'We're getting what we deserve': Looking at a suddenly rosier picture for Austin FC thanks to two straight wins
As it's Father's Day, we have some dad-adjacent content that's relevant for one player who is decidedly in form and another who still needs to get there.
If you have bemoaned going through seven Austin FC matches without a win in league play during May – and I know some of you have – take another look at the form guide this morning.
That's Austin firmly in the middle of the MLS pack[[1]], with two straight wins and only one loss in their last seven, heading into an international break sitting 7th place in the West following a 2-1 win over New York Red Bulls on Saturday night.
Now, starting with a trip to Seattle in two weeks' time[[2]], Verde's next two opponents are starting Club World Cup assignments on Sunday and Monday respectively, while players from the 27 other MLS teams get nearly a full work week off to reset.
For Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez, the relatively good run of form they've arrived at from a form-guide-half-full perspective is indicative of how they've playing even though the more dismal form guide patches.
"This is a resume of the last month and a half," he observed. "I told the players, we did good things throughout this month and a half, and we didn't get rewarded. And I think the last two games, we are getting what we deserve to get throughout this month and a half. And this is sports, this is soccer, and I think there are a lot of positives in these last two games, and there are a lot of things to keep improving.
"As I always said, winning or losing, we still need to improve and to get better, but I'm really, really happy for the effort that the team played to in the good moments of soccer and then after to suffer and to get the result and to go on a small break that we have now with a positive mindset."
Estévez complimented his team for incorporating some halftime guidance, building on how the team sought to play against a traditionally high-pressing Red Bulls defense, grabbing the lead on a 51st-minute goal with lots of passes in the buildup, before Osman Bukari picked out Brandon Vázquez with an assist to cap off one of Verde's best-ever team effort goals.
That pass exemplified something that the final third/box pass chart showed: Much of Austin's offense was being generated up the right side where Mikkel Desler and Bukari were patrolling.
"[At] halftime, we just addressed some details that helped us in the second half to have more fluidity in our ball circulation and break their initial pressing," Estévez said. "But the idea in the plan was the same from the beginning. Sometimes you can do it more often. And I think the other day against Colorado, we saw some things like that; against San Diego in the second half, the same. And I think we have to keep being consistent on creating those overloads and penetrating as we did, and to create our scoring opportunities."
Osman Bukari continues to dazzle (Alex Rubio)
Defense is key
Though Austin's defense did give up one goal, the deflection off Vázquez — off what I'll call a long Emil Forsberg ball toward goal, as stat services differed on whether it qualified as a shot — means that Red Bulls' only shot on goal (per MLS' count) came at the very end of the match, from Forsberg's foot on a free kick.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, who came into the match as one of only eight players in the league so far this season with double-digit goals, was effectively neutralized, with two blocked shots amounting to just 0.19 xG. The Red Bulls have collectively put up multiple goals against eight opponents this season — including a 7-0 pasting of the Galaxy, who still qualify as an MLS team though their 1-12-5 record might indicate otherwise, that Estévez specifically referenced to illustrate their quality.
Per ASA's charting, though RBNY got off more shots than Austin, most of them were poor, speculative efforts, compared to Austin's most selective and more surgical attempts.
"A lot of their goals come in transition," said Brad Stuver after the match. "It's the Red Bull DNA. I played in the East for several years, and going up against the Red Bulls, they have this unique identity where they love to high press, they know the keys to go, and then they turn it over to go straight to goal ... We hindered their ability to transition. We played a little bit more pragmatic, and we did try and play out of the back a little bit, but when we knew that we were getting trapped, we tried to get out of that trap. So, for us, it was just about not playing into their strengths. And I think the guys did a great job."
Unlocking Uzuni?
Myrto Uzuni didn't get into the match until the 70th minute, having just gotten back from international break, and his new shiny white soccer boots barely got scuffed with only eight touches on the night – though one of those was a potential assist on what turned out to be the last significant action of the match, in the form of an overhit Jáder Obrian shot that wasted Uzuni's good work on that play.
Estévez revealed in the press conference that while Uzuni got to finally hold his newborn son – born in Barcelona a few months prior – he got very limited bonding time due to the bubble that national team players find themselves in during international windows. (Estévez put Uzuni's time with the baby at 20 minutes; Uzuni told Moisés Chiullán it was more like 10.)
That will get remedied as players leaguewide head out on mini-vacations this week (save for those in the Gold Cup or in Club World Cup). Estévez is allowing Uzuni and Bukari (another dad with an infant child across the Atlantic) a little extra time away from the team to bond with their progeny before returning to training.
"I always do that with the players that live very far away," he clarified, regarding the extra time granted to recharge. I know how hard it is."
He also predicted, regarding the father-child quality time, "I think this is going to help both to come with a new energy, and hopefully Uzuni's family can come with him, or soon, in the summer, and he can have everyone here, because I think this is one of the things that probably is more affecting him."
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. You can comment here if you’re a subscriber, or reach out via Bluesky.
[[1]] And significantly above Dallas and Houston for those of you tracking that.
[[2]] Provided Seattle doesn't advance in the Club World Cup; their group makes that a prohibitive prospect, but soccer.
