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FCD ready to turn the page against Seattle

Aug 2, 2013 - 8:44 PM Seattle, WA (Sports Network) - FC Dallas is sure glad the month of July is over.

In four games during the month, Dallas failed to register a goal and picked up just two points from a possible 12, dropping the team down the Western Conference table into a tie for fifth place.

A trip to CenturyLink Field to face Seattle Sounders FC is not an easy game, but Dallas is simply focused on turning the page and beginning a new run of success after a two-week break from league play.

"I think it was kind of the end of a section of the season," said midfielder Andrew Jacobson about the two-week break from MLS play. "Now, we're ready for the next section. We know this is where it matters. We've played to this point, we're right in the mix, and this is where we want to be. Obviously, we want to be higher up, but we gave ourselves a chance and now we're going into the last section of the season and now we've got to turn it on."

Dallas will be hoping to snap an eight-game winless run to improve its playoff hopes, while Seattle attempts to close the four-point gap on Dallas in the race for the final playoff spot.

Seattle had offensive problems of its own during the month of July as the team netted five goals in five games and was blanked in back-to-back contests by Vancouver and San Jose.

Forward Eddie Johnson will be back from Gold Cup duty with the United States to help the Sounders attack, but the club also got a good sign in its 2-1 win over Chivas as playmaking midfielder Mauro Rosales assisted on the winning goal.

Rosales is a key component in the Seattle offensive setup, but he went eight games and over 600 minutes without scoring a goal or recording an assist prior to the Chivas match.

"Obviously he always wants to be involved in goals and assists and it's good for him to get an assist today and get off that mark," Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid said following the win. "But I thought he got us into some good positions. He laid some good balls off. He made some final passes for us today, and that was important."

The Sounders will play three of their next four games on road, where they have lost six times in 10 games, meaning that Seattle must take advantage of Saturday's match at CenturyLink.