You can catch the best players in the league all in one place tonight when they join forces to take on English Premier League’s Arsenal FC in the MLS All-Star game in San Jose, California.
FC Dallas fans have two extra reasons to watch the big game: Mauro Diaz and Kellyn Acosta, who both made the All-Star squad for the first time. Diaz was one of the two Commissioner’s picks and Acosta became the first FCD Academy homegrown to receive All-Star honors after he was named as a replacement for Sporting KC’s Matt Besler. Both players are in the middle of stellar seasons and if they see playing time on the pitch tonight, they'll be sure to keep that Arsenal defense pretty busy.
Though the All-Star game dates all the way back to 1996, it wasn’t until 2005 that they started tackling top European teams in the annual summer showcase. The MLS side has won the game for the past two consecutive years – including a 2-1 win over Premier League's Tottenham Hotspur last year and a 2-1 win against Bundesliga's Bayern Munich in 2014 – and they currently hold a 7-4 record against their various European opponents.
Arsenal is considered one of England’s powerhouse clubs, and with players like Olivier Giroud, Mesut Ozil, and Petr Cech, it’s no wonder they finished last season in second place in the Premier League. However, several of their stars will be absent from tonight’s match for various reasons, but you can check out their full preliminary roster here.
Diaz and Acosta will join top MLS players like Kyle Beckerman, Giovani dos Santos, Kaká, Clint Dempsey, and more as the All-Stars aim for a win over the English giants.
The action starts tonight at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN, UniMas, TSN and RDS.