Goal! Zimmerman scores and F.C Dallas are through to the conference finals! D

Zimmerman scores and Dallas are through...

Rose scores. Dallas 3 - 2 Seattle.

Rose needs to score here...

Akindele scores. Dallas 3-1 up.

Gonzalez saves it again! He is 20 years old. 2-1 Dallas.

Hollingshead scores. Dallas lead 2-1.

Gonzalez saves it! It remains 1-1.

Diaz scores. 1-1.

Dempsey scores. Seattle 1-0 ahead.

Here we go.....Dempsey to go first.

Oh yeah....

Some interesting stats from the goalkeepers...

I agree wholeheartedly, Liam. Thanks for staying up!

120 mins: Peep!!! That’s it. We’re going to a shootout.

118 mins: Dempsey with a clear dive in the box as he looks for a penalty. The ref doesn’t buy it and Clint walks away in a sulking, petulant manner.

117 mins: Dallas have seriously done everything in their power to try and finish this game off but Seattle’s resilience have kept them in it. This has been an incredible match.

116 mins: Frei with a fantastic stop! Dallas keep pushing for that winner.

115 mins: There are five minutes left and you still feel there could be another goal in this one. Dallas seem the most likely to make that happen but at this point, assuming anything is dangerous.

111 mins: A dangerous ball and Akindele just misses the goal. Corner for Dallas and Frei frantically clears and as Seattle break on the counter, they cause a dangerous back pass to Gonzalez almost costing F.C. Goal kick.

108 mins: Diaz with a free-kick just outside of the box, it falls to Perez, but he knocks it wide.

107 mins: Dallas with the majority of possession as Seattle holding on. Some tired legs are beginning to surface.

105 mins: Peep! And we’re back on. It’s 3-3 on aggregate.

105 mins: End of first half of ET

101 mins: Akindele’s swerving shot goes too far wide and it’s a goal-kick for Seattle. I sense a stalemate here, but what do I know.

97 mins: Once again, Barrios on the right hand side with a low cross and Perez connects but unfortunately it goes over the bar. Barrios has been fantastic, putting in cross after cross from the right wing.

95 mins: Diaz with a beautiful pass with the outside of his foot but it falls to Frei. Seattle having to withstand heavy pressure. Dallas’s youth a definite advantage.

92 mins: The energy remains as Dallas push through for a winning goal. Castillo’s cross into the box is too high and Seattle clears. The crowd have been incredible though out the evening.

90 mins: Peep! We’re back and it’s free soccer...

Just a reminder to everyone. There is no away goal tie-breaker in extra time. So if they score 1-1, 2-2, 3-3 or what have you, we’re going to pens.

90 + 5: End of regular time. We’re going into extra time.

Yup. This was 0-0 until the 84th.

90 mins +3: Wow. Barrios once again with a low cross from the right hand side and it nearly creeps in as players scramble to score. It eventually falls to Frei. This is amazing.

87 mins: Hollingshead is on the ground for Dallas as he collides with Mears. He is on the sideline. Dallas playing with 1o men.

Make that, 84 mins. Apologies.

82 mins: Double sub for Dallas. Akindele for Ulloa. Zimmerman for Lloyd.

Agreed.

80 mins: Drama, drama. Mears body checks Hedges and Dallas scream for a penalty but the ref says no. A long shot goes over the bar and we’re back to Seattle with a little more possession. Lalas is freaking out.

78 mins: Things are really heating up now. It is all Dallas as they get a free-kick from 30 yards out as Martins commits a foul.

75 mins: Wow. Barrios again. He does a nice one-two with Diaz, sprints down the right wing and crosses again only for Castillo to smash it in. The Colombian misses and its still nothing.

74 mins: Barrios has become the target man. Amazing work on the right wing, crosses it for someone to capitalize but it gets cleared again by Seattle. They are 15 minutes away from making it to the conference finals. Roldan coming on for Valdez for the Sounders.

