Austin FC was on the precipice of being on the losing end of what fans of the U.S. Open Cup tournament lovingly call a "cupset" — when a team at least one rung down the U.S. soccer pyramid beats a favored opponent to advance.
Down 2-0 to El Paso Locomotive on Wednesday night as the clock clicked past the 70-minute mark, Verde experienced repeated, almost comical frustration in front of goal, with a Brandon Vázquez shot off the crossbar and a Myrto Uzuni early one-on-one chance repelled by goalkeeper Jahmali Waite vying for the most emblematic image of frustration.
But captain Ilie Sánchez believed in his team's resilience.
"We needed one goal," he said post-match with sage calm. "We knew that scoring that first goal would change things for us. "It could not have happened, but it happened ... it was everything the team needed to keep believing what being aggressive and playing forward with and without the ball was going to give us."
He noted that Julio Cascante was inspirational at halftime in impressing upon teammates the importance of finishing chances, while head coach Nico Estévez gave guidance similar to what he's given in recent weeks in matches where Austin wasn't able to turn it around.
Sánchez also understood the magnitude of the match, which included fans booing the players at halftime and expecting emphatic debates over the future of this team and its coach as a loss appeared inevitable.
And yes, you could cynically say that Verde needed multiple fresh substitutes involving starting-caliber players, including halftime sub Osman Bukari, a designated player who has been experiencing his own frustration battles since arriving this summer.
'He ... changes the game for us'
But, though Vázquez scored two goals and a Yeti Man of the Match cup, and Uzuni scored his first goal since his lone league goal March 30 at St. Louis, credit Owen Wolff for coming on and engineering both Vázquez goals with deft timely assists — in a match where fans despaired at seeing numerous green shirts passing to blue shirts.
"I think the game probably opened up a little bit more and we get to see his strengths come to fruition," said Jon Gallagher of Wolff. "He comes on with probably fresh legs and changes the game for us with two assists, which was huge. I think they did a good job of staying compact in the first half, and we probably weren't as good and as secure on the ball as we needed to.
"They gave us a tough match, obviously, and maybe deserved a little bit more out of the game," he assessed. "But we adjusted some things at halftime and played a really strong second half, but, yeah, we dug a hole for ourselves and didn't make it easy, which is obviously frustrating from a from a player standpoint, but that's part of the game and we survived and advanced."
Sánchez noted the game was challenging for all involved.
"It was not an easy game to play, not an easy game to coach, not an easy game to cover, and it's not an easy game, especially on a Wednesday night, to show up as a supporter."
Thoughts from the coach
Estévez was clearer happier with the win than with the alternative, and while happy to see his two high-dollar attackers score, he indicated Open Cup games are their own animal.
"It'ss very difficult to analyze these [Cup games], these games that if you win, you're in, and you lose, you're out. It gets chaotic and it's difficult even to analyze. I think we have to learn from that ... I told the guys, we were coming from two tough games, and this is the reality, tough results, tough games, that we couldn't do our best performances, and we didn't show really who we are.
"And I think that with these missed chances at the beginning of the game, it put the team in a in a difficult situation, and then I think we can use these as something that we have to believe in ourselves, we have to have confidence, because we have players that can be the difference. And we just have to play and make those plays with the determination that they showed in the second half ... and it can go better for us."
Estévez noted that Robert Taylor, who had a notable limp in the locker room post-match, might not be immediately available for future matches with what he characterized as a hamstring sprain. Even with the win guaranteeing that a Round of 16 match against Houston at Q2 Stadium, either May 20 or May 21, will give his team two games a week through the May 31 trip to San Diego, Estévez will still try to field as many first-choice players as possible in this upcoming glut of games.
"We have to put out the best lineup that we can every game, and now we have to recover our guys and see how everyone is recovering, and put a lineup that can compete against Cincinnati, because we go there to compete and try to to beat a really, really good team. But I think we have the tools, we have the players, and we'll have to make some some changes depending how everyone is recovering and but also during the game. We could adjust, maybe play 45 or 60 minutes, 90 and then, depending on that, we'll have all the others coming like we did today."
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.
