I thought Vejrostek was pretty good in this last game. A lot better than Mbaye ... of course, that's not saying much.
FC Dallas drops 2nd game of El Torneo de Tejas to Houston Dynamo - 3rd Degree Nolan Norris started today against Houston. Torquato, Garcia, Simmonds, Swann still involved with the first team as the season approaches.
It’s preseason matchday!Follow along on X for updates as we take on Sporting NTX at 6:30pm!— North Texas SC (@northtexasSC) February 11, 2026 Another NTX preseason game, this time against an overmatched UPSL side. 7-0 win. Luccin and Baran especially seem to have had good games.
Looks like Dallas found their 3rd keeper. Former SKC homegrown Brooks Thompson. Also spent time with Philadelhpia's MLSNP team. The squad for 2026 is just about done. It looks like the deal for Uruguayan midfielder Juaquin Valiente is also complete. FC Dallas acquire Uruguayan midfielder Joaquín Valiente | MLSSoccer.com FCD's foreign player signings this season were the Swedish right wingback Johannsson, Israeli midfielder Binyamin, and Uruguayan midfielder Valiente. Didn't sign competition for Nolan Norris or Josh Torquato. They're set for playing time. I suspect the other thread-eligible players like Simmonds, Garcia, and Swann will get to play with the first team, but will get their bulk minutes with NTSC.
Came off the bench in a 4-0 over Cyprus. Started and scored against England in a 3-4 loss. Now back to TX and NTX preseason (presumably).
It’s preseason matchday!Follow along on X for updates as we take on Houston Christian University at 10am on field 4!— North Texas SC (@northtexasSC) February 14, 2026 Torquato, Simmonds, and Garcia dropping down to NTX. Luccin and Gibson keep getting quite a bit of run this preseason. First time I’ve seen them use Contreras at RWB instead of as part of the front two.
This guy is trialing with NTX. Likely a LCB in the current system. Would compete for minutes with Molomo and Vejrostek.
DC United drafted in the 2025 draft but he went back to school. Played a bit in USL before going to college.
Piece in The Athletic about the army of scouts and agents attending this game because it's the second-to-last before kids in England can be approached for professional representation.
A couple of callups to a new kind of second-team YNT? U15s and 16s (so 2010s and 11s). GK Modersohn, LCB Coriano Alvarez (already provisionally cap tied to Puerto Rico), and CM Jonathan Jimenez from the 2011s (who just sent Flowers to Cyprus in this age group). Just LB Justus Jones from the 2010s (who sent Arne, CGL, and Soria to the full YNT a couple of weeks ago). Jones was heavily involved with the YNTs earlier but got a little exposed at the U15 CONCACAF championships - very much a late-developer. Continue to be shocked that Tamba Hallie doesn't get looks in this age group.
FCD loans '06 RB Malachi Molina to Nashville in exchange for a college draft pick-swap in 2028. There's a buy-option attached to the deal as well. There's about a million first-team players that can be used in that RWB spot (Johannson, Geovane, Newman, Moore, Ramiro, Sarver, etc) so I get it from a depth perspective, but Molina's been good when healthy for NTX the last two years. Suspect he'll prove to be an MLS-level player elsewhere. We'll see who plays that spot for NTX this year. Newman's still coming back from injury, they've looked at Contreras, Wygant got some run last year. As an aside, 3rdDegree recently made the point that U22 players have killed the HG pathway because it incentivizes clubs to go get more established players from outside the club and put them in the way of the internal kids. That's Geovane in the above stack. I'd also point out that FCD's re-engagement with the college draft and interest in bringing in 18-22 year-old kids from elsewhere for NTX (Bernie, Hope, Pedrinho, Gordon, etc) has added a similar obstacle that didn't exist in 2019 (when FCD carried far fewer college draftees) - Newman and Sarver in the above stack. That's two new layers of players between the 17-year-old Academy player and first team minutes. Probably makes FCD better/deeper in the near-term, but drastically reduces their chances of developing kids from the Academy to play with or sell from the first team.
