5 September 10 - 16, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Month XX–Month XX, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER | CONTENTS | UNFAIR PARK | SCHUTZE | FEATURE | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | MOVIES | DISH | MUSIC | CLASSIFIED | has only delivered on the promise with which he arrived, and then some. He’s performed so well that there were more than a few rumors that his time in Texas would come to an end shortly after his World Cup appearance, with some big clubs in Europe reportedly expressing interest in his services, but the summer transfer win- dow closed on Sept. 1 with Musa still lacing up his boots for the local club. Since MLS matches started back up, Musa has picked up where he left off prior to the World Cup. He is currently tied with none other than Lionel Messi for the league lead in goals with 18, which also ties him for the FC Dallas all-time single-season record, one in which he tied last year. With many matches left, Musa is set to demolish the long-standing mark. We chatted with the goal-scorer for a few minutes after that sweaty weekday practice, but Musa, who speaks English, Croatian and Portuguese, is still a man of few words. It’s reasonable to suggest that the cliché that he lets his playing on the field do the talking for him applies. But since scoring goals is how Musa has made his way through this world, let’s take a look at some of the biggest goals he’s scored across the world throughout his career to map out how he’s arrived at this triumphant, exciting point in time. Sept. 12, 2021: Porto, Portugal Musa started his senior club career in Croa- tia’s fifth division in 2015. By 2021, however, he was gaining interest from teams in other countries. In 2021, his team, Slavia Prague in the Czech Republic, loaned him to Portu- guese club Boavista. Musa made the most of his time in Porto, scoring the first of his 11 goals in 27 appear- ances for Boavista in his third match. And it wasn’t just any goal - scored in the second minute of stoppage time. Musa’s strike saved the game for his squad, evening the score at 1-1 just moments before the whistle blew. April 19, 2023: Milan, Italy The UEFA Champions League is arguably the most prestigious non-World Cup soccer tournament in the world. Scoring in a piv- otal Champions League match is the pinna- cle for many soccer careers. In the 2023 quarterfinals, Musa came on late and laced a dramatic goal to tie the match at 3-3, again, well into stoppage time. In this case, the late goal didn’t send Ben- fica through to the next round, since Italian power Inter Milan had scored more goals in aggregate over the course of the two-match set, but any goal against Inter Milan, in the Champions League quarterfinals, is a semi- nal moment and it showcased the sort of clutch, skillful finishing that Musa has be- come known for. June 19, 2024: Frisco, Texas Musa wasted no time getting off to a roaring start after joining FC Dallas in 2024. He scored in his debut and added a few more goals as that spring turned into summer. It was the June home match against Minnesota when The Moose first really showed home fans what kind of magic he’s capable of. Musa delivered the franchise’s first-ever hat trick by a European player, leading his club to a 5-3 win. It wasn’t just that he net- ted the scores in a rout. His second and third goals answered Minnesota’s goals that had drawn the score even in each case. Halfway through his first season, Musa displayed just why the team had paid more money than ever before to bring him here. In his three seasons with FC Dallas, Musa told us he’s grown to love living in North Texas, even with the intense heat. He said it’s become home for him thanks to his parents moving here to be near him and his wife and young kids, who were born here. He added that he appreciates the passion that FC Dal- las supporters show, but he didn’t mind ad- mitting that it’s nice to lead a quieter life than big soccer stars in Europe do, or how some of the Cowboys players do, too. Nov. 14, 2025: Faroe Islands In order to score a goal in the World Cup, your team must qualify for the World Cup. Musa scored in Croatia’s qualifying match against Faroe Islands, which sit about halfway between Scotland and Iceland, but as you’ve surely deciphered by now, the goal wasn’t just any ol’ mark on the scoreboard. When Musa knocked home a low cross into the net in the 57th minute, it was not only his first-ever goal for his country’s se- nior squad, but it also put his team ahead af- ter they had surprisingly fallen behind in the first half to the tiny island nation. Croatia added another goal later to seal the victory, a win that punched the country’s ticket to the 2026 World Cup in the U.S. Even for a strong soccer nation such as Croatia, reaching the World Cup isn’t a given (see: the U.S. in 2018 and Italy in 2018, 2022 and 2026). Musa’s first goal for his country’s na- tional team was big, but it hardly compares to his second goal in international play a few months later. June 17, 2026: Arlington, Texas Leading up to the World Cup, more than a few folks online weren’t sure Musa would be a major part of Croatia’s plan in America. When pundits and fans made their predic- tions on who would start for the team when they played England in the group stage at AT&T Stadium, Musa’s name often wasn’t included, for example. But Musa was in fact announced in the starting 11 just before the match. He would be on the same pitch as legends such as Luka Modric and Harry Kane, and competing against fellow young guns including Jude Bellingham. He told us that he had been told he would start against England well before the big day, but he kept it quiet. Things didn’t stay quiet for long. With Croatia trail- ing England 2-1 as halftime neared, Musa beelined toward the goal and effortlessly flicked the ball, headed to him by Ivan Perisic, into the net past keeper Jordan Pick- ford with a gorgeous first touch. As teammates surrounded him, Musa was overcome with emotion, seemingly fighting back tears. In the biggest match of his life, he had tied things up for his team against a powerful opponent with the world watching, but more specifically, wth his hometown club team’s fans watching. Over the course of 104 2026 World Cup matches, only six players took the pitch for their country in the city they play for a club team. And of the 308 goals scored in the World Cup, only three of them were scored by players in front of their home- town fans. Musa’s goal put him in elite company. Only Mexico’s excellent midfielder Luis Romo and the aforementioned Messi (him again?!), managed to thrill both their nation and their hometown club fans at the same time during the World Cup with a goal. He may not say much, and after a long practice, he was only getting hotter and surely ready to get inside, but Musa couldn’t help but smile when asked about that magi- cal moment when yet another goal marked a pivotal moment in his soccer life. “I was already happy to just represent my country on the biggest stage, then it was even better to do that in Dallas in the first [World Cup] game,” he said. “But to score the goal like that, it was so special, and it’s a moment I’ll always remind my- self of. So far, it’s my favorite goal of my whole career.” In the biggest match of his life, he had tied things up for his team against a powerful opponent with the world watching, but more specifically, wth his hometown club team’s fans watching. Petar Musa has battled Lionel Messi all season for the 2026 lead in MLS goals. Photo by Mike Brooks
