{"id":3026,"date":"2016-12-31T11:10:04","date_gmt":"2016-12-31T16:10:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsoccer.com\/?p=3026"},"modified":"2016-12-31T11:10:04","modified_gmt":"2016-12-31T16:10:04","slug":"fc-dallas-makes-moves-striker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/soccer\/2016\/12\/31\/fc-dallas-makes-moves-striker\/","title":{"rendered":"FC Dallas Makes Offseason Moves But Sign No Striker"},"content":{"rendered":"

FC Dallas head coach \u00d3scar Pareja and technical director Fernando Clavijo have been quite active since their season ended in November. In fact, no other MLS club has made more offseason moves than last season’s US Open Cup and Supporters’ Shield winners. They’ve added depth to their roster and reinforced\u00a0their philosophy of grooming young\u00a0talent. They’ve also\u00a0made transfer market waves by\u00a0signing Javier Morales from Real Salt Lake. What’s the problem? They haven’t added the\u00a0marquee striker that\u00a0some\u00a0expected and FC Dallas supporters yearn\u00a0to see in their starting eleven.<\/p>\n

FC Dallas Makes\u00a0Offseason Moves But No Striker<\/h2>\n

Offseason business started early with the signing of two attack-minded players from the FC Dallas academy. Forward Jesus Ferreira and attacker Bryan Reynolds both inked contracts at the tender age of fifteen. More recently, they added eighteen year old defender Reggie Cannon to the senior squad. Cannon, an academy product who spent last year at\u00a0UCLA, has the best chance of the three to see real playing time in 2017. FC Dallas boasts no fewer than ten homegrown players on their senior roster, a point of pride for the organization.<\/p>\n

December saw FC Dallas dip into the transfer market for reinforcements. First, they signed 20 year old Ecuadorian left back\u00a0Anibal Chal\u00e1. Chal\u00e1 turned pro at age 16 and played\u00a0in Ecuador with El Nacional until the Dallas\u00a0transfer. Clavijo also\u00a0added experience by signing Costa Rican right back\u00a0Jos\u00e9 Salvatierra and 28 year old Belgian winger\u00a0Roland Lamah. Lamah is an\u00a0Ivory Coast born winger that grew up in Belgium. He’s featured\u00a0in many of Europe’s top leagues including France’s Ligue 1, La Liga and the English Premier League.<\/p>\n

The move that raised the most eyebrows around the league however is the recent acquisition of veteran playmaker Javier Morales<\/a>. Morales adds leadership to the squad and depth in the playmaking role. Morales’ addition will be critical\u00a0for the start of the season. He\u00a0can slot in directly for lynchpin DP\u00a0Mauro D\u00edaz who may\u00a0miss part of 2017 as he recovers\u00a0from an\u00a0achilles injury. Morales\u00a0also adds 20 matches of CONCACAF Champions league experience.<\/p>\n

Is the big-name striker coming? There’s reason to think perhaps not. In a recent Facebook Live appearance<\/a> FC Dallas Social Media Manager\u00a0Daniel Robertson discussed recent player acquisition. There was no\u00a0mention of a striker and he said “all that’s left in terms of player acquisition is SuperDraft, and then we get to business.” Maxi Urruti scored nine goals as the lead striker for Dallas in 2016. Michael Barrios matched that total and Tesho Akindele added\u00a0six more. Pareja may again rely on a thin, youth-laden strike\u00a0force and count on goals from his talented wingers and midfield. There’s still time left before training camp begins in late January, but it looks unlikely that a new number nine will arrive. FC Dallas’ season starts on February 23 with a\u00a0CONCACAF Champions League appearance against\u00a0\u00c1rabe Unido of Panama.<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n