The Verde Report: Austin FC in Scramble Mode After Julio Cascante Injury
Josh Wolff has a major problem on his hands
By Eric Goodman, Fri., March 3, 2023
A whole heck of a lot went right for Austin FC in 2022, paving the way for the club's expectations-annihilating sophomore season. There was Sebastián Driussi's MVP-caliber season, a ridiculous number of come-from-behind results, and a rock-solid home turf advantage at Q2 Stadium. There was, however, one other factor of some importance: The team suffered exactly zero long-term injuries to starting players the entire year.
Consider that streak over.
It took only eight minutes into the 2023 season opener – a 3-2 loss to expansion side St. Louis CITY SC – for Austin to pick up its first major injury concern in well over a year. Julio Cascante, the club's most experienced central defender and third-most capped outfield player, went down with what was identified on Tuesday as a severe left adductor strain. Per a club press release, he'll be sidelined at least eight weeks.
So what does that mean for El Tree? Well, we can start with the silver lining: Cascante's season isn't over. He'll evidently have every opportunity to rehab his way back to action by midseason and help Austin FC fight for all its end-of-season goals. Anytime an athlete goes down clutching a knee, the fear is something season-ending. Exhale.
That said, don't mistake Tuesday's update for good news. For the next two months at minimum, head coach Josh Wolff has a major problem on his hands re: preventing goals. While Cascante isn't a name you'd likely find on anyone's "Best CBs in MLS" list, he's been the model of dependability, starting close to 90% of ATXFC's competitive matches. The crux of the issue, though, lies beneath Cascante on the depth chart.
Even with a healthy Cascante in the lineup beside newcomer and fellow starter Leo Väisänen, Austin FC came into the season paper-thin at center back after Ruben Gabrielsen departed the club in the offseason and Jhohan Romaña, for reasons not entirely clear, was sent out on loan two weeks ago. So who's left? Kipp Keller and Amro Tarek. The latter, signed in late January after two seasons playing in his native Egypt, sat out the season opener and is still, as Wolff put it, "in the process of getting comfortable with what we're doing."
Keller did play in the opener, as you may have heard. Coming in to replace Cascante, the 22-year-old had the kind of game players wake up hyperventilating over. At least partially at fault for all three of St. Louis' goals, Keller unilaterally cost Austin a second-half lead when he lazily passed the ball directly to CITY forward Jared Stroud inside Keller's own penalty box. Keller is obviously a better player than what he displayed Saturday night. The problem is, 1) it's unclear exactly how much better he is, and 2) you never know how long it will take a player to regain his confidence after the kind of outing Keller is coming off.
Austin FC does have until late April to acquire additional help in defense, and that feels like an absolute no-brainer. However, in the immediate term, Wolff must figure out how to make the best of a bad situation. It may require getting creative; he's already alluded to the possibility of deploying defensive midfielder Alex Ring at center back in a pinch. Better decide quickly. With 2022 playoff team CF Montréal heading to town at the weekend, followed by the club's first CONCACAF Champions League tie on tap for Tuesday, there isn't much time to waste.
