A 0-0 draw isn't necessarily the hallmark of an offense coming alive, but for Austin FC on Saturday night, the result against LAFC showed the mettle of a still-incomplete team more thoroughly than in its previous two matches.
"We deserved better today," Verde head coach Nico Estévez said to media after the match, praising his team for "having a lot of control of the game," dominating possession early and winning the field tilt battle, while going up against one of the league's most formidable defenses based on a clean sheet string of five straight matches to start 2026. "We deserved to win this game."
He had accolades for his team's effort — in particular, one player who has been a lightning rod for criticism in much of his time playing for Austin.
"We saw Myrto Uzuni defending and tracking in counterattacks, and helping the team to win the ball ... and I think this showed the commitment that he has, with the team and with the group.
"We saw a very solid team performance, and every individual gave everything," Estévez added. "And this should be the standard of how we have to perform. And this is what I told the players: This should be our standard."
He went on to predict, based on establishing this as a baseline performance, "We're going to be really good this year."
Brendan Hines-Ike echoed his coach's messaging about the higher standard the players are seeking to hold themselves to, given their past two away performances.
