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Sounders-FC Dallas Preview

Apr 21, 2010 - 4:25 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Seattle (2-1-1) at FC Dallas (0-1-2), 8:00 p.m. EDT

With two games in four days, the Seattle Sounders are hoping it's still early enough in the season for them to handle the physical load.

The Sounders begin a grueling road trip Thursday night when they meet FC Dallas, the lone winless team in the Western Conference.

Seattle (2-1-1) will travel to face Toronto FC on Sunday after this matchup. The Sounders have four players who have logged every minute of the first four matches, and playmaker Fredy Montero has played 343 of a possible 360 minutes.

"It'll be tough for sure," midfielder Brad Evans said. "That's three games in seven or eight days. Rarely does it happen, but we're lucky that it's early on in the season. The legs are fresh, and everybody's feeling fresh."

Coach Sigi Schmid expects to change his lineup over the two games.

"We'll get through with it, it's the way the schedule was dealt to us and we'll face it," Schmid said. "We might have to mix and match the lineup a little bit, make sure that guys are fresh for the games that we need to play."

One player who could get his first start during this trip is midfielder Mike Fucito, who has played 19 minutes in two matches. Fucito entered in the 85th minute Saturday and scored in the second minute of stoppage time in a 1-0 home victory over Kansas City.

"Mike Fucito is a kid who works hard in training, and he battles," Schmid said.

Kasey Keller recorded his second shutout at home and will get a chance to go up against reigning MLS Golden Boot winner Jeff Cunningham on Thursday.

Cunningham scored a career-high 17 goals in 2009 - surpassing his total over his previous two seasons - and has one this season. The forward, though, has not looked sharp through three games.

"I think he's a complicated person to figure out," coach Schellas Hyndman told Dallas' official website. "He's been around so long and he's a proven goal scorer. You look at him and think it must be confidence. Maybe he's thinking too much instead of trying to be natural."

Dallas (0-1-2) opened with two draws before losing 2-1 at New York on Saturday. Dax McCarty scored the first goal of the match in the 10th minute before Dallas conceded two after halftime.

"The opportunities are there," Hyndman said. "We're playing attractive soccer, attacking with great numbers but the final shot, the final pass, it just doesn't seem to connect right now. We kept on breaking out and had more and more chances."

Cunningham failed to score in both meetings with Seattle last season. Dallas was eliminated from playoff contention on the final day of the season with a 2-1 road loss as Evans scored the winner in the 84th minute.