70 mins: Unbelievable stuff! Diaz with a fantastic chance to shoot on the half-volley but it gets blocked. Meanwhile, throughout the action, Marshall was on the ground after a collision. The block on Diaz, however, was crucial.

67 mins: Lloyd with another long throw into the box, gets cleared but then gets picked up by Barrios who shoots it over the bar. Remember, Dallas need to win. They need a goal.

65 mins: Dallas are getting closer and closer. Acosta fighting in Seattle’s box to cross it in but it’s not enough as Seattle clears. Something’s gotta give soon...

62 mins: Perez on for Texeira.

60 mins: Diaz’s free kick goes of the wall and Dallas get a corner. It gets cleared by Dempsey but F.C keep on pressing. Seattle have now become the counter-attacking team.

58 mins: Free kick to Dallas just outside the box...

57 mins: Martins with a cross into the box but it goes over everyone. Seattle are now dealing with pressure every time they get the ball in midfield.

Here is that chance:

53 mins: What a save by Frei! Castillo once again with a first time shot in the box, 10 yards out. Best chance of the game.

50 mins: And just like I thought. A mistake is going to cost someone....Mears misses the ball and Castillo with an amazing opportunity to score but straight at the keeper.

49 mins: Lloyd with a long throw into the box gets awkwardly cleared by Dallas. The boys from Texas kicking-off the second half the same way they did with the first.

45 mins: Peep! And we’re back.

Very nice, Justin. Beautifully put. For Dallas I was thinking more Brazil’s Internacional or Benfica. But very good!

“Do the Seattle Sounders sport modern soccer’s finest strip (American translation=uniform) or what? It’s combines the sexy luminous green of 90s Nigeria with a brand logo of a hipster product that isn’t for just for old or wealthy people: X-BOX rather than AON, EMIRATES, CHEVY, etc. …very West Coast cool indeed. Dallas, on the other hand, usually look like an English rugby team on tour with those hoops, although the all-red tonight has a nice touch of Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest or Bayern Munich about it. “

Justin Kavanagh.

Ok, I lied. Last one. Here’s the block from Marshall’s shot.

One more thing. Here’s Gonzalez’s save from the deflected shot. Kid’s 20 years old. Unbelievable.

So what do you guys think so far? It’s been a fiery encounter....the last 10 minutes being the most entertaining. A big factor in the second half for me will be fatigue. As the game develops, tired legs will make more mistakes and all it takes is an opportunity to capitalize. Castillo and Martins both look most likely to be heroes here. I’ll be back in the second half.

It wouldn’t be soccer if we didn’t hear from Alex Morgan. Preach, Alex. Preach!

45 mins +1: And that’s the half. As we stand Seattle are going through but something tells me there are goals in this one. Seattle lead 2-1 on aggregate.

44 mins: My word! What a chance by Seattle. A deflected shot is heading for goal but Gonzales dips it over the bar. Seattle takes a corner but it gets cleared away. 1 minute of stoppage time.

And here’s that band...

42 mins: What a chance by Barrios! He breaks through Seattle’s center backs but the shot ends up in Frei’s hands. There are goals in this one...I can feel it.

The Dallas fans:

41 mins: A long Seattle free-kick falls to Marshall but gets blocked. A feisty encounter so far but not much else in terms of creativity.

37 mins: I want to take this moment to salute both sets of fans. This is an incredible atmosphere!

35 mins: A fantastic opportunity as Mears crosses the ball across Dallas’s goal but ends up finding no one. Half his squad in his ear.

34 mins: a few minutes of end-to-end stuff. Dempsey’s shot in the box gets blocked and Dallas counter at rapid pace. It ends up with nothing as both teams cancel each out in the middle. Seattle doing their best to stop Diaz’s creativity.

30 mins: We have reached the half-hour mark and aside from Castillo’s shot we really haven’t seen much from either team. Seattle’s corner gets cleared by Diaz.

27 mins: Strong makes a good point. Dallas HAVE to score tonight. No matter what. At some point they have to gamble. Obviously, it’s too early to do that now, but the fact remains. The host team need a goal.

