FC Dallas: Paxton Pomykal ready to breakout

Paxton Pomykal is a 20-year-old attacking midfielder waiting in the FC Dallas wings. And now, with former academy director Luchi Gonzalez at the helm, he is ready to break out.

The 2019 MLS season is near. Within a month, the regular rigours of the yearly campaign will be underway. And that provides us with the perfect opportunity to spin forward and forecast the coming term.

It also provides players with the chance to prove themselves and establish a greater role in their respective teams. A breakout, if you will. And there might not be a player in a better position than FC Dallas midfielder Paxton Pomykal to take advantage.

Speaking at MLS media day earlier in the offseason, Pomykal stated:

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"“The past two seasons I haven’t really broken into the team as much as I would have liked to. To expect to play more this year– I can’t expect anything, obviously, nothing’s given, I have to perform — but I’m really looking forward to it.”"

The departure of Maxi Urruti opens up Pomykal’s favoured number 10 position, FC Dallas has stripped their midfield roster a little to open up opportunities for their academy prospects, of which Pomykal is one of the key stars, and his talent dictates that he will be handed opportunities to start.

But more than all of that, after Oscar Pareja’s exit at the end of 2018, the new FC Dallas head coach is the perfect man to lead Pomykal and his youth counterparts into a new era.

Luchi Gonzalez was the academy director in Dallas since 2012. He has been a key part of the FC Dallas youth movement over the past few years, a renowned coach and proven developer of players. There is a reason that he is now the head coach. FC Dallas want to harness their academy.

And Pomykal himself was extremely positive about Gonzalez’s appointment:

"“The easiest part of about it is that I already know Luchi. That helped a lot. It’s hard for a young kid to get a completely new coach that you don’t know. You spend two years trying to impress the same guy, then he leaves and you have to do the same thing for the next guy. It’s nice that Luchi already knows me, knows all the young guys and the FC Dallas family and philosophy.”"

This all sets Pomykal up perfectly for the season to come. He has slowly moved his way into the first-team squad, starting roles in the midfield, either centrally or out wide, have opened up, and he is coming off an excellent u-20 CONCACAF Championship in which he played a key role in the USYNT winning all eight of their matches.

If there is a player in MLS that is ready to break out, then it is Paxton Pomykal. Now, he just needs to put it all together.