'Now, it's to find the balance': Assessing a test against one of the West's (surprisingly) best teams
Nico Estévez sees signs that his offense is awakening, even though the defense might be faltering. CJ Fodrey assures us that there's work going on behind the scenes.
One of the stories of the 2026 MLS season, eight matches in, has been the resurgence of the San Jose Earthquakes. Following a 2025 season in which they missed the playoffs, they're currently second in the West with a 7W 1L 0D record matching Vancouver's, and they're fresh off a statement-making 4-1 win over LAFC in Los Angeles.
It's in part reviving head coach Bruce Arena's reputation after a tumultuous stint in New England, and Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez — like Arena, part of the U.S. Men's National Team coaching fraternity — sang his praises Monday ahead of their Wednesday night tilt.
"He's showing throughout the his time in MLS, how good a coach he is, how good a manager. He is probably the best manager in MLS history so far ... everything that he's achieved, you know, [with the] Galaxy and New England and now in what is he doing with San Jose."
Estévez also — and you can judge if this is subtle or not — used Arena as an example of why you should stick with a coach even after one bad season, as 2025 certainly was for the Quakes.
"To reiterate, like, they didn't have a good season last year, and they didn't change anything on the leadership, and then they give confidence to him, and he responds ... with nice movements," Estévez said. "And sometimes, when you are not doing well, is when you more learn about your team. You learn about the decisions that you have to to make and then take the right movements there. And I think that we are doing that. I think we are going towards that direction."
Estévez then wheeled out some stats showing that the team had league-leading offensive numbers in their most recent match against Toronto FC, illustrating that they are able to create in open play, after a start suggesting that the squad was set piece-dependent.
"Last year, we had a great defense, but we we weren't able to produce a lot of goals, and people criticize that," he added. "And then this year, we are scoring more goals, are able to create more chances from different ways, set pieces, transition and now big plays, and we're criticized because we are conceding goals. Now, it's to find the balance between the aggression that we're putting on the opponent's half and how we have to defend those moments better, and [these are] the things that we have to address."
No magic solutions
After Saturday's match, Christian Ramírez shared that Estévez is putting the team through late-game defending drills at the end of practice to simulate the game state when players are tired but have to keep the ball out of the net.
Estévez indicated on Monday that different matches are presenting different defending challenges, even though the end result has consistently been wins transformed into draws due to goals let in at the end of contests.
"Against Minnesota, we had the approach to go after the game, even that we were winning by one," he recalled. "We kept going forward, kept trying to score the third goal, and we got caught in one of those transition moments, and we got scored against. Against R[eal] S[alt] L[ake], we were more set defending our box, and we got score[d on].
"It's not like a magic solution on that approach, on going high to press or being in a low block," he added. "I think we we have to find a good balance, depending on the situation. And then it's something that we have to to talk [about; it's] something that we have planned talking [about on Tuesday]. We have split the group in two meetings, and we'll talk about this situation and other situations that we need to be better [in]. But for me, it's more also the attention that players that in the box have a good reference point, not letting them to to contact first the ball, just being strong ourselves on contacting the ball and and being more strong and solid in those moments."
While acknowledging some of the challenges that Verde have had in being at only 0.88 points per game nearly a quarter of the way through the season, he still sees a path to arriving into a better situation by season's end.
"There are enough points to take control of our destiny and and this is what we want to be," he said. "We want to be in a position that we control what is happening."
The Tender Three
The good news on the injury front is that I've come up with a new nickname to group the injured players together. The bad news is I still have to resort to a nickname.
The Frail Four has given way to the Tender Three, as Verde's injury situation has gotten marginally better, yet with two inked-in starters awaiting their first match action of the season, and another trying to get back on the pitch after going the full 90 in the team's only win of the season so far, March 1 against D.C. United, and only playing 58 minutes since.
Brandon Vázquez has a doctor's appointment either late this week or early next week, and Estévez says that the designated player's return to the field is contigent on that.
Owen Wolff is close to activation for Saturday's match against Houston, though as Estévez put it, "He's making good, good steps. He's feeling better now. It's about his fitness and some details in his recovery. He is doing really, really well, to be honest, right now. But we've been waiting so much that we don't want to rush on that decision and make sure that the player is in a perfect situation."
