Keys against FC Dallas: Put on a Show and Finish the Job

October 1, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – Colorado Rapids News Release

When the Colorado Rapids take to the pitch Saturday afternoon at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, they will know it’s the final home game of the 2022 season. And they will know they play the final two games and then the season will be finished. After the Los Angeles Galaxy dispatched the San Jose Earthquakes in Palo Alto last weekend, the Rapids were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

The 2022 season will be remembered for Diego Rubio chasing records and just about every instance of bad luck and injuries going against the Rapids. The odd bounce of the ball and the unpredictable maladies proved too much to overcome for a team that fought every time out.

Now the task turns to finishing the season the right way and creating positives heading into the winter before we fly somewhere warm and start all over again before you know it for 2023. The final home match of 2022 will be about carrying out the job the way professionals do and acknowledging the faithful fans once more.

After all, the last time the Rapids missed the playoffs and closed out their home campaign with a match against FC Dallas, the Rapids won 3-0 and then made the playoffs the following two seasons. There’s no reason this once again can’t be a springboard, rejuvenation, reset for something better. It’s sad to see a season come to a close, but the next one is lurking on the calendar just waiting for us to get to it.

Indeed the Rapids close out 2022 against that familiar Western Conference foe, FC Dallas. The MLS originals sit third in the Western Conference with 50 points. A win against Colorado would assure them a top four finish which guarantees them a home game in the first round of the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs. They could theoretically climb as high as second and fall out of the top four to sixth or seventh.

They’ve had a comeback year of their own. In 2021, they finished 11th in the West with 33 points. They hired Nico Estevez to replace Luchi Gonzalez and found a little form along the way. They’re led by American international, Jesus Ferreira who has 18 goals in 31 appearances, and who is presumably going to be on the plane to Qatar with the US Men’s National Team.

So here’s what I’ll be watching for in the final home game of 2022.

Put on a Show

The Rapids have one final opportunity to give everybody in the stands a treat, to show them dynamic soccer and go out with three points at home. Rapids fans have stuck…