Ricardo Pepi exploded for a historic hat trick to spark FC Dallas to an emphatic 4-0 victory over the LA Galaxy at Toyota Stadium on Saturday night.
Pepi continued his breakout campaign by striking for a trio of lethal finishes in the 27th, 44th and 50th minutes before Jader Obrian added a late insurance tally, delivering Luchi Gonzalez's group all three points. He's now the youngest player in MLS history to record a hat trick, beating a record that was previously held by now-Austin FC forward Kekuta Manneh.
Pepi got FC Dallas on top just shy of the half-hour mark, keeping his stellar run of recent form going with an opener that marked his fourth straight home match with a goal. The 18-year-old forward snuck behind the LA backline and controlled a through ball from Andres Ricaurte, making no mistake with the finish past Galaxy goalkeeper Jonathan Bond.
He then found the brace right on the stroke of halftime, nodding down a Jesus Ferreira corner kick and burying another well-taken strike to the far post, doubling FC Dallas' lead heading into intermission.
Pepi wasted little time completing the hat trick, striking for a third shortly after the restart. It was another class finish from the homegrown product, as he took a feed from Szabolcs Schon and tucked away a perfectly-placed shot into the lower right corner.
FC Dallas cruised from there, although Pepi very nearly added a fourth in the 72nd minute after getting free on a breakaway against Bond and lacing a shot that the LA backstop denied with a diving save. The hosts would get their fourth, however, as Obrian got on a breakaway of his own in the 88th minute and converted his look underneath Bond to seal the 4-0 scoreline.
Goals
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: FC Dallas came into the game at the bottom of the Western Conference table, badly needing a three-point result, both to start collecting as many points as possible and to restore some confidence. Thanks to Pepi, they got a big win that they'll hope is the start of a surge up the table and back into the playoff mix. It's a tough defeat on the other side for a Galaxy team that was admittedly depleted, playing without the injured Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez and a handful of international absences. Nonetheless, they would have hoped for a more competitive showing against a struggling opponent.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: All three of Pepi's goals were clinical, but the degree of difficulty on this third one was much higher than he made it look.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: This match was all about Pepi, who continues to be a major bright spot this season for FC Dallas. He's up to eight goals through his team's first 14 games, and also made some MLS history with this explosive effort.
Next Up
- DAL: Saturday, July 31 at Sporting Kansas City | 8:30 pm ET (MLS LIVE on ESPN+)
- LA: Friday, July 30 vs. Portland Timbers | 10 pm ET (ESPN, ESPN Deportes)
