Petar Musa's Brace Lifts FC Dallas Past Toronto FC 3-2 in Season Opener

Petar Musa has a World Cup summer to chase, and he started the pitch early. The FC Dallas striker scored in the ninth minute, then headed home the winner in the 74th, and Dallas held off Toronto FC 3-2 on Saturday night at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.

Logan Farrington added a goal and an assist, while Djordje Mihailovic and Derrick Etienne Jr. scored for a Toronto side that twice dragged itself level and twice watched Dallas pull away again. It was a wild, open season opener in front of 11,004 fans, and the most ruthless team on the night won it: Dallas put three shots on target and scored with all three.

Trading Punches Early

It took nine minutes for the first blow. Osaze Urhoghide, starting in the middle of the Dallas back three, set up Musa for a left-footed finish from the center of the box, and Dallas led 1-0.

Toronto answered six minutes later with the prettiest move of the half. Jonathan Osorio slid a through ball into Mihailovic, who finished with his right foot into the bottom right corner. Toronto said it was Osorio's club-leading 58th assist for the Reds and Mihailovic's 45th MLS regular-season goal, his fifth for Toronto since joining in August 2025. It was also, per the club, the first goal of Toronto's 20th MLS season.

The game stayed loose. Malik Henry was booked in the 21st minute, Osorio sent a left-footed shot over in the 29th, and Michael Collodi saved from Etienne in the 37th. A minute later Farrington, after cutting back past two defenders according to the AP, beat Luka Gavran with a left-footed shot from the center of the box into the bottom right corner. 2-1 Dallas.

Dallas nearly stretched the lead before the break. Musa and Herman Johansson had shots blocked, and Kaick missed just to the left in the 44th. Musa picked up a yellow card in the fourth minute of stoppage time, and Kobe Franklin fired just over from distance off a corner as the half ended.

Toronto's Bench Changes the Game

Robin Fraser had to make a change he did not plan for. Alonso Coello was injured early in the second half, and in the 54th minute Raheem Edwards replaced him while Dániel Sallói came on for Henry. Sallói, making what Toronto called his club debut, sent his first look high and wide a minute later. His second mattered.

In the 67th minute, Collodi saved a José Cifuentes shot from distance, then parried a powerful Sallói strike. Etienne was waiting, and according to the AP and the club he put away the rebound. 2-2, and the visitors had pulled even once more. The club said it was Etienne's first goal of the 2026 season.

The Turning Point: Dallas Answer Right Back

Dallas did not sulk. Farrington had two shots blocked in the 69th and 70th, and the hosts sent on Louicius Deedson and Patrickson Delgado in the 72nd. Deedson fired wide almost immediately. Then, in the 74th, Farrington swung in a cross and Musa met it in the middle of the box, glancing a header into the bottom left corner. 3-2.

That was the swing. Toronto had wrestled the momentum away with the equalizer, and Dallas snatched it back before the visitors could build on it.

Fraser threw on Emilio Aristizábal, making his Toronto and MLS debut, for Franklin in the 77th, and Henry Wingo for Etienne in the 78th. Toronto said Aristizábal became the first Colombian-born player to represent the club. The Reds won five corners from the 83rd minute on, including one deep in the seven minutes of stoppage time, but Wingo, Cifuentes and Mihailovic all had shots blocked and Edwards, booked in the fourth minute of added time, sent the last chance just over the bar.

Star Watch

Petar Musa finished with two goals on four shots, two of them on target. MLS said Musa tied Blas Perez for the fourth-most goals scored in FC Dallas history, with 36. The league also noted he scored 19 goals across all competitions in 2025, finished sixth in last year's Golden Boot race, and returned to Croatia's national team last fall for World Cup qualifiers.

"Because of FC Dallas, I was back with the national team last year, and at the moment my full focus is on the club," Musa said.

Logan Farrington was the perfect strike partner: one goal, one assist, four shots. His cross for the winner was the best ball Dallas played all night.

Djordje Mihailovic scored and was still firing away in stoppage time, and Jonathan Osorio supplied the through ball that made it happen.

Michael Collodi made three saves for Dallas, and each mattered. At the other end, Toronto's Gavran did not record a save, a number that says more about Dallas' finishing than about him.

Stats That Matter

• Finishing: Dallas 3 shots on target, 3 goals. Toronto 5 shots on target, 2 goals.
• Possession: Toronto 55.4 percent, Dallas 44.6 percent.
• Shots: Dallas 13, Toronto 12.
• Corners: Toronto 7, Dallas 3.
• Clearances: Dallas 45, Toronto 23.

What It Means

Dallas opens at 1-0-0 with 3 points and hosts Nashville SC on Feb. 28. "It's the home opener, in front of our fans, and I hope they enjoyed the performance," Musa said. "We want to give that love back because they support us. Now we move on to the next game."

Toronto starts at 0-0-1 with 0 points. The club said its record in MLS season openers moves to 5W-10L-5T. There were positives, including the debuts of Walker Zimmerman, a two-time MLS Defender of the Year per Toronto, as well as Sallói and Aristizábal, plus a bench that changed the game. Toronto visits the Vancouver Whitecaps at BC Place on Saturday, Feb. 28.

Closing Take

Toronto out-passed Dallas, out-possessed Dallas and won more corners. None of it counted for much against a striker who made two of his four shots count. MLS framed the night as Musa boosting his World Cup case, and if Croatia's coaches were watching, they saw the most valuable skill in the sport: the ability to make the opponent's good night irrelevant.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes as reported by mlssoccer.com; additional reporting from the AP via ESPN and Toronto FC (torontofc.ca).