Simon Becher scored a 16th-minute goal to provide the difference between the two teams. Offense, in the absence of key attackers, continues to be a concern.
Through the magic of YouTube, Austin FC fans who didn't make the trip to Coachella got to watch Verde resume its preseason journey.
But it wasn't exactly a riveting watch.
The offensively challenged Austin FC, still missing key attackers, mustered little in the way of chances and shots en route to a 1-0 loss to St. Louis City SC on Saturday in Indio, Calif. for the Coachella Valley Invitational's opening match.
The team started out with Brad Stuver in goal, and then with a back line of Guilherme Biro, Jon Gallagher, Oleksandr Svatok, and Brendan Hines-Ike, and then what appeared to be a midfield three of Dani Pereira, Besard Šabović, and Ervin Torres, and then Joseph Rosales, CJ Fodrey, and Jayden Nelson along the front line.
Nelson engineered the first true moment of excitement for Verde in the 13th minute, getting free in the final third on a breakaway to set up Gallagher for a shot that he scuffed into St. Louis goalkeeper Roman Bürki's path.
In the 16th minute, though, Simon Becher scored the opener for the Purina Gang, turning a high press and a botched Pereira pass into an opportunity. Becher was able to work past Svatok for a relatively easy finish.
St. Louis nearly made it two in the 26th minute, but Svatok was able to step in front of the developing play and deny Becher a run-in on goal.
Ilie Sánchez, Nicolás Dubersarsky, and Mateja Đorđević all came in at the half to spell Šabović, Pereira, and Svatok.
Biro had a 50th-minute header over the bar on a Joseph Rosales corner kick for a welcome chance, but then a minute later, Đorđević mismanaged St. Louis traffic and Jeong Sang-bin got off a shot on goal that Stuver was able to kick save away.
Then, in the 55th minute, Becher slipped past the defense and forced Stuver into another kick save.
Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez made a five-player sub at the hour mark, getting Jorge Alastuey, Jon Bell, Žan Kolmanič, Robert Taylor, and Riley Thomas into the mix, with Nelson, Hines-Ike, Torres, Rosales, and Biro coming out.
Vlad Dănciuțiu came in as a 75th-minute sub, as did Mo Badawiya.
Kolmanič could have been red-carded for a clumsy, punching takedown of Conrad Wallem late in the match, but escaped with a yellow.
Best Verde moment (that wasn’t a goal)
Nelson's 12th-minute break toward goal and would-be assist was very encouraging. He's quite speedy.
Worst Verde moment (that wasn't a goal allowed)
The long yawing moments of no chances between minute 12 and minute 50 were fairly excruciating, as were many of the moments after that.
One thing you might have missed
The play-by-play announcer does not know that the second "g" in Gallagher is silent. He did even worse with Guilherme Biro's name, but we're used to that.
One nerdy tidbit
The Gallagher shot in the 12th minute was Austin's only first-half shot and its only shot on target in the match.
Where this fits into the preseason's narrative
Verde has now played 180 minutes against MLS competition in the preseason, and have been outscored 3-0, looking very anemic in the attacking half.
A question we have that we would have asked had there been a press conference
Being eager to see what Myrto Uzuni and Facundo Torres will bring this year — especially with Uzuni reportedly being partway out the door yesterday before the deal to move him on could be completed — wondering about their availability in the upcoming matches. (We're only two weeks out from the start of the season and the team's two biggest goal scoring threats to start 2026, and the top chance creator from last season, have yet to play a minute this preseason.)
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.
Is Jorge Alastuey first-team material? Is Joseph Rosales a winger? Is Facundo Torres a 10? These are three questions that Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez seeks to answer in the next 20 days.
If you like watching Austin FC take shots and score goals, this was not the game for you. But it's still preseason, and key offensive players are still missing.
Facundo Torres says he's joined a good team he wants to make better and will play whenever his coach tells him to. Yes, that ticks a lot of Boy Scout boxes.
Through the magic of YouTube, Austin FC fans who didn't make the trip to Coachella got to watch Verde resume its preseason journey.
But it wasn't exactly a riveting watch.
The offensively challenged Austin FC, still missing key attackers, mustered little in the way of chances and shots en route to a 1-0 loss to St. Louis City SC on Saturday in Indio, Calif. for the Coachella Valley Invitational's opening match.
The team started out with Brad Stuver in goal, and then with a back line of Guilherme Biro, Jon Gallagher, Oleksandr Svatok, and Brendan Hines-Ike, and then what appeared to be a midfield three of Dani Pereira, Besard Šabović, and Ervin Torres, and then Joseph Rosales, CJ Fodrey, and Jayden Nelson along the front line.
Nelson engineered the first true moment of excitement for Verde in the 13th minute, getting free in the final third on a breakaway to set up Gallagher for a shot that he scuffed into St. Louis goalkeeper Roman Bürki's path.
In the 16th minute, though, Simon Becher scored the opener for the Purina Gang, turning a high press and a botched Pereira pass into an opportunity. Becher was able to work past Svatok for a relatively easy finish.
St. Louis nearly made it two in the 26th minute, but Svatok was able to step in front of the developing play and deny Becher a run-in on goal.
Ilie Sánchez, Nicolás Dubersarsky, and Mateja Đorđević all came in at the half to spell Šabović, Pereira, and Svatok.
Biro had a 50th-minute header over the bar on a Joseph Rosales corner kick for a welcome chance, but then a minute later, Đorđević mismanaged St. Louis traffic and Jeong Sang-bin got off a shot on goal that Stuver was able to kick save away.
Then, in the 55th minute, Becher slipped past the defense and forced Stuver into another kick save.
Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez made a five-player sub at the hour mark, getting Jorge Alastuey, Jon Bell, Žan Kolmanič, Robert Taylor, and Riley Thomas into the mix, with Nelson, Hines-Ike, Torres, Rosales, and Biro coming out.
Vlad Dănciuțiu came in as a 75th-minute sub, as did Mo Badawiya.
Kolmanič could have been red-carded for a clumsy, punching takedown of Conrad Wallem late in the match, but escaped with a yellow.
Best Verde moment (that wasn’t a goal)
Nelson's 12th-minute break toward goal and would-be assist was very encouraging. He's quite speedy.
Worst Verde moment (that wasn't a goal allowed)
The long yawing moments of no chances between minute 12 and minute 50 were fairly excruciating, as were many of the moments after that.
One thing you might have missed
The play-by-play announcer does not know that the second "g" in Gallagher is silent. He did even worse with Guilherme Biro's name, but we're used to that.
One nerdy tidbit
The Gallagher shot in the 12th minute was Austin's only first-half shot and its only shot on target in the match.
Where this fits into the preseason's narrative
Verde has now played 180 minutes against MLS competition in the preseason, and have been outscored 3-0, looking very anemic in the attacking half.
A question we have that we would have asked had there been a press conference
Being eager to see what Myrto Uzuni and Facundo Torres will bring this year — especially with Uzuni reportedly being partway out the door yesterday before the deal to move him on could be completed — wondering about their availability in the upcoming matches. (We're only two weeks out from the start of the season and the team's two biggest goal scoring threats to start 2026, and the top chance creator from last season, have yet to play a minute this preseason.)
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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