Four losses, 12 goals: We analyze film on each one, as we've done before, painfully, to figure out the whys and hows

Toward the end of the 2023 season, I set out on a masochistic exercise trying to explain why Austin FC had let in 43 goals in 27 matches ... by watching all of them and classifying who was at fault.

If you remember, or even if you didn't, this was inspired by something similar that my old Striker colleague Chris Bils did back in 2022, which in turn was, as I said the first time I did this, "inspired by a comment Austin FC head coach Josh Wolff made in the midst of the team’s defensive struggles during part of last season, where he said the team reviewed all the goals scored against them the past 10 games."

Now it's a new coach and a newly constituted team – one that only gave up three goals in its first seven 2025 matches, but has lost by an aggregate 12-2 scoreline in the last four losses (and, thanks to a 1-0 win over the Galaxy in there, has been outscored 12-3 in the most recent five-match MLS stretch that's seen them go 1-4-0).

A reminder on the four game state categories we're using when the goalmaking starts:

• Set piece
• Team is in defensive posture
• Transition
• WPIOOTBGW (When playing it out of the back goes wrong)

And, of course, if there's a penalty kick, we'll look at what led to the PK.

Let's dig in, with a really horrendous match to start us off. (Remember, in soccer, home team is listed first in a scoreline, regardless of who wins.)

April 12: Vancouver Whitecaps FC 5, Austin FC 1

This is the match in which our perception shifted from "Austin FC is a top-notch defensive team" to "it's probably still a good defensive team that had a bad night, but now we're worried." (It's shifted further since then.)

Also, you can no longer pull out individual goals on the MLS site, so we're going to just send you to the link to pull up all the goal highlight videos yourself.

The ocular evidence: https://www.mlssoccer.com/competitions/mls-regular-season/2025/matches/vanvsatx-04-12-2025/

Brian White, 13'

Culprit: Julio Cascante

Game state: Transition

Verde's Brian White-induced nightmare starts with this transition play in which Tristan Blackmon launches a pass up the right flank to Édier Ocampo, who moves up front preparing to cross to a hard-charging Daniel Rios or to White. As the play develops, Cascante is near Rios and Brendan Hines-Ike is near White. As Ocampo sends the ball into Rios, Cascante mysteriously peels away from Rios, possibly trying to intercept the ball, and then Rios puts a near, possibly unintentional but also possibly brilliant heel flick pass that drops right in front of White.

(In this screen grab, Rios has received the pass and is about to heel flick it; Hines-Ike is between him and White, and Cascante is to Rios' left. Cascante is closer to Rios as Ocampo's pass comes in, and it looks like perhaps Cascante was trying to play the ball rather than the man, which I'm assessing was the wrong choice here.)

(I'm going to show images from just two of these five goals. You'll get the idea.)

While Hines-Ike got turned around on the play, it's because he was positioning himself in front of Rios, expecting a more conventional pass, and then wheeled around to see that White had found enough space to get off a shot. He scored and did a terrible dance, and though we didn't quite know it at the time, the rout was on.

Brian White, 38'

Culprit: Team (but also probably Jon Gallagher)

Game state: In defensive posture (more or less)

This goal happens with Verde settling into position as the ball gets worked to Emmanuel Sabbi about 25 yards from goal. He's facing up against Cascante, but there are three other defenders in the vicinity, and White gets in behind Cascante. Gallagher's closest and probably bears the most blame on this, but Hines-Ike or even Owen Wolff could have been more direct in trying to disrupt the play. Wolff actually pulls up as he reaches the 18-yard line to take in White scoring.

Emmanuel Sabbi, 47'

Culprit: Dani Pereira, Guilherme Biro

Game state: Set piece

At least Brian White doesn't score here! Pedro Vite sends in a corner kick, it bounces off Pereira's head as he's trying to defend a taller Ranko Veselinović (5'9" vs. 6'2"), and drops to Sabbi. Biro's in the vicinity, but isn't able to stop Sabbi from making it 3-0, less than two minutes after the restart.

Brian White, 59'

Culprit: Julio Cascante, Guilherme Biro

Game state: In defensive posture

Sabbi gets the ball to the end line and passes into the goalmouth. This is a classic case of "sometimes good things happen if you just get the ball in front of goal and let chaos happen." The ball ping-pongs around, and the shot before White's requires Stuver to dive to his right, rendering him temporarily out of the play. Hines-Ike astutely runs to goal, but at that point, the ball's fallen to White and neither Cascante or Biro, who are close enough to close in on him, actually do so.