Dani Pereira, struggling with the hamstring injury that he's carried through much of the seven-match winless streak Verde currently owns, could also be back in the lineup by Saturday after resuming individual training on Monday.
However, Estévez visibly bristled when one of my colleagues asked a question suggesting the squad might be injury-prone this season.
"If you see the list of San Diego, you see the list of Chicago, you see the list of even Real Salt Lake and other teams ... they have have much, much problems than us," he said. "But the reality is that two key players couldn't start the season with us."
A fiery metaphor
CJ Fodrey, the player tapped for media availability on Monday, understands the test that San Jose brings. Historically, the teams have faced each other 12 teams since the inaugural season, drawing seven of those, including last year's Open Cup match that Austin ultimately won in penalty kicks.
The Quakes have the edge in non-draw games three to two, including a 2-1 win in San Jose the last time the teams faced each other, but interestingly enough, each team has a 4-3 win against the other, to show the flavor of the chaos they deliver for each other (and for their fans).
"Obviously, right now, they're a good team," Fodrey granted. "And, yeah, you do mention the Open Cup last year, how it ended in penalties, which ultimately got us to where we were in the Open Cup last year. So yeah, I definitely think there's going to be a bit of a revenge you could say they're looking for, but also they're the hottest team in the league right now, so we're looking to hopefully put out that fire."
But he also expressed confidence in what he and his team can do.
"We've had good performances," he assessed. "We've shown we can play against top teams in this league. It's just about being consistent throughout the 90 and turning those good performances into results."
And he also gave fans incentive for staying up late on a Wednesday night to see the West's 13th-place team visit the conference's 2nd-place team.
"There's a lot of work going on behind the scenes," he revealed. "I think these moments kind of define teams, whether we split or we all come together ... these are the moments where we need our fans. We need everyone together in the club. We need everyone to just have each other's backs. Because these are the moments that define a team toward the end of the year. We might look at these moments and say, 'This is what made us a great team at the end of the year, or this might be the moments where we're split.'"
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez maintains that there's a fine line between winning and losing. Of course, teams can also draw, which Verde have now done in three of the last four league matches.
Austin FC grabbed the opening goal on Saturday afternoon and then went up 3-2 late in the match. But there was one more goal in the match, and it was Toronto's.
As a fan of a Western Conference team, you may not know a lot about Toronto FC. We asked someone dedicated to covering the Canadian team some questions.
One of the stories of the 2026 MLS season, eight matches in, has been the resurgence of the San Jose Earthquakes. Following a 2025 season in which they missed the playoffs, they're currently second in the West with a 7W 1L 0D record matching Vancouver's, and they're fresh off a statement-making 4-1 win over LAFC in Los Angeles.
It's in part reviving head coach Bruce Arena's reputation after a tumultuous stint in New England, and Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez — like Arena, part of the U.S. Men's National Team coaching fraternity — sang his praises Monday ahead of their Wednesday night tilt.
"He's showing throughout the his time in MLS, how good a coach he is, how good a manager. He is probably the best manager in MLS history so far ... everything that he's achieved, you know, [with the] Galaxy and New England and now in what is he doing with San Jose."
Estévez also — and you can judge if this is subtle or not — used Arena as an example of why you should stick with a coach even after one bad season, as 2025 certainly was for the Quakes.
"To reiterate, like, they didn't have a good season last year, and they didn't change anything on the leadership, and then they give confidence to him, and he responds ... with nice movements," Estévez said. "And sometimes, when you are not doing well, is when you more learn about your team. You learn about the decisions that you have to to make and then take the right movements there. And I think that we are doing that. I think we are going towards that direction."
Estévez then wheeled out some stats showing that the team had league-leading offensive numbers in their most recent match against Toronto FC, illustrating that they are able to create in open play, after a start suggesting that the squad was set piece-dependent.
"Last year, we had a great defense, but we we weren't able to produce a lot of goals, and people criticize that," he added. "And then this year, we are scoring more goals, are able to create more chances from different ways, set pieces, transition and now big plays, and we're criticized because we are conceding goals. Now, it's to find the balance between the aggression that we're putting on the opponent's half and how we have to defend those moments better, and [these are] the things that we have to address."
