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For manager Nico Estévez, feeling some early-season pain may be a good thing for FC Dallas

FCD begins the path to recover the ground lost at the start of the season with a trip to Toronto

FC Dallas coach Nico Estévez said he likes to feel pain and hopes it doesn’t go away for the rest of the MLS season.

Last week’s win, 2-0 over Houston, was FCD’s first since February 24 and snapped a seven-game winless run, a streak that had seen the team fall to 13th in the Western Conference.

Estévez does not want the victory against Houston to become a reset for his team.

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“I want to carry the pain we have suffered the last month by not winning,” said the FC Dallas coach, who will visit Toronto FC on Saturday.

“I want to keep the pain inside of me. I want to fill that fire, I want my players to feel that fire, and I want to feel that pain the whole season so that when we arrive at the end of the season, that pain goes away, and we feel proud about what we’ve done this season,” Estévez said.

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Jumping from second-to-last place in their conference to the playoff spots seems like a massive challenge for FCD, but Estévez prefers to stay calm to get the job done.

“We have to go game by game, we know what this league is like in the sense that if you win two or three games, you get back into the mix of being in the playoffs,” said Estevez. “We shouldn’t think beyond our game in Toronto because there are still many games left to play.”

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Estévez, who is in his third year as FC Dallas coach, said the most important lesson he has learned in the first nine games of the season was to appreciate what the team did in the previous two seasons, in which it qualified for the playoffs.

“We have to value what we were able to do in the past two seasons because, at the end of the day, this is more difficult than it seems,” Estévez said.

Saturday’s game will represent something special for FC Dallas midfielder Liam Fraser, who signed as a Toronto FC Homegrown in 2018.

“I have a lot of friends and family who are into the game, but for us, this is a business trip,” said Fraser, who wants to help FCD win its first away game of the year.

“To win in Toronto, we must be very intense and creative. We will have to take advantage of our opportunities to score,” said Fraser.

In its last four games, FC Dallas has only conceded one goal, and its defense has regained its strength from previous seasons.

Omar Gonzáles, FCD central back, has been an important piece for the team to remain the third-best defense in its conference with only 12 goals conceded.

“We need to continue with what we have done well and keep everyone focused on playing very well defensively,” said González, who played for two seasons for Toronto FC (2019-2020).

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A win in Toronto would represent another big step for FC Dallas, reaffirming that things are about to get better.

“We embrace the pain we have been through this season because great teams are built through rough times,” Estévez said.

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