FC Dallas and Portland will square off Saturday in each team’s third match of the 2018 Major League Soccer season. Gio Savarese will be eyeing his first win as coach of the Timbers after achieving so much success in the North American Soccer League with the New York Cosmos.
He’ll also be seeing some familiar faces on the opposing squad.
FC Dallas goalkeepers Jimmy Maurer and Kyle Zobeck were both part of the Cosmos during Savarese’s reign. Maurer played with New York from 2013-17, while Zobeck played for the club from 2015-17.
“It’s great to see that both of them have been able to make the transition to Major League Soccer,” Savarese said. “They’re quality goalkeepers, quality people. I’m glad that they’re doing well. For Jimmy, being able to start some matches already with such a good team is great.”
Maurer played the majority of his professional career with the Cosmos, appearing in 110 matches for the team in that four-year span. He bounced around after his collegiate career, obtaining a one-game contract with the New York Red Bulls, appearing in 17 matches for the Atlanta Silverbacks of the NASL, and included a stop in Chile where he played for Club Deportivo Universidad de Concepción. Savarese has been a big part of Maurer’s development but the focus for the 29-year-old netminder is on the match at hand.
“It’s all business,” Maurer said. “Just focused on the game in hand right now and afterward it’ll be good to see him. He’s a close friend of mine at this point. It’s all business right now. [I’m] focused on the game, focused on the tactics and phases of the game we’ve been working on this week and trying to get three points.”
With Savarese, Maurer, and Zobeck, the team won back-to-back NASL Soccer Bowls in 2015 and 2016 — defeating the Ottowa Fury and Indy Eleven, respectively. The campaign for the 2017 title fell short as the Cosmos fell to now LAFC assistant coach Marc Dos Santos and the San Francisco Deltas 2-0.
“There are tons of good memories,” Maurer said. “The championships are what stick out and then just some of the great off-the-field experiences we had with all the trips we were able to experience. The first year we went to London then Spain. We were in Dubai and Cuba and El Salvador and Hong Kong and all these places you really grow off-the-field as well, with the coaching staff and teammates.”
Maurer and Zobeck are not the only players that have gone from the Cosmos to an MLS side this season. NASL had a murky future after failing to obtain D2 sanctioning from the United States Soccer Federation. Eric Calvillo (San Jose Earthquakes), Dejan Jakovic (LAFC), Andres Flores (Portland Timbers) have all come to MLS from New York. Jakovic and Maurer started both matches for their respective squads — Flores made a substitute appearance and Calvillo played with USL side Reno 1868 FC.
“You always want players to succeed, to continue to develop, to continue to grow,” Savarese said. “So everyone who has been able to transition to good things is always a pleasure to see. We had a great group of guys at the Cosmos and it’s great to see them succeed.”
Even though Maurer and Zobeck have played in Savarese’s system, they may think their former boss may have some tricks up his sleeve, making their preparation no less difficult than one of another MLS side.
“It’s still just another MLS team,” Maurer said. “The players have tendencies, the coaches have tendencies but you’re really looking at every player in their most recent games. We’re just trying to be as prepared as we can be.”
“He’s a little tricky,” Zobeck said. “He thinks that ‘Oh we got a couple of guys who might know our tendencies, maybe we gotta do something different.’ He’s a smart guy, he’s crafty, and he’ll keep us on our toes for sure.”
Other FC Dallas News and Notes
- This week is a massive week in terms of youth soccer tournaments in the Dallas area. The 2018 Dallas Cup will start on Sunday and will include youth teams such as Arsenal, Manchester United, Tigres, and Monterrey. FC Dallas will begin the defense of its 2017 Gordon Jago Super Group title on Sunday, as they take on Arsenal in the Cotton Bowl. The Dallas Cup saw many young players feature for FCD, including Paxton Pomykal and Jesus Ferriera.
- The Generation Adidas Cup will also be taking place at the same time in Frisco. The teams in that tournament include Real Madrid, AS Monaco, Pachuca, and other MLS academy sides.
Match Information:
When: March 24, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)
Broadcast: TV– Unimas (Spanish); Radio– FCDallas.com/Radio (English), 1270AM (Spanish)
Live Stream: Twitter (English)