White shoots, Hines-Ike attempts to head it out, and the ball smacks him in the face, deflecting behind him and over the line as he falls to the ground. Just a brutal goal for Verde fans to watch.

This is the ball right after it's left White's foot. It was good on the defenders to cover for Stuver on this, but it's asking a lot to repel a White shot from this close in and this open.

Also, everyone does deserve pizza.

Brian White, 83'

Culprit: Oleksandr Svatok (but also the referee)

Game state: Transition

This starts with J.C. Ngando trucking Pereira and winning the ball; it looks like a foul to me, but not to the ref, and the Whitecaps are off to the races. Ngando passes upfield to Ali Ahmed, Svatok's in position to deal with Ahmed but then gets turnstiled, and Ahmed leads White (running upfield to Ahmed's left) in on goal. White's able to slow-roll it past Stuver for his fourth goal of the night. It's so, so bad.

April 19: Austin FC 1, LA Galaxy 0

Hooray! It's a clean sheet! No goals against to analyze here.

The ocular evidence: https://www.mlssoccer.com/competitions/mls-regular-season/2025/matches/atxvsla-04-19-2025/

April 26: Houston Dynamo FC 2, Austin FC 0

I suppose we have to.

The ocular evidence: https://www.mlssoccer.com/competitions/mls-regular-season/2025/matches/houvsatx-04-26-2025/video

Ondřej Lingr, 61'

Culprit: Owen Wolff

Game state: Transition

This one's all on Wolff. It starts with Griffin Dorsey breaking down the right flank, and as he enters the box, a late-arriving Wolff knocks him off his feet. It looks like a penalty at first glance, but the referee doesn't blow the whistle, so Austin's free to play the ball out and recover.

Unfortunately, Wolff chooses to move the ball toward the middle of the box, sends a pass across the field, and new Dynamo designated player Ondřej Lingr gets his head on the pass to intercept it. Notice Austin's defensive positioning (or lack thereof) when the ball reaches Lingr.

As the ball makes its parabolic arc up and then back down, Lingr determines he can volley a shot as its coming down. Wolff's teammates are a bit to blame here, as he's wide open when he intercepts the ball. Two of them rush toward Lingr, but they don't arrive in time, and the contest is no longer scoreless.

It's quite possible that VAR would have sent Houston to the spot, but instead of at least having a 20% chance to stop a PK, Verde just conceded.

Ezequiel Ponce, 79'

Culprit: Team

Game state: Transition

This sequence starts with Brooklyn Raines passing forward to Amine Bassi. Besard Šabović is there to meet Bassi, but Bassi's able to get off a pass to Dorsey in open space, and the Dynamo are off and running. Verde tries to track back, but Dorsey's able to find Ponce in open space. How open? Check out this screen grab.

That puts Stuver in a terrible spot. Ponce makes it 2-0, and at that point, it's fairly clear that Austin's not going to come back.

May 3: Austin FC 0, Minnesota United 3

Like the Houston match, this isn't fun, but it's necessary.

The ocular evidence: https://www.mlssoccer.com/competitions/mls-regular-season/2025/matches/atxvsmin-05-03-2025/

Ilie Sánchez (own goal*), 22'

Culprit: Brad Stuver

Game state: In defensive posture

The Loons start this sequence from midfield, and it looks like a classic MLS possession: Offensive gets the ball to the outside and looks to work it back centrally as the defense looks to intercept or tackle to put the brakes on the threat.

But what Verde are doing on defense here is kind of baffling. Besard Šabović tries to guard Joaquín Pereyra, who executes a one-two with Anthony Markanich (guarded by Jon Gallagher) and manages to get totally free of Šabović. Gallagher and Ilie come over to help, but Pereyra's still able to get off a shot that clips Ilie on its way toward goal.

On its fairly slow-rolling, Stuver-should-have-this-handled way toward goal.

And then, it simply squirts through his legs and trundles over the line.

Stuver owned this one, and he rarely makes this kind of mistake. But this was so, so, so, so, so bad. It's credited as Ilie's own goal, but I'm putting an asterisk next to that because: no.

Anthony Markanich, 35'

Culprit: Oleksandr Svatok

Game state: Set piece

This starts with Loons goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair sending in a free kick from his own half. Stuver punches the free kick away, but only far enough away for the visitors to recycle it. Eventually, Jefferson Diaz gets in a cross to Markanich, who is able to elevate over Svatok and head the ball past Stuver.

