Nico Estévez provided some welcome news about the lineup ahead of Wednesday's match. He also admitted that there's much work to do between now and the season opener on Feb. 21
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.
It's not that Austin FC didn't show a desire to win on Sunday. It's just that they left themselves vulnerable to counterattacks against a team that excels at them.
Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez indicated this is a team that can learn from losing. They'll have a few days to do that prior to what could be their final match of the season.
Verde finished the season with 37 goals and a -8 goal differential. But they got wins when they needed them — including a key win over San Jose preceding this rematch loss.
Austin FC beat an LAFC side missing its two best players. Ironically, that win makes a first-round playoff rematch between the rivals more likely.
Saturday's loss to St. Louis City SC completed the team's first three-match losing streak since May. Verde can still make the playoffs today, but may not avoid the play-in game.
With three dramatic 2-1 wins in their most recent four matches, the September version of Austin FC is more fun than the version that dropped points earlier in the season.
CJ Fodrey was the hero on Wednesday night, in part because of Nico Estévez's belief in him. Also, we saw Estévez as perhaps the happiest he's been since coming to Austin.
Why is it that Austin FC, after getting a couple of wins, exhibits what one player calls "dreadful" play in the next match? That question is at the heart of the coach's and players' reflections following a loss to FC Dallas.
Nico Estévez puzzled over who to start up top in Sunday's match. Who he subbed in turned out to make all the difference.
Thanks to goals from Osman Bukari and Myrto Uzuni — plus an own-goal — Verde did something they haven't done for much of this season.