25 mins: Dallas with the majority of possession as Seattle has to defend in numbers. Perhaps I was too quick with the counter-attacking Dallas comment.

20 mins: Castillo is feeling it. He drives to Seattle’s box, virtually unopposed and takes a long shot and it skims over the bar. Awful job by Seattle’s d not to close him down. He is too dangerous to just allow him to do that.

19 mins: Side note. This is a fantastic advertisement for MLS. The crowd are providing a great soundtrack to the game. A few fouls are being knocked around as Dempsey gets his heel stepped on. John Strong reminding us Clint is a local boy, having grown up close from here.

Good boy, indeed.

15 mins: Dallas with their third corner and Diaz with a dangerous cross gets cleared by Seattle and a quick counter gets cleared up by Dallas. Mears fouls Castillo it’s a free kick to Dallas. It eventually gets picked up by Frei. Tasty stuff.

12 mins: Seattle with a compact defensive shape. Rose and co. in the midfield making sure the mess gets picked up in the middle. The key is to nullify Diaz.

11 mins: Congrats to Columbus Crew who advance to the Eastern Conference finals. They will face the New York Red Bulls.

9 mins: Dallas using their familiar counter-attacking style as they take over the ball from a Seattle attack. A long shot by Castillo goes into row z. The game slowly taking shape.

5 mins: The game already has a pacey and aggressive start. Dempsey already being spoken to by the main official. Not much in terms of rhythm as both feeling each other out.

1 min: Peep! And we’re off! Seattle in their “sexy” lime green jerseys, Dallas in their home red. It’s a crisp and clear night in Dallas.

The players are on the field in a huddle and we are moments away! Get ready folks!

Tonight we have the pleasure of listening to John Strong and Alexi Lalas. the latter just called Seattle “sexy” twice.

I feel you, Brian.

So I guess your wish was granted, Jo-Ryan. FS1 and MLS holding on kick-off right now, waiting to see what happens with Montreal and Columbus. 2nd half of extra time in that one.

We are minutes away from kick-off! Here are some stats to get you going:

Someone has no love for east coast fans...

And here’s a reminder from today: New York Red Bulls reach their second consecutive Eastern Conference final as they beat D.C United 2-0 on aggregate and as I write this we are heading into extra time with Columbus and Montreal as they are tied at 3-3. Unbelievable stuff.

Remember, guys. Feel free to email or tweet. luis.miguel.echegaray@theguardian.com or @lmechegaray. Looking forward to hear your thoughts. For me, the key is to control the midfield. As I said earlier in the preamble, Seattle need to make sure Diaz doesn’t get into a rhythm. If allowed, his vision will take over. Dempsey and Martins know that this is a great opportunity to finally make it to “the promised land”....I’m quoting Lalas, here. It’s the veterans against the young bucks. Should be a great one.

Oh, and this is pretty cool:

The teams come out to warm up. Here come the boys from the land of grunge.

Well played. Well played indeed.

Here are the line-ups:

Hello everyone and welcome to the second leg of this Western Conference semi-final between FC Dallas and Seattle Sounders. Last week was an exciting encounter as Seattle came away with a 2-1 win thanks to a fantastic free-kick by Clint Dempsey in the dying minutes of the match. Dallas’s away goal, however, is extremely significant and a 1-0 win tonight would see them go through to the conference final. The other factor that favors tonight’s hosts is their home record as they ended the season 13-2-2 and they are tough to break in front of their own fans.

But this is the playoffs, folks and stats can only take you so far. As our very own Graham Parker noted, this game is too close to call and this will be really decided by guile and focus. Seattle’s veteran players know too well that there won’t be many more chances to win it all so they have to go all out and as Dempsey found out he didn’t make the USMNT team for next week’s qualifiers, this could be redemption city. Dallas’s young squad need to focus and hope Mauro Diaz can lead the way. The young Argentine is a joy to watch.

This should be a good one. Stay tuned for line-ups!