MLS: Blas Perez scores twice in FC Dallas win over Vancouver
Sunday 14 September 2014 10:38, UK
FC Dallas improved their hopes of a place in the MLS playoffs with a 2-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday.
Blas Perez scored both goals for the Texans, who have not made it to the post-season since 2011.
Perez fooled Whitecaps keeper David Ousted with a shot, or more likely a mishit cross, from out wide on 20 minutes but the Canadian side equalised on 67 when Erik Hurtado ran on to a Mauro Rosales pass and fired past Raul Fernandez,
However Panama international Perez won it for Dallas with a 77th minute shot through a crowd of legs in the box and they are now just a point behind third placed Salt Lake in the Western Conference with six games remaining in the regular season.
The only other winners on Saturday were the New England Revolution, who beat the bottom-placed Montreal Impact 2-1 at Gillette Stadium to move five points clear in the race for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Callum Mallace put Montreal in front in the 13th minute but New England scored twice in 12 minutes after going behind with goals from Kelyn Rowe and Lee Nguyen sealing the points.
The other four games ended in draws, with Thierry Henry again on the scoresheet in the New York Red Bulls' 2-2 draw with the Philadelphia Union.
Henry added to Peguy Luyindula's penalty to give the Red Bulls a 2-0 lead but Pedro Ribeiro pulled a goal back and Sebastien Le Toux earned Philadelphia a point with an injury-time penalty.
There was another late equaliser in Chicago, where Dwayne De Rosario earned Toronto FC a point after Lovel Palmer had put the Fire in front in the 11th minute.
Diego Valeri had a goal and an assist for the Portland Timbers, but that was only enough to earn them a 2-2 draw with the Colorado Rapids.
Valeri opened the scoring but Dillon Powers and Deshorn Brown scored for the Rapids, only for Valeri to set up Gaston Fernandez for the equaliser with 14 minutes left.
And the points were also shared in Houston, where the Dynamo and Columbus Crew played out a topsy-turvy 2-2 draw.
Aaron Schoenfeld and Giles Barnes gave the home side a 2-0 lead but goals from Wil Trapp and Ethan Finley in a nine minute spell after half-time gave the Crew a point.
