Playoff-bound Earthquakes, Dallas clash with seeding at stake

Oct 17, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; FC Dallas forward Petar Musa (9) celebrates his penalty kick goal against the Houston Dynamo FC in the second half at Shell Energy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images Two of the top teams in the West table are looking for three potentially important points Saturday night when FC Dallas host the San Jose Earthquakes. Dallas (14-7-9, 51 points) is tied for second place with St. Louis City SC but is slotted third on tiebreakers, while the Earthquakes (13-8-9, 48 points) could force a three-way tie for second if it earns the result and St. Louis loses. Dallas comes in off a 2-2 tie on Oct. 17 with Houston that kept it four points ahead of the Dynamo, who are fifth in the West. Petar Musa came up with an equalizer in the 11th minute of stoppage time, giving him a franchise-record 20 goals this year. Only Inter Miami's Lionel Messi owns more goals than Musa in 2026. The previous record was 18, set by Jason Kreis in 1999, and Musa was excited to break that mark, even though it came in a loss Oct. 10 at Charlotte. "It means a lot to me to break a record that lasted such a long amount of time," Musa said. "I'm really, really glad that I achieved it but I'm looking for more to reach an even bigger number." While Musa aims to extend his record, San Jose looks to stay unbeaten for a 10th straight match. It earned a 1-1 draw Oct. 17 with Supporters' Shield leader Nashville, allowing it to clinch its first playoff berth in three years. Preston Judd's header off an Eduard Lowen pass in the 70th minute erased Nashville's one-goal edge and ushered the Earthquakes into the postseason. Lowen's arrival from St. Louis on Aug. 29 coincided with San Jose's 3-0-6 run after a six-game winless streak. Earthquakes coach Bruce Arena said the result positions his team for a good shot at postseason success. "We can focus on the next four games and try to maintain our position in the standings or improve it," he said. "We want to finish strong and put ourselves in position to host a couple of games." Dallas won a 3-2 decision in San Jose in mid-May. Samuel Sarver scored the game-winner in the third minute of second-half stoppage time. --Field Level Media