No magic solutions
After Saturday's match, Christian Ramírez shared that Estévez is putting the team through late-game defending drills at the end of practice to simulate the game state when players are tired but have to keep the ball out of the net.
Estévez indicated on Monday that different matches are presenting different defending challenges, even though the end result has consistently been wins transformed into draws due to goals let in at the end of contests.
"Against Minnesota, we had the approach to go after the game, even that we were winning by one," he recalled. "We kept going forward, kept trying to score the third goal, and we got caught in one of those transition moments, and we got scored against. Against R[eal] S[alt] L[ake], we were more set defending our box, and we got score[d on].
"It's not like a magic solution on that approach, on going high to press or being in a low block," he added. "I think we we have to find a good balance, depending on the situation. And then it's something that we have to to talk [about; it's] something that we have planned talking [about on Tuesday]. We have split the group in two meetings, and we'll talk about this situation and other situations that we need to be better [in]. But for me, it's more also the attention that players that in the box have a good reference point, not letting them to to contact first the ball, just being strong ourselves on contacting the ball and and being more strong and solid in those moments."
While acknowledging some of the challenges that Verde have had in being at only 0.88 points per game nearly a quarter of the way through the season, he still sees a path to arriving into a better situation by season's end.
"There are enough points to take control of our destiny and and this is what we want to be," he said. "We want to be in a position that we control what is happening."
The Tender Three
The good news on the injury front is that I've come up with a new nickname to group the injured players together. The bad news is I still have to resort to a nickname.
The Frail Four has given way to the Tender Three, as Verde's injury situation has gotten marginally better, yet with two inked-in starters awaiting their first match action of the season, and another trying to get back on the pitch after going the full 90 in the team's only win of the season so far, March 1 against D.C. United, and only playing 58 minutes since.
Brandon Vázquez has a doctor's appointment either late this week or early next week, and Estévez says that the designated player's return to the field is contigent on that.
Owen Wolff is close to activation for Saturday's match against Houston, though as Estévez put it, "He's making good, good steps. He's feeling better now. It's about his fitness and some details in his recovery. He is doing really, really well, to be honest, right now. But we've been waiting so much that we don't want to rush on that decision and make sure that the player is in a perfect situation."
Dani Pereira, struggling with the hamstring injury that he's carried through much of the seven-match winless streak Verde currently owns, could also be back in the lineup by Saturday after resuming individual training on Monday.
However, Estévez visibly bristled when one of my colleagues asked a question suggesting the squad might be injury-prone this season.
"If you see the list of San Diego, you see the list of Chicago, you see the list of even Real Salt Lake and other teams ... they have have much, much problems than us," he said. "But the reality is that two key players couldn't start the season with us."
A fiery metaphor
CJ Fodrey, the player tapped for media availability on Monday, understands the test that San Jose brings. Historically, the teams have faced each other 12 teams since the inaugural season, drawing seven of those, including last year's Open Cup match that Austin ultimately won in penalty kicks.
The Quakes have the edge in non-draw games three to two, including a 2-1 win in San Jose the last time the teams faced each other, but interestingly enough, each team has a 4-3 win against the other, to show the flavor of the chaos they deliver for each other (and for their fans).
"Obviously, right now, they're a good team," Fodrey granted. "And, yeah, you do mention the Open Cup last year, how it ended in penalties, which ultimately got us to where we were in the Open Cup last year. So yeah, I definitely think there's going to be a bit of a revenge you could say they're looking for, but also they're the hottest team in the league right now, so we're looking to hopefully put out that fire."
But he also expressed confidence in what he and his team can do.
"We've had good performances," he assessed. "We've shown we can play against top teams in this league. It's just about being consistent throughout the 90 and turning those good performances into results."
And he also gave fans incentive for staying up late on a Wednesday night to see the West's 13th-place team visit the conference's 2nd-place team.
"There's a lot of work going on behind the scenes," he revealed. "I think these moments kind of define teams, whether we split or we all come together ... these are the moments where we need our fans. We need everyone together in the club. We need everyone to just have each other's backs. Because these are the moments that define a team toward the end of the year. We might look at these moments and say, 'This is what made us a great team at the end of the year, or this might be the moments where we're split.'"
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
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