As far as the Open Cup goes, Austin FC waits for a semifinal match in September with a chance to host the final. But the most important wait now is for the star forward's MRI results.
We turned to an expert on the Quakes to learn more about how Bruce Arena's doing and how Chicho Arango and Josef Martínez are complementing each other.
If you have bemoaned going through seven Austin FC matches without a win in league play during May – and I know some of you have – take another look at the form guide this morning.
That's Austin firmly in the middle of the MLS pack[[1]], with two straight wins and only one loss in their last seven, heading into an international break sitting 7th place in the West following a 2-1 win over New York Red Bulls on Saturday night.
Now, starting with a trip to Seattle in two weeks' time[[2]], Verde's next two opponents are starting Club World Cup assignments on Sunday and Monday respectively, while players from the 27 other MLS teams get nearly a full work week off to reset.
For Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez, the relatively good run of form they've arrived at from a form-guide-half-full perspective is indicative of how they've playing even though the more dismal form guide patches.
"This is a resume of the last month and a half," he observed. "I told the players, we did good things throughout this month and a half, and we didn't get rewarded. And I think the last two games, we are getting what we deserve to get throughout this month and a half. And this is sports, this is soccer, and I think there are a lot of positives in these last two games, and there are a lot of things to keep improving.
"As I always said, winning or losing, we still need to improve and to get better, but I'm really, really happy for the effort that the team played to in the good moments of soccer and then after to suffer and to get the result and to go on a small break that we have now with a positive mindset."
Estévez complimented his team for incorporating some halftime guidance, building on how the team sought to play against a traditionally high-pressing Red Bulls defense, grabbing the lead on a 51st-minute goal with lots of passes in the buildup, before Osman Bukari picked out Brandon Vázquez with an assist to cap off one of Verde's best-ever team effort goals.
That pass exemplified something that the final third/box pass chart showed: Much of Austin's offense was being generated up the right side where Mikkel Desler and Bukari were patrolling.
"[At] halftime, we just addressed some details that helped us in the second half to have more fluidity in our ball circulation and break their initial pressing," Estévez said. "But the idea in the plan was the same from the beginning. Sometimes you can do it more often. And I think the other day against Colorado, we saw some things like that; against San Diego in the second half, the same. And I think we have to keep being consistent on creating those overloads and penetrating as we did, and to create our scoring opportunities."
Defense is key
Though Austin's defense did give up one goal, the deflection off Vázquez — off what I'll call a long Emil Forsberg ball toward goal, as stat services differed on whether it qualified as a shot — means that Red Bulls' only shot on goal (per MLS' count) came at the very end of the match, from Forsberg's foot on a free kick.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, who came into the match as one of only eight players in the league so far this season with double-digit goals, was effectively neutralized, with two blocked shots amounting to just 0.19 xG. The Red Bulls have collectively put up multiple goals against eight opponents this season — including a 7-0 pasting of the Galaxy, who still qualify as an MLS team though their 1-12-5 record might indicate otherwise, that Estévez specifically referenced to illustrate their quality.
Per ASA's charting, though RBNY got off more shots than Austin, most of them were poor, speculative efforts, compared to Austin's most selective and more surgical attempts.
"A lot of their goals come in transition," said Brad Stuver after the match. "It's the Red Bull DNA. I played in the East for several years, and going up against the Red Bulls, they have this unique identity where they love to high press, they know the keys to go, and then they turn it over to go straight to goal ... We hindered their ability to transition. We played a little bit more pragmatic, and we did try and play out of the back a little bit, but when we knew that we were getting trapped, we tried to get out of that trap. So, for us, it was just about not playing into their strengths. And I think the guys did a great job."
Unlocking Uzuni?
Myrto Uzuni didn't get into the match until the 70th minute, having just gotten back from international break, and his new shiny white soccer boots barely got scuffed with only eight touches on the night – though one of those was a potential assist on what turned out to be the last significant action of the match, in the form of an overhit Jáder Obrian shot that wasted Uzuni's good work on that play.
Estévez revealed in the press conference that while Uzuni got to finally hold his newborn son – born in Barcelona a few months prior – he got very limited bonding time due to the bubble that national team players find themselves in during international windows. (Estévez put Uzuni's time with the baby at 20 minutes; Uzuni told Moisés Chiullán it was more like 10.)
That will get remedied as players leaguewide head out on mini-vacations this week (save for those in the Gold Cup or in Club World Cup). Estévez is allowing Uzuni and Bukari (another dad with an infant child across the Atlantic) a little extra time away from the team to bond with their progeny before returning to training.
"I always do that with the players that live very far away," he clarified, regarding the extra time granted to recharge. I know how hard it is."
He also predicted, regarding the father-child quality time, "I think this is going to help both to come with a new energy, and hopefully Uzuni's family can come with him, or soon, in the summer, and he can have everyone here, because I think this is one of the things that probably is more affecting him."
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. You can comment here if you’re a subscriber, or reach out via Bluesky.
[[1]] And significantly above Dallas and Houston for those of you tracking that.
[[2]] Provided Seattle doesn't advance in the Club World Cup; their group makes that a prohibitive prospect, but soccer.
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