Austin FC was on the precipice of being on the losing end of what fans of the U.S. Open Cup tournament lovingly call a "cupset" — when a team at least one rung down the U.S. soccer pyramid beats a favored opponent to advance.
Down 2-0 to El Paso Locomotive on Wednesday night as the clock clicked past the 70-minute mark, Verde experienced repeated, almost comical frustration in front of goal, with a Brandon Vázquez shot off the crossbar and a Myrto Uzuni early one-on-one chance repelled by goalkeeper Jahmali Waite vying for the most emblematic image of frustration.
But captain Ilie Sánchez believed in his team's resilience.
"We needed one goal," he said post-match with sage calm. "We knew that scoring that first goal would change things for us. "It could not have happened, but it happened ... it was everything the team needed to keep believing what being aggressive and playing forward with and without the ball was going to give us."
He noted that Julio Cascante was inspirational at halftime in impressing upon teammates the importance of finishing chances, while head coach Nico Estévez gave guidance similar to what he's given in recent weeks in matches where Austin wasn't able to turn it around.
Sánchez also understood the magnitude of the match, which included fans booing the players at halftime and expecting emphatic debates over the future of this team and its coach as a loss appeared inevitable.
And yes, you could cynically say that Verde needed multiple fresh substitutes involving starting-caliber players, including halftime sub Osman Bukari, a designated player who has been experiencing his own frustration battles since arriving this summer.
'He ... changes the game for us'
But, though Vázquez scored two goals and a Yeti Man of the Match cup, and Uzuni scored his first goal since his lone league goal March 30 at St. Louis, credit Owen Wolff for coming on and engineering both Vázquez goals with deft timely assists — in a match where fans despaired at seeing numerous green shirts passing to blue shirts.
"I think the game probably opened up a little bit more and we get to see his strengths come to fruition," said Jon Gallagher of Wolff. "He comes on with probably fresh legs and changes the game for us with two assists, which was huge. I think they did a good job of staying compact in the first half, and we probably weren't as good and as secure on the ball as we needed to.
"They gave us a tough match, obviously, and maybe deserved a little bit more out of the game," he assessed. "But we adjusted some things at halftime and played a really strong second half, but, yeah, we dug a hole for ourselves and didn't make it easy, which is obviously frustrating from a from a player standpoint, but that's part of the game and we survived and advanced."
Sánchez noted the game was challenging for all involved.
"It was not an easy game to play, not an easy game to coach, not an easy game to cover, and it's not an easy game, especially on a Wednesday night, to show up as a supporter."
Thoughts from the coach
Estévez was clearer happier with the win than with the alternative, and while happy to see his two high-dollar attackers score, he indicated Open Cup games are their own animal.
"It'ss very difficult to analyze these [Cup games], these games that if you win, you're in, and you lose, you're out. It gets chaotic and it's difficult even to analyze. I think we have to learn from that ... I told the guys, we were coming from two tough games, and this is the reality, tough results, tough games, that we couldn't do our best performances, and we didn't show really who we are.
"And I think that with these missed chances at the beginning of the game, it put the team in a in a difficult situation, and then I think we can use these as something that we have to believe in ourselves, we have to have confidence, because we have players that can be the difference. And we just have to play and make those plays with the determination that they showed in the second half ... and it can go better for us."
Estévez noted that Robert Taylor, who had a notable limp in the locker room post-match, might not be immediately available for future matches with what he characterized as a hamstring sprain. Even with the win guaranteeing that a Round of 16 match against Houston at Q2 Stadium, either May 20 or May 21, will give his team two games a week through the May 31 trip to San Diego, Estévez will still try to field as many first-choice players as possible in this upcoming glut of games.
"We have to put out the best lineup that we can every game, and now we have to recover our guys and see how everyone is recovering, and put a lineup that can compete against Cincinnati, because we go there to compete and try to to beat a really, really good team. But I think we have the tools, we have the players, and we'll have to make some some changes depending how everyone is recovering and but also during the game. We could adjust, maybe play 45 or 60 minutes, 90 and then, depending on that, we'll have all the others coming like we did today."
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.
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