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FC Dallas' Pareja committed to youth over experience even after postseason disappointment

FRISCO -- Once again, Oscar Pareja went with youth over experience. The latest decision came Sunday when he replaced Zach Loyd with defender six years his junior - Walker Zimmerman.

"As a player, whatever the coach says, you go by," Loyd said. "You follow the rules."

As it turned out, it seemed the lineup change backfired Sunday in the 54th minute of FC Dallas' 2-2 tie with Portland - a result that ended its season. After all, Fanendo Adi scored the match's first goal after he flung Zimmerman to the ground, spun and fired a shot past goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez.

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"I think he did a fantastic job," Pareja said of Zimmerman.

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Pareja has received praise for his stewardship of FC Dallas' youth academy, which has produced seven homegrown players on the current roster. They helped FC Dallas accumulate the most points in the Western Conference during the regular season. But did their lack of experience hurt the club in the playoffs? Pareja doesn't think so. He stuck with 20-year-old goalkeeper, Jesse Gonzalez, who replaced the veteran Dan Kennedy in the starting lineup late in the regular season. He kept the relatively green David Texeira at striker over 34-year-old Blas Perez. That continued in the playoffs.

"Just keeping in my faith and keeping these guys playing - the youngsters," Pareja said. "This is the responsibility that I assume. It's something I carry all the way and I have these veteran players like Blas and Dan and people I know can effective in certain moments. I had Blas in the plan tonight - just getting him in the second half and I thought he did a great job. But obviously my responsibility is to play the youngsters. I will keep doing it."

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Pareja remains committed to that plan even though an old guy -- Perez - was perhaps the biggest difference maker Sunday. His goal off a set piece in the 73rd minute - a header - came just after he entered the match as a substitute. He replaced Texeira, who couldn't convert a point-blank shot off a well-placed cross in the 32nd minute. The two moments juxtaposed against each other fueled second-guessing of Pareja's organizational philosophy.

After all, defender Matt Hedges said, "I think the playoffs is where the experience of the older players becomes a bigger advantage."

But midfielder Ryan Hollingshead does not think the match Sunday was referendum on Pareja's commitment to youth.

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"You can't really say that the entire season worth of work and tactics and ideas that Oscar has been implementing in our team that it's all gone," he said. "It would be a different conversation if we had gotten that goal instead of them. Everybody would have been praising Oscar and praising his bringing youth into the academy."