Who benefits from Ricardo Pepi’s departure from Dallas?

After the dust of Ricardo Pepi’s transfer to Bundesliga side Augsburg FC begins to settle, the open spot he leaves at FC Dallas raises a couple of important questions: who benefits most from his departure to European soccer? And who will fill his place as top striker for the team?

Both questions have the same answer: Jesús Ferreira.

Who is Jesús Ferreira?

Jesús Ferreira was born in Santa Marta, Colombia, on 2000’s Christmas Eve.  The Colombian-American striker is also a homegrown talent out of FC Dallas Academy, and after having a breakout season in 2019, where he started on 29 out of 34 possible games for the Bulls, he played for a total of 2,452 minutes, while scoring eight goals and assisting on five occasions.

But for the 2020 MLS Season, he saw both his performance and his playing time diminished. With the arrival of Franco Jara to the Texan team, and the apparition of Ricardo Pepi on his first season as a professional soccer player, Ferreira played only on 19 games, but starting only in 13 of them.

During 2020 he was only able to score one goal and assisting another time, while playing for under a thousand minutes. Ferreira had the roughest of the patches until that point on his career, but he was able to comeback for the next season.

Making a comeback for the 2021 Season

During the 2021 MLS Season, Ferreira had an outstanding performance, just as if the previous season never happened. He established himself as Ricardo Pepi’s companion in the Dallas offense, having an MVP-worthy season, or at least Young Player of the Season, although ultimately he didn’t win any of them.

Though he won back the confidence he didn’t have in 2020, something that help him earn a call for the USMNT squad. His second game of the year defending the Stars and Stripes was against Trinidad y Tobago in January, on a game the US won by a comfortable 7-0 score.

Ferreira was the best player on that game, as he was named Man of the Match after scoring two times and assisting for three more goals. That game alone gave him the boost he needed to face the MLS season with the same stamina he played with during 2019.

His role also changed a lot from the previous season, as he became more invested in the playmaking for the team, not just as the finisher, a role he had trouble filling in 2020. He even mentioned he felt more comfortable no his new role and that it helped him to start producing again.

Alongside Pepi, the 20-year-old offensive midfielder was in the pitch 28 games, starting in 27 of them. He wasn’t able to play during the first seven games of the season due to a shoulder injury, but that didn’t stop him from playing 2,250 minutes while scoring eight goals and assisting eight times.

Unfortunately for him, FC Dallas didn’t make it to the playoffs.

But now, without Pepi in the team, Ferreira will have a clear path to become Dallas top scorer, and with the arrival of Nico Estevez and his coaching staff to the sideline, Ferreira’s skills can only grow.

Following his dad’s steps

His father, David Ferreira, was also a FC Dallas player. During the 2010 MLS Season, David Ferreira was named season MVP after a year where he scored eight goals and assisted 13 times.

He first joined FC Dallas out from Brazilian side Atlético Paranaense for the 2009 MLS Season, and after a 2-year loan, Dallas bought David Ferreira’s economic rights for good. He played for the Bulls three more seasons before becoming a free agent and moving back to Colombia, where he played for Independiente Santa Fe.

David played for a few more teams in Colombia, until he retired with Union Magdalena at the age of 39 at the end of the 2018/2019 season, the same year his son debuted as a professional player.

During his stint with FC Dallas, he played a total of 120 games for the Texan team. On his five-season tenure he scored 26 goals and assisted on 34 occasions. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to help Dallas win a MLS Championship, something Jesús, his son, will try to achieve on the upcoming MLS Season.