Dallas fans are hoping for a little more to cheer about in 2010. (Getty Images)

After a couple days away from this series we are back, today with my hometown team FC Dallas. So far we’ve looked at Chicago, Colorado, Chivas, Columbus, DC and Philadelphia in this pre-season look in on how each club is looking as they gear towards the new season.

FC Dallas comes into pre-season camp looking pretty good after a solid finish to the 2009 campaign. Schellas Hyndman has made a couple moves and could be prepared to do a couple more before the season starts. Right now there are a few trailists on the pre-season roster but that doesn’t always mean they’ll be there on opening day.

Let’s take a look in now and see what Dallas had done and what else they need to take care of before the new season.

Keepers:

Who they have: Dario Sala and Josh Lambo.

Notes: Right away you can see the depth is an issue in this department. Word has it they are after another 30-something keeper named Ora Nikolov. Honestly I don’t like them going after another old keeper, they already have one in Sala. Honestly I want to see more Lambo and his development here. If they can get a solid back up to Sala they will be fine but you have to figure that they’ll need someone for at least a half dozen games or so because we know Sala is bound to pick up an injury at some point in the season, he always does.

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Defense:

Who they have: Daniel Hernández, Ugo Ihemelu, Jair Benítez, Heath Pearce, Aziz Ansah, George John, Anthony Wallace, and Kyle Davies.

Notes: Honestly this is probably the best bunch of defenders Dallas has seen in a number of years. Defense has always been some sort of an issue with this club in the past but the solid collection of young and veteran players in the back that should be solid enough for the season.

More than likely from the way things seem at camp right now Pearce and Hernandez will be in the midfield rather than in the back four. Bringing Ansah in this winter helped make the move for Pearce possible and one that I am very curious to see.

Dallas probably could still go after another center back as right now their options are fairly young with John, Davies, and the slightly older Ihemelu. Right now one of those open spots could go to Steve Purdy who is in camp and fighting for a roster spot. I’d honestly rather see another option there but at this point if it isn’t a foreign trialist or someone on loan then the pickings are slim.

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Midfield:

Who they have: Dax McCarty, Bruno Guarda, Eric Avila, Marvin Chávez, Zach Loyd, and Bryan Leyva.

Notes: On paper this is a very young midfield. Chavez is the oldest at 26. Still with guys like Pearce and Hernandez likely to be in the midfield this season it balances things out a good bit. Hyndman loves players who play multiple positions so that will also explain why there are only a few midfielders actually listed here. Forwards like Atiba Harris and David Ferreira also can play in the midfield too.

For me this group is the make or break part of this team. With no Dave van den Burgh this year (or at least it is looking that way for now) it seems like McCarty will be called to do a lot of the grunt work in creating offense while Harris, Pearce, and Hernandez will be called to hold things on the wings and in defense. This time last year I was on the camp that wanted McCarty out of Dallas but after his play last year I fully want him there. He’s turning into a very solid player and one that is highly underrated.

This group could still use some depth though going forward, particularly on the wings and I’m not entirely sure if I like Hernandez as the defensive midfielder going into the start of the year yet.

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Forwards:

Who they have: Jeff Cunningham, Andrew Wiedeman, Brek Shea, Atiba Harris, David Ferreira, and Peri Marosevic.

Notes: If Cunningham is as productive as he was in the second half of last year then there is really no need to make a lot of notes on this group. Honestly this group, even as young as it is right now is probably one of the more underrated forward groups in the league. Ferreira turned out to be one heck of a signing last year for Dallas once he (finally) got use to the style of play in MLS.

I do hope to see more of Shea and Marosevic this year, and to a lesser extent Wiedeman. Their development is so vital to the future of this club and I do worry some that they may not be getting enough playing time right now. Hopefully that thought will go away this year with more time on the field.

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Overall:

One thing is clear right now, the types of players Hyndman is going after (other than old SMU players) are versatile. He wants guys that can play all over the field to cover any depth issues that the club may have. Not a bad move on his part because it does create a lot of competition between the players for certain spots.

