'Progressing in the right direction': Updates on the Frail Four as Austin FC takes to the road
Austin FC is liking its set pieces so far in 2026. But Nico Estévez is also looking to improve how his team does it in open play.
Call them the Frail Four.
Much of the dialogue between Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez and the media over the last few weeks has involved three injured players who have been unavailable this season so far, and one who got injured about 20 minutes into a sub turn with a goal contribution in it.
So, to start off, here's a Frail Four injury update. (They're not really frail; I just find it catchy.)
Mikkel Desler: "Training full with the team ... day by day so far, and I think he's doing well with the loads of the training. Tomorrow, after the training session, we'll decide with the medical staff in the high performance [team] and himself about how he feels and how he can help the team. Based on that, he's very close to join the roster."
Robert Taylor: "He's progressing well. He's giving good steps during this week, and hopefully next week he can initiate training with the team."
Brandon Vázquez: "Doing partial training with the team, more like possession, rondos, warm-ups, passing and finishing. Still not on game situations with contact yet, but it's progressing in the right direction."
Owen Wolff: "The same [as Taylor], he's progressing in the right direction, and hopefully he can make those steps again to be with the team."
As for the rest of the team, the first away trip of the 2026 season — to Charlotte FC on Saturday – coincides with the first short week of the year. Estévez shared that the team practiced and is practicing all workweek, save for being off on Tuesday.
"We can't forget that we are at the beginning of the season," he said. "We still have to analyze what we did well against Minnesota and against D.C. And we have to progress in our identity," adding that they've spent the week reviewing how they've played in the first two matches.
He assessed that Charlotte, as a 4-4-2 team that will be "defending a little bit more aggressively in some moments," will provide a test for Verde on better ball circulation and final third attacking.
"It's [to] keep progressing in the way that we want to play," he added. "We weren't happy in some of the ways that we played in the game against the DC, although we we had a great mentality, and we were pushing until the end to win the game. But we want to play a cleaner type of soccer, and we were encouraging the team, the players, in the ideas and the behaviors of the opponent, in order that we can get better."
We love set pieces, right?
Two of Verde's three goals so far this season have come off set pieces, and Estévez sees that as a solid weapon to have in the Austin arsenal.
"Last year, we were successful on set pieces. We won a lot of points on set pieces. And this year, also, the qualities of the players that we brought helped the team to be very consistent on these, [to] increase the belief of everyone that set pieces are really important. And we're seeing around the world how it's a theme, how set pieces are becoming something that is a tendency in soccer, then we just are utilizing, that is huge, and it can open [up] games. It can make you win points in both sides, defending and attacking. And the team is behaving really well, is believing in what they what we are working [on] and it's helping us to be a threat."
That doesn't mean that Estévez is satisfied to be just a set piece savvy team, though, and mentioned the team has focused on counterpressing.
"We're doing a pretty good job," he assessed. "Our rest defense, our positioning, is helping us to win the ball back real quick. And also, the profile of players that are new, like Myrto [Uzuni], like Facu[ndo Torres], like [Joseph] Rosales, like Jayden [Nelson], are players that as soon as we lose the ball, they're ready to repress with more physicality. Our numbers physically are much higher than last year ... the physical quality of these players, the mentality of these players help a lot [for] everyone to get set and to get ready, to repress."
Fitting right in
Christian Ramírez, who scored on his debut last week — and he's scored his first game out with multiple teams over his career, as Moontower Soccer's Landon Cotham revealed — is acclimating better to his new team in his first full week here (although he looked pretty integrated on his debut).
"The more time I get, the better I get a feel for my teammates, a better understanding of them, better understanding of Nico's expectations," he said. "Because it's easy to speak about stuff, but to see it out on the training pitch is key. So that's been great. And yeah, just still going through the stuff that I need to go through off the pitch, to find a place to live and get my stuff from California over here."
Adding that the adjustment has been great so far, and that the club has helped ease the transition, he also revealed that his kids will have their spring break coinciding with the match against the Galaxy in Austin on April 11, which he predicts will be emotional for him.
"When I got the news on that Friday," he said, referring to being waived on Feb. 20, "I had to go in on Saturday and say goodbye to some of the guys, and I was mentoring a few of the young guys who sent me messages afterwards, and so I have great relationships with them. And yeah, nothing but love for those guys. And hopefully I'll be on the good end of that result that day."
Both Ramírez and Vázquez acquired the Superman nickname with midwestern MLS teams, and he finds it provides a fitting metaphor for their roles.
"The best way to put it is, there'll be times where I'll need to wear the cape, and there'll be plenty of times where he needs to wear it. But I know personally ... in order for this team to get to where we know we want to be, we need Brandon at his full capacity. So if he needs to wear it the majority of time, no problem with it. And if I need to wear it here and there, so it draws some attention away from him, I'll do so. But I want him to come back as healthy and as strong as possible and be the Brandon that we know he could be in this league."
As for securing No. 21, rather than the 17 he wore for the Galaxy and at other MLS destinations, he assured media that Jon Gallagher's claim on No. 17 was safe.
"Once I saw it was taken. I wasn't gonna even ask," he said. "I mean, once 21 was open, I could just go with that, even though I have a tattoo of me with a 17 on my calf. But it's no problem."
No. 21 was what we entered the league with when Minnesota United elevated from NASL to MLS.
"It's a cool number, my wife was the one who said to pick it," he noted.