PS: I've got no problem with NTX playing guys of that quality (Other examples: Henri, Humphrey, Westergren, Cisset, Essel, etc). I've got issues with NTX bringing in and then playing guys like Harms, Gall, Henry-Scott, Mendonca, Perlaza and the like (crucially) after it becomes clear they won't make it to the first team. WAY WAY too willing to give minutes to >20-year-olds that are average MLSNP players.
I have no problem with any of it. In Europe, a young player has to prove he's better than a wave of other guys ahead of him. Not just the guys in a squad, but the guys that a club can hypothetically go out and acquire. I'm fine with it, because FCD found another opportunity for him. Move Molina along and acquire assets for him. Can a club go out and use the U22 DP initiative slot to grab a talented player that blocks an academy kid? YES!!! Be better than that player................................
Yes. I would be upset if over time they give advantages to those they go out and get over HG's but I don't know that that's happening.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DTi2mIrkRyC/?igsh=MzNxNjhwYjNudjho Found this on Instagram this morning. Its the U16´s Captain Seif Awads highlights. He looks to me like a skillful, and promising player.
The rare penta-nat (US / Iraqi / Moroccan / Brazilian / Egyptian). Has gotten some attention from both the US and Egyptian YNTs over time, but I didn't see a lot from him at U13-U15 when he bounced around between CB and DM but got displaced by other players (Arne, CGL, Soria, Padilla, Orta, etc). Agree that the clips he's been putting out this season have looked good (I think his playing time has benefited from Soria playing up with the U17s opening a spot in midfield) and it's notable that he wears the armband sometimes. Would like to see more full games if anyone has film to share.
These are the kinds of decisions that front offices earn their salaries for. Does Malachi Molina have a first team future? Wasn't the writing on the wall when they signed the right wingback from the defending Swedish Champions? A Swedish international in his prime???? That pushed everybody else on the depth chart back a spot, and they even have Geovane coming back from injury after two lost seasons. Its not like Shaq Moore is chopped liver if he plays there. He's 29. So if there's no path to playing time for Molina, then deal him. Gain assets for him. He's not a 16 year old prospect. He'll be 20 this season. Its like..........................Seattle has in quick succession sold/dealt Atencio, Leyva, Baker-Whiting, and Vargas. Are they a better team for it? I don't know. If Seattle wins a major trophy this year, will their fans care? Doubtful.
There's a massive difference between developing, playing and selling players versus not signing or developing players.
I wasn't discussing this about one player. I'm looking ant a macro level where a club used to have the best academy in the country and now they don't. I want them to go back to those roots. I just don't see the point in bringing in so many foreign young players instead of developing your own. Look at Philly? They don't use the draft. They do bring a few players but I've always felt that is to fill holes. Maybe FCD has done such a poor job recently all they have are holes but that goes back to going to your roots. We'll see how this year goes but what they are doing isn't winning best records in the league or making deep playoff runs. So yeah they can do whatever they want and I can roast them for it when it doesn't work.
I'm not sure loaning Malachi Molina to Nashville is a reason for much navel-gazing with regards to academy/homegrown focus. If anything, it shows me the club was developing a young player of interest to another club in the league. These are the decisions you judge a front office on. Five years from now we'll see.
Newman is better than Molina anyway, and I think that’s probably what the decision amounted to. I’m glad they moved him onto a club where he could be more useful and we didn’t have to have two young Americans competing with eachother for the same spot.
Sad, but somewhat expected day. It'll be interesting to see find out what his next steps are. FC Dallas Exercises Contract Buyout on Homegrown Paxton Pomykal | FC Dallas One of the most decorated Homegrowns in club history, Pomykal led the team in appearances in 2022 and was selected as a Commissioner’s Pick for the 2019 MLS All-Star Game. He became the youngest player ever to start a match for FC Dallas at 17 years and 84 days. Among Homegrowns, he ranks third all-time in appearances (131) and starts (91), fifth in minutes played (7,910) and second in assists (15).