of Zimmerman, which he headed past goalkeeper Chris Seitz. The series would be level 2-2, but Pachuca owned the away goal tiebreaker.

Needing a goal in the second half to keep the series alive, Dallas almost equalized the leg in the 64th minute as Lamah kept a long corner in play along the left touch line and shed his encroaching defender down the wing. He would send a cross into the box and Zimmerman would get a clean header right on target, but the ball was cleared off the line by the Tuzos defense.

Pachuca would double their lead in the 80th minute when Hirving Lozano split a pair of Dallas defenders along the left touch line and fired a shot from the top of the penalty area past a diving Seitz in goal.

Six minutes later, FCD would pull the series level on aggregate. Just seconds after coming into the match, Javier Morales sent a corner kick into the box that was punched away by Blanco. The clearance went right to Carlos Gruezo outside the 18, and the midfielder took a volley towards goal that Cristian Colman put a glancing header to, making it a 2-1 game and 3-3 series.

The Semifinal looked to be headed for extra time until the final of two added minutes, when Lozano sent a curling cross into the box from distance towards Guzman, who looked to be setting up for a deflecting header, but let the ball go by him and bouncing into the Dallas goal, putting Pachuca up 4-3 on aggregate and earning them a spot in the Final.

FC Dallas returns to action on Saturday night as expansion-side Minnesota United FC visit Toyota Stadium at 7 p.m.

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