Apparently, we can’t have nice, normal games anymore.
A little more than 43 minutes into Austin FC’s match against New York Red Bulls in Harrison on Wednesday night, the Red Bulls led Verde by about 60% to 40% possession—and the Red Bulls hate having the ball. They also led Austin FC 9-0 in shots at that point, even though they’re one of the least productive offensive teams in MLS.
They were also up 1-0 on Dante Vanzeir’s 7th-minute banger off a set piece — though Emiliano Rigoni was credited with the own goal for trundling in the shot. Verde players looked downtrodden and even checked out as the first half ground on.
But then Sebastian Driussi had a moment of lucidity, dinking in a shot from a corner kick, propelled his way via a Jhojan Valencia header, and Verde had hope going into halftime, tied 1-1 despite a match horribly slanted toward the home team.
That’s how it ended on Wednesday, with Austin ceding a 16-3 shot advantage, including a Jhohan Valencia off-target shot that impressively registered a 0.0 xG, contributing to a 1.1 to 0.3 xG disadvantage that somehow evened out on the scoreboard in the end.
While it wasn’t a win — Verde’s now winless in eight matches, last tasting victory more than two months ago — the draw did keep playoff hopes flickering, though a post-match revelation might have snuffed that out again even before their next action arrives.
