20-year-old Dante Sealy enjoyed a productive preseason with FC Dallas and the young attacker carried that form over into Saturday’s regular season opener vs. the San Jose Earthquakes.
Sealy scored the winning goal for Nico Estevez’s squad in a 2-1 home triumph, giving FC Dallas its first three points of the new campaign. The homegrown attacker logged a strong 90 minutes from his left midfield position, helping the Western Conference hosts erase an early deficit and earn a crucial victory.
“It just shows a lot of maturity that he has, he wasn’t too involved in a lot of action today and Neither was I,” veteran winger Paul Arriola said about Sealy. “But just to have that resilience and the mentality to continue to get into the box and be ready for the one opportunity that you get, and he was able to do that.
“Obviously, it’s great for him to carry that confidence,” Arriola added. “And, you know, I’m really proud to be his teammate to watch him grow. He’s done a fabulous job, and hopefully he continues.”
Sealy originally debuted for FC Dallas’ then-USL affiliate North Texas SC in 2019 before logging 11 MLS appearances over two seasons in 2020-21. After back-to-back seasons abroad with Jong PSV in the Dutch second-tier (six goals in 54 combined appearances), Sealy made 13 appearances for Dallas last season, but failed to find the back of the net.
With FC Dallas pushing for a winning goal on home soil Saturday, Sealy delivered in a big-time moment, stroking home a left-footed shot into the back of the net. It marked his second-ever goal for the Texas-based club and one that certainly will give Sealy confidence going forward.
“It’s a crazy feeling,” Sealy said. “You can’t describe it, but being there with my guys and with the fans, it doesn’t get any better than that.
“Obviously it was a rough start going down one goal,” he added. “But we stuck with it, kept going, and kept pushing. Resiliency was a big part of our preseason and I feel like that was the case today as well.”
FC Dallas dictated plenty of the tempo in Saturday’s match, outshooting San Jose 21-10 and edging them in possession 53%-47%. Their comeback victory was even more impressive with ample starters out of the squad including Jesus Ferreira, Paxton Pomykal, and long-term absentee Alan Velasco.
Sealy’s positive start will not only be crucial for him, but could be a spark in helping FC Dallas navigate through the opening few months of the season.
“The team was able to score that second goal, and we know that with it being the first game of the season, the score can quickly change, especially when it’s tied up,” Estevez said. “And well, it could’ve gone either way in the end, but I think the quality of our attack was an essential component in this win.”
FC Dallas remains at home on March 2 for a non-conference matchup against CF Montreal.