Right now though there are a couple areas that need patched up like the center back and on the wings in the midfield. Both are more in terms of depth right now than actually finding new starters. It will be curious to see if they do find a trade partner for van den Burgh’s player rights or if that will just fizz away here before the season. Also finding a solid backup keeper will be key as well.

Dallas has a shot to be really good this year if all the pieces fall in line like they were towards the end of last year. Though another slow start could make people question Hyndman’s tactics even more. Should be fun to watch though.

Jeff Cunningham had reasons to smile late in 2009. (Getty Images)

This season was certainly a tale of two halves for FC Dallas. Things got off to the rockiest of starts that saw fans across North Texas grew more upset with the way things were being run in Frisco while the end of the year sure seemed to show things could actually be headed into the right direction for 2010.

Yes the rocky start to the season was mostly due to the club’s inability to market the team properly to the fans and let’s face it the on-field product just plain stunk. The club didn’t win their third game until the end of June.

But July brought a change, Kenny Cooper bolted town and somehow from there things picked up. It also seemed like the less General Manager Michael Hitchcock was in charge of moves the better the team got. Schellas Hyndman started trading around for his kind of guys. He sent Marcelo Saragosa packing for Atiba Harris. Later on he moved Drew Moor for Ugo Ihemelu. And at the same time he also picked up Heath Pearce on allocation and Kyle Davies from Real Salt Lake the defense started to take shape.

What was even more important than those moves were ones that happened before the season and even one from the season before started to actually cash in. Dave van den Burgh who came over from New York started producing just as he was expected. David Ferreira gave fans a reason to like the partnership with Brazilian club CAP once again as he started to link up with a rejuvenated Jeff Cunningham.

Yes Cunningham certainly enjoyed the ladder half of 2009. It was amazing to see him score 16 of his league leading 17 goals after Kenny Cooper left town for Germany.

While the club failed to reach the post season on the final day of the season with the loss to Seattle the club did provide reason to the fans in Dallas that this club has the ability to really turn things around for 2010.

What Went Right In 2009:
Once Hyndman got his guys in the lineup his defense started to actually defense Dario Sala’s goal. They went from giving up a couple goals a game to shutting teams out when it mattered most. Thanks to Cunningham in the second half of the season the team found it’s offense again. Hyndman started to prove at the end of the year that he may be worth it as a coach after all.

What Went Wrong In 2009:
Despite the nice finish to the season 2009 was still a bit of a disaster for this club. It wasn’t just the on the field issues early on with this club it was the front office digging a deeper hole with the fans of this club, especially the really loyal fan base that has been with the team from the beginning. Decisions not to market the club or improve existing issues within the club left a lot of people this year in Dallas with a bad taste in their mouths. But the decision to let Michael Hitchcock go after the season was certainly a good step for the club. But again it won’t be enough unless the owners start caring a little more about this club and the city it’s in.

What’s Next:
For this club coming up will be trimming the fat of this club. Pablo Richetti has already been shown the door and a trade will most likely come once the window that kind of thing opens again after MLS Cup. Look for the Andre Rocha loan to end and he be sent back to Brazil as well as a few other cuts that made no sense to make in the first place (Daniel Torres, Steve Purdy, etc.). From there I believe the club is looking to re-sign Dax McCarty. At the end of the day this club just needs to continue to build on those solid young players they have and add one or two veteran players to fill the gaps. I really believe this club is a player or two away from really, and I mean really making a run for things in 2010.

The Rapids also pick up a second-round pick and allocation money in the deal.

Interesting deal from a Dallas stand point. Ihemelu is a little more physical than Moor and probably brings a little more speed to the backline. But was he worth a second-round pick and allocation money? That part I question a little bit.

Plus, Ihemelu is a former SMU player under Schellas Hyndman. It also looks like Hyndman is going to start clearing out more players in the coming weeks that don’t fit his system. I expect more deals to be made.

Colorado adds a quality defender to their defense as they look to make the playoffs. Moor should fit nicely in their defense.

In terms of salaries, both were making around the same, Ihemelu with $140,000 and Moor with $132,000 with bonuses adding up to a little over $149,000; which may explain for the allocation money being sent to Colorado.