The positive takeaway from Austin FC’s 1-1 draw against LAFC, of course, is that it wasn't the drubbing at home that many predicted, and it did stop a three-match losing streak and kept the team in a playoff position.
However, it was a draw rather than a win that Verde was just minutes from sealing, thanks to Kei Kamara scoring his first goal of the MLS season and his 145th career goal, putting him tied with Landon Donovan for second-most goals in MLS history, only behind Chris Wondolowski.
And the playoff position Verde’s now in is 9th, meaning were the playoffs to end today, the team would be heading to Houston for a play-in game for the right to play Real Salt Lake.
Whether you consider the match two points dropped or one point gained can serve as a general test to your glass half full or half empty gauge. But it also serves to assess what kind of performance you thought Verde put in. Were they good to jump out to an early lead and largely neutralize LAFC’s scoring potential, coming close to stopping an in-league scoring streak now at 14 matches?
Or is it largely moot after letting Kei Kamara score a 90th-minute goal? (The LAFC narrative on the game, conveyed by LAFC specialist Justin Ruderman for the MLS site, is pointing as a milestone-making moment for a veteran player on Juneteenth to rescue a road point and keep themselves in the top-of-the-West race.)
By the way, it can be both things.
