After a disappointing loss at Toronto where they had several goal scoring chances that were squandered, Austin FC travels to BMO Stadium to take on LAFC where they’ve struggled. They’ll be without normal starters Sebastian Driussi and Brendan Hines-Ike along with reserve Johan Valencia due to yellow card accumulation. Time is running out in the regular season to try and sneak into the playoffs so at least a point feels necessary from a results standpoint. Also apparently due to aircraft issues, the team had to fly in the day of the match rather than the day before so let’s just pile on more adversity, why not?
Let’s look at the lineup:
Matt Hedges is out with a hip injury so we will get our first chance to see summer signing Ukrainian center back Oleksandr Svatok. Also with Driussi out, it appears that Josh Wolff is going with a 5-2-3 or a 5-2-2-1 formation (back five of Mikkel Desler, Julio Cascante, Svatok, Guillermo Biro, Jon Gallagher with Alex Ring and Dani Periera in midfield & Jader Obrian, Diego Rubio, and Osman Bukari up top). I’m ok with sitting back and trying to counter against LAFC with guys like Bukari and Obrian on the break. Not sure how much sleep he’s gotten with the recent newborn baby but it’s good to see Gallagher available.
Stream of consciousness match thoughts:
This will be my own gut reaction thoughts as the match progresses. Let’s go…
I know it’s a Wednesday midweek match but plenty of empty seats at BMO Stadium at the start of this match shown on Apple TV. Yes, the 3252 is doing its thing in their section but this doesn’t have the feel of a daunting road environment.
Bukari is fouled in the second minute in open play by Segura; will need to watch how the ref calls this game. Periera knuckles the free kick nowhere close to goal
Rubio decks Ryan Hollingshead in the 6th minute. Diego just making sure LA knows he’s here to be a pest as long as he’s on the pitch.
We’ve got a transition moment. Bukari crosses but no one on the far post to get a touch/shot on goal.
Stuuuuuuuuuuuuuu with an excellent one hand stretch save on Olivier Giroud in the 25th minute. Would that have been Giroud’s first goal? Surprised he hasn’t scored yet (not fact checking myself) and certainly glad it wasn’t now against Stuver.
Gallagher chests a ball and sails a shot wide off of a corner at minute 29. I feel like he had a little more time to settle the ball rather than rushing the shot.
Swatok goes right through Matt Bogusz and lets his presence be known. Solid center back vibes from him so far.
Gallagher sends in a cross to the far post and Desler tries to get his head on it but it doesn’t go in. Best chance of the first half so far.
Well… spoke/typed too soon. Desler curls a pass to the right side. Bukari’s speed gets him past Aaron Long and he calmly passes it to Obrian in open space. Not a great first touch by Jader but he’s able to slot it past Hugo Lloris right before halftime. Only one shot on goal this half and it went in. Playing the counter attacking style tonight and it just paid off.
1-0 Austin at halftime. 6th goal for Obrian which is most on the team. I didn’t have that on my preseason predictions, that’s for sure.
Apple TV says Austin is 5-0-3 this season when they score first. C’mon guys, continue the trend.
Finally, we see a yellow card on LAFC (Atuesta) for fouling Bukari in a transition moment.
Bukari passes to Gallagher in the middle who then shoots it off of a hop right at Lloris in the 50th minute. I like that Jon is getting involved.
Uh oh… Denis Bounga gets in behind Svatok and looks like he’s about to equalize but he can’t control the pass. Stuver thankfully is there to pick it up.
Substitution time (earlier than usual?): Gyasi Zardes coming in for Rubio (who looks visibly upset about being taken out) and Leo Vaisanen coming in for Desler at 60th minute. Why take Desler out when you’re trying to protect a lead? Something must be wrong with him.
And what do you know… two minutes after the subs, LAFC ties it up at 1 on a David Martinez goal. I’m not a tactical expert but why is a starting center back (Cascante) up that far high in midfield against Giroud? A clever back heel pass by Giroud gets Cascante out of position and the break is on. Vaisanen is absolutely clueless in transition. He isn’t marking anyone and lets Martinez just tap it in.
Note to self: go lookup how many more years left on Vaisanen’s contract. Ugh looks like it runs through December 2026. Two more years of a center back who can’t beat out an aging Hedges for playing time.
Owen Wolff subs in for Obrian at minute 70. Maybe he can recreate some magic like he did on the road last Saturday in the 6ix.
Bukari’s speed is a factor yet again. He gets past Ryan Hollingshead, sends in a cross and Biro misses a good chance with a shot wide at minute 72.
The final subs arrive in the 82nd minute: CJ Fodrey and Ethan Finley for Bukari and Periera. Dani looks gassed and they probably need to save him from yellow card accumulation.
Final moments here… can they hang on for the draw? Bounga has a half volley that hits the side net at the 94th minute. That would’ve been a brutal goal to give up at the death.
That’s it. 1-1 final in LA.
Numbers don’t lie:
Using FotMob…
Possession: Austin 39% and LAFC 61%
Total shots: Austin 10 and LAFC 13
Shots on target: Austin 2 and LAFC 6
xG: Austin 0.67 and LAFC 0.83
Austin played the counter-attacking style it wanted to play but need some better shot taking.
Man of the Match:
Osman Bukari. His speed was a problem for LAFC most of the match. He drew fouls in space, was able to dribble past defenders, and assisted on the goal by Obrian. He looked more comfortable playing in the system than in previous matches and we got a glimpse of the impact he could have in the future; just need a legit striker/attacking piece up top with him to finish off more of these chances.
The bigger picture:
In a match where I wasn’t expecting any points on the road, you’ll definitely take the draw and the single point. With Minnesota and FC Dallas losing, Austin now sits in 10th place with 34 points. That’s 4 points behind Minnesota for the final playoff spot (if you want to count the play-in game as a playoff spot) with five regular season matches remaining. They’re going to need Minnesota to keep dropping points. Up next for Austin is red-hot Houston Dynamo this Saturday at Q2 Stadium. Using the term “must-win” seems overused at this point because mathematically, Austin will still be alive regardless of the result after this upcoming Houston match.
But…
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