In my response to reminding him that he can always get more tattoos, perhaps with a 21 joining his 17, he quipped, "Maybe I'll get a tattoo of a trophy at some point this year."
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.
Maybe you're dismissive of the nerdery inherent in the goals added metric that American Soccer Analysis uses to measure player impact. But what if it tells you Austin FC's one of the best teams in the league?
Christian Ramírez made the difference for Austin FC on Sunday. It's amazing that, on Thursday evening, he was on a plane en route to meeting his new team.
It took less than 15 minutes on the field for Christian Ramírez to score his first goal in Verde. That goal proved the difference in a match in which the hosts dominated but struggled to break through.
Call them the Frail Four.
Much of the dialogue between Austin FC head coach Nico Estévez and the media over the last few weeks has involved three injured players who have been unavailable this season so far, and one who got injured about 20 minutes into a sub turn with a goal contribution in it.
So, to start off, here's a Frail Four injury update. (They're not really frail; I just find it catchy.)
As for the rest of the team, the first away trip of the 2026 season — to Charlotte FC on Saturday – coincides with the first short week of the year. Estévez shared that the team practiced and is practicing all workweek, save for being off on Tuesday.
"We can't forget that we are at the beginning of the season," he said. "We still have to analyze what we did well against Minnesota and against D.C. And we have to progress in our identity," adding that they've spent the week reviewing how they've played in the first two matches.
He assessed that Charlotte, as a 4-4-2 team that will be "defending a little bit more aggressively in some moments," will provide a test for Verde on better ball circulation and final third attacking.
"It's [to] keep progressing in the way that we want to play," he added. "We weren't happy in some of the ways that we played in the game against the DC, although we we had a great mentality, and we were pushing until the end to win the game. But we want to play a cleaner type of soccer, and we were encouraging the team, the players, in the ideas and the behaviors of the opponent, in order that we can get better."
We love set pieces, right?
Two of Verde's three goals so far this season have come off set pieces, and Estévez sees that as a solid weapon to have in the Austin arsenal.
"Last year, we were successful on set pieces. We won a lot of points on set pieces. And this year, also, the qualities of the players that we brought helped the team to be very consistent on these, [to] increase the belief of everyone that set pieces are really important. And we're seeing around the world how it's a theme, how set pieces are becoming something that is a tendency in soccer, then we just are utilizing, that is huge, and it can open [up] games. It can make you win points in both sides, defending and attacking. And the team is behaving really well, is believing in what they what we are working [on] and it's helping us to be a threat."
That doesn't mean that Estévez is satisfied to be just a set piece savvy team, though, and mentioned the team has focused on counterpressing.
"We're doing a pretty good job," he assessed. "Our rest defense, our positioning, is helping us to win the ball back real quick. And also, the profile of players that are new, like Myrto [Uzuni], like Facu[ndo Torres], like [Joseph] Rosales, like Jayden [Nelson], are players that as soon as we lose the ball, they're ready to repress with more physicality. Our numbers physically are much higher than last year ... the physical quality of these players, the mentality of these players help a lot [for] everyone to get set and to get ready, to repress."
Fitting right in
Christian Ramírez, who scored on his debut last week — and he's scored his first game out with multiple teams over his career, as Moontower Soccer's Landon Cotham revealed — is acclimating better to his new team in his first full week here (although he looked pretty integrated on his debut).
"The more time I get, the better I get a feel for my teammates, a better understanding of them, better understanding of Nico's expectations," he said. "Because it's easy to speak about stuff, but to see it out on the training pitch is key. So that's been great. And yeah, just still going through the stuff that I need to go through off the pitch, to find a place to live and get my stuff from California over here."
Adding that the adjustment has been great so far, and that the club has helped ease the transition, he also revealed that his kids will have their spring break coinciding with the match against the Galaxy in Austin on April 11, which he predicts will be emotional for him.
"When I got the news on that Friday," he said, referring to being waived on Feb. 20, "I had to go in on Saturday and say goodbye to some of the guys, and I was mentoring a few of the young guys who sent me messages afterwards, and so I have great relationships with them. And yeah, nothing but love for those guys. And hopefully I'll be on the good end of that result that day."
Both Ramírez and Vázquez acquired the Superman nickname with midwestern MLS teams, and he finds it provides a fitting metaphor for their roles.
"The best way to put it is, there'll be times where I'll need to wear the cape, and there'll be plenty of times where he needs to wear it. But I know personally ... in order for this team to get to where we know we want to be, we need Brandon at his full capacity. So if he needs to wear it the majority of time, no problem with it. And if I need to wear it here and there, so it draws some attention away from him, I'll do so. But I want him to come back as healthy and as strong as possible and be the Brandon that we know he could be in this league."
As for securing No. 21, rather than the 17 he wore for the Galaxy and at other MLS destinations, he assured media that Jon Gallagher's claim on No. 17 was safe.
"Once I saw it was taken. I wasn't gonna even ask," he said. "I mean, once 21 was open, I could just go with that, even though I have a tattoo of me with a 17 on my calf. But it's no problem."
No. 21 was what we entered the league with when Minnesota United elevated from NASL to MLS.
"It's a cool number, my wife was the one who said to pick it," he noted.
In my response to reminding him that he can always get more tattoos, perhaps with a 21 joining his 17, he quipped, "Maybe I'll get a tattoo of a trophy at some point this year."
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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