What to Watch For: FC Dallas vs. San Jose Earthquakes BigSoccer.com
And the road trip is finally here. The home games are gone, the Toyota Stadium crowd is in the rearview mirror until September, and FC Dallas now has to earn everything the hard way for the next nine games. There’s no soft opener here either. First stop: PayPal Park, against the team that spent the entire first third of the MLS season making every other club in the league look ordinary - including the one that just beat FC Dallas on Wednesday night (Vancouver).
Bruce Arena has the San Jose Earthquakes off to one of the best starts in 2026, going unbeaten in eight straight games until a 3-2 loss on Wednesday night in Seattle slowed their streak. Don’t let a single loss fool you, this is still one of the top teams in the league right now, and Dallas is walking into their house on the first night of a long summer away from Frisco.
Here’s what we’ll be watching for tomorrow night.
Don’t read too much into their Wednesday loss
Let’s be clear about what happened Wednesday night in Seattle before anyone starts circling this game as a “get right” spot for Dallas. San Jose’s 3-2 loss at Lumen Field snapped an eight-game unbeaten league streak and a ten-game unbeaten run across all competitions. It also happened without two of their most important players.
It wasn’t a team falling apart. It was one that was depleted that still went into Seattle and took a 1-0 lead just 120 seconds into the game. Seattle climbed their way back twice to pick up the three points.
San Jose has gone from one of the worst teams in MLS history just two short years ago, to arguably one of the best in 2026. In their historic run this Eason, they’ve beaten two of the Western Conference’s best teams (Vancouver and LAFC), while dominating games against lesser opponents like Austin, Sporting KC and St. Louis.
One loss doesn’t erase any of that. Dallas needs to show up like they’re playing the first-place team in MLS - because in a way, they are.
Most FC Dallas coverage gives you a score and a quote. Big D Soccer gives you the why — the tactical breakdowns, the honest assessments, the context that actually helps you understand what you watched from each match. If you're serious about this club, you should be reading all of it.
The Injury Report Is Real, and It Changes Things — But It Doesn’t Fix Everything
There is a bit of good news for Dallas: both Niko Tsakiris and Timo Werner have been ruled out for San Jose, with Tsakiris likely out for the next three or four months after undergoing surgery. Those aren’t minor losses. Werner was the offseason acquisition that has unlocked the whole system for Bruce Arena, while Tsakiris has become the playmaker in the attack who is tied for the league lead in assists before his injury.
That said, San Jose proved they can win without Werner. The supporting cast is stepping up with Jack Skahan finding some goals, Beau Leroux chipping in some assists. Arena’s system doesn’t depend on one player, it never has in his previous stops in D.C., LA, or New England. It runs on a collective press, relentless work rate, and a willingness to run.
Dallas will need to be smart on the counter attack, because that is where the big moments will be for them in this one.
