Austin FC Ends Eight-Match Winless Streak

It doesn’t seem to matter what state Austin FC is in, when Copa Tejas rivals Houston Dynamo come to Q2 Stadium, you can bank on a Verde win. Saturday night, having gone without a win since the first of March, a dose of orange was exactly what the doctor ordered as ATXFC produced its best 90-minute performance of the season en route to a 2-0 victory. In doing so, the club improved its all-time home record against Houston to 7-1-1.

Austin dominated the first half from the first minute, enjoying the vast majority of possession and creating constant scoring chances. It culminated in a spectacular team goal just 12 minutes into the match, in which the Verde and Black sliced through the Houston defense from back to front with precision and urgency. 

Seven different ATX players touched the ball before it ultimately arrived at the feet of the eighth, Jayden Nelson, at the edge of the 18 yard box. Nelson took four controlled touches to size up defender Felipe Andrade, then uncorked a deadly accurate curling shot with his right foot that pinged off the far post and into the net.

“Just us using our quality,” an understated Nelson said of the goal, though he admitted he hopes it gets the attention of Canadian National Team coach Jesse Marsch, as Nelson continues to build his case for a World Cup roster spot.

While Nelson got the benefit of the goalpost deflection, in the 35 minute, Myrto Uzuni – following an impressive nutmegging of a Houston defender – saw his ensuing shot clang off the far post and away from the goal mouth.

But Uzuni’s luck would even out in first half stoppage time. Standing over a free kick opportunity just 20 yards from goal, Austin FC executed a smart set play which caught Houston off guard. Joseph Rosales delivered a back heel pass to Uzuni, whose shot took a massive deflection off the Houston wall and rolled perfectly into the Dynamo net for a 2-0 lead at halftime.

The second half largely saw Austin defend its two-goal lead with a level of professionalism and attention to detail that has often abandoned the club late in games this season. Houston predictably saw much more of the ball, even flipping the possession percentage in favor of the Dynamo by the end of the match, but never looked particularly threatening to score and mount a comeback. Though Brad Stuver was credited for five saves on the night, none were of a dramatic or unexpected variety.

The end result was the club’s third shutout of the season, and more importantly, its second win. 

“I want to, you know, give a lot of credit to the players. It’s been a really tough time for everyone,” ATX head coach Nico Estévez said. “I think the players showed what they are trying to show every single game, but we [have not had] the complete performance that we had today.”

Unfortunately for the Verde and Black, they can’t host the Dynamo every week. But the club still hopes that a convincing Copa Tejas “derby” win can be the kind of confidence-boosting, pressure-alleviating that leads to more success.

“There’s the easy phrase, ‘You don’t play derbies, you win derbies.’ And that was what we did today,” striker Christian Ramirez said. “And maybe that’s what we needed to get this thing rolling.”