While Stuver could have done better on both phases of the corner kick, look at the moment the ball leaves Markanich's head. It's hard to see in the picture, but do you see the blond tuft of hair to the left of the 13 on Markanich's jersey? That's Svatok's head.

I believe Svatok was possibly trying to get low to get leverage to body him and disrupt the header, but also ... both are 6'1". It's concerning to see Markanich get this much elevation, and for Svatok to get this outmatched in this situation.

Joaquín Pereyra, 90' + 1'

Culprit: Team (but primarily Žan Kolmanič)

Game state: WPIOOTBGW

This starts with Žan Kolmanič lazily gliding a pass to Brendan Hines-Ike across the Austin half of the field. Hines-Ike could have better control of it, but also had Tani Oluwaseyi bearing down on him, so it might have been better for Kolmanič to pass back to Stuver and let Stuver push the ball out to Svatok, who is playing on the right side of what's functionally a three-man back line.

Instead, Oluwaseyi wins the ball and gets off a shot, which Stuver parries away. The ball falls to Sang Bin Jeong, who attempts a shot that's then blocked by Kolmanič. But the block falls right to an open Pereyra, and you know what? It's just his night.

Here's Pereyra uncorking with the closest defender at least eight yards away.

Fortunately, there's no more scoring after this. But this loss is bad enough to where we feel compelled to record a quasi-emergency Emergency Podcast.

May 10: FC Cincinnati 2, Austin FC 1

And now, the Evander game.

The ocular evidence: https://www.mlssoccer.com/competitions/mls-regular-season/2025/matches/cinvsatx-05-10-2025/

Evander, 12'

Culprit: Besard Šabović

Game state: Transition, then in defensive posture

Yuya Kubo is trying to get past Šabović on the left flank. Šabović wins the ball and then loses it just as quickly, and it pops over to an open Evander. How open? Here's the screengrab right before he shoots.

Technically, just a 0.08 xG shot, but he's Evander.

Gerard Valenzuela, 76'

Culprit: Team

Game state: Transition

Though this should be the team in defensive posture, the switch to Lukas Engel sends Verde's defense scrambling. Engel is then able to find an open Evander, and Svatok and Wolff decide they better do something. This screengrab comes a second after the I'm-saying-unmarked Evander (from my article on Sunday) has time and space to decide what he's going to do.

Yes, they both converge on him as the ball leaves his foot, but it's clearly too late.

A second later, the chipped pass eludes Biro and is flying off Valenzuela's foot; when this ball is lofted, Valenzuela's still not in the frame, and Kolmanič lets Valenzuela run right past him to meet the pass.

Evander's just special. (And you can tell from the velocity with which this shot is launched how little a chance Stuver, or anyone you could put in goal, had to save it.)

And now, the tally

This is what we landed on for culprits and game states ... and again, four matches is a small sample size, even though we have 12 goals to assess.

Culprits

• Team: 4
• Svatok: 2
• Cascante: 1.5
• Biro, Šabović, Svatok, Wolff: 1 each
• Pereira: 0.5

Game states

• Transition: 5.5
• In defensive posture: 3.5
• Set pieces: 2
• WPIOOTBGW: 1

Right now, blame is pretty spread around, though Hines-Ike isn't directly culpable for any goals in these last four losses (though probably half-culpable for the Pereyra goal), and transition defense — which Estévez successfully addressed at his time at FC Dallas — is suffering again.

And while it's probably still too small a sample size to damn Svatok and Cascante for their contributions to the capitulation, it also underscores that center back competition could help up the game of the three first-teamers who effectively voted Leo Väisänen off Center Back Survivor Island. (The best attacking center midfielder that sporting director Rodolfo Borrell can budget for should be the other.)

Some things to watch in future matches, starting with Wednesday night in Atlanta:

• Are midfielders getting caught out in transition? And is that happening to some degree because they're trying to get numbers forward to jump start the offense
• How much are they missing Mikkel Desler? Fullbacks are technically responsible for only one of the 12 goals, but they're certainly contributing to goals allowed pinned on the team, and in the match against Cincinnati, Kolmanič would have been responsible for a WPIOOTBGW goal if Evander's 19th-minute shot have been just a few inches inside of the post it instead struck.
• Will they learn from these last four losses? Having gone numb from just watching all these goals, I can only imagine what film sessions for Austin FC have been like over the last few weeks. If there's growth to be gained from the pain and suffering from four of the last five matches, and if it can't come against an Atlanta team suffering even more dramatically than Austin is right now, it's hard to see it coming anytime soon.

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