FRISCO — FC Dallas celebrated after a 2-1 victory Sunday against Sporting Kansas City, its goal accomplished, a home playoff game clinched. But after a few moments, forward Jesus Ferreira sat on the field in frustration.
He finished the year as the team's top scorer and matched FCD's all-time mark for goals in a regular season with 18.
"Obviously it was a great season for myself personally and as a team. I was upset because there were goals I set for myself during the season. One was to break the record for most goals in a season," Ferreira told The Striker. "I wasn’t able to do it, and everyone knew that was something I wanted to achieve. Everybody understood why I was upset, and I’m grateful I have teammates that know what I’m feeling."
It's a harsh standard. Ferreira started the season aiming for a combined 20 goals+assists. With 18 goals and six assists, he easily surpassed that number and started to readjust his goals.
It ended with perhaps the greatest season in terms of scoring in club history, with Ferreira never converting from the penalty spot and notching more assists than Kenny Cooper's three in 2008. Jason Kreis' season with 18 goals and 15 assists in 1999 may never be matched.
No matter if Ferreira topped those club legends, he's certainly put himself among their ranks with this season's body of work, even if he was denied No. 19 on several occasions against SKC on Sunday.
Few around the team are worried about Ferreira's mentality, as he once again sets a new goal: Lifting MLS Cup with FCD.
"He’s great. He trained really well today," FCD manager Nico Estévez said in a news conference Wednesday. "He knows what his goal is, and I completely understand. He did everything in that game to help the team. His game was outstanding. He just missed the last thing to get the record. I understand he was disappointed by that.
"After that night, the next day we came to train, he already was switched on. It’s probably a great, great challenge for him right now as a player who has scored goals but also as a leader inside the group to help the team to go as far as we can."
— 3rd Degree (@3rdDegreeNet) October 10, 2022
Ferreira said the support he got from Estévez and his teammates in that moment of frustration reminded him how much he wants to win silverware with this team, singling out Paul Arriola as a player who came to him after the match and said he wished he could've done more to help him break the mark.
"I’m grateful I have teammates who care as much as I do to have goals achieved," he said. "That wasn’t possible, but now we turn the page and we have collective goals to reach. That’s what we’re focused on now."
A historic season, and he's not done yet.https://t.co/P81A5DTl9y | #DTID pic.twitter.com/cROYlkGa1a
— x-FC Dallas (@FCDallas) October 13, 2022
With his place in the club's record books already secure, Ferreira now hopes to help the 2022 FCD team do something no FCD team ever has done and win MLS' biggest prize. That can't happen, of course, if FCD doesn't take care of business Monday against Minnesota United in the first round.
"We have our main goal, which is win MLS Cup, but the first goal is to win the first round here," he said. "There’s other goals in there. What makes us win is runs in behind, the way we play, but the goal is winning in the first round."
If Ferreira can reach another individual goal and help the team reach its lofty aspirations as well, there will be plenty for him to celebrate.