There’s a reason soccer is known as the “world’s game.” Pretty much anywhere on the planet there is human civilization, there is also soccer. And while the vast majority of professional club soccer takes place domestically, within national leagues, the true pinnacle of the sport extends beyond borders.
It’s a privilege to take part in international competition, one that must be earned. The opportunities are few, generally reserved for the very best club or clubs a particular nation has to offer. And when a club takes the field for such a competition, it does so representing the entire league and the entire country that it hails from. That’s true when Real Madrid kicks off in the UEFA Champions League at the Bernabéu, and it’s true when Austin FC makes its debut in the CONCACAF Champions League in the Dominican Republic.
In losing 3-0 to Haitian club Violette AC in the first leg of an opening-round tie Tuesday night, Austin FC embarrassed not only itself, but its league and its country too. If that sounds overly harsh, just ask Ethan Finlay. The veteran ATX winger who clocked the full 90 minutes at Estadio Cibao FC – a Dominican venue chosen for Violette’s home leg due to the lack of a suitable stadium in Haiti – described the evening as “an embarrassing performance for our group.”
But did it need to be? Despite head coach Josh Wolff’s assertions that his club had “no expectation” that Violette would be a “light opponent,” in this case actions speak louder than words. Wolff rotated 90% of his outfield squad from the lineup that started last Saturday’s 1-0 win over Montreal. For the first time in 2023, names like Rodney Redes and Amro Tarek found their way onto the team sheet. Important players like Sebastián Driussi, Alex Ring, and Leo Väisänen didn’t even board the charter flight to the Caribbean. The plan was obvious: preserve the stars for Saturday’s MLS matchup against Real Salt Lake, empty the bench against Violette, and hope for a decent result, then finish things off in the return leg at Q2 Stadium on the 14th.
In short, Wolff gambled. He gambled with his club’s Champions League status – a status some MLS clubs go more than a decade without obtaining – in exchange for freshness at the weekend. Wolff himself might not see it that way. “There was plenty of quality inside that group to get the job done tonight,” he assured, suggesting that the bigger problem had to do with his own coaching. “I take responsibility for not having these guys mentally in the right space.”
And his point is well taken. Violette’s Transfermarkt page makes Austin FC II, the club’s work-in-progress minor league squad, look like Manchester City. Violette had not played a competitive match in nine months. It’s official Twitter account still has not posted in over four years. On paper, there was every reason to think that an Austin B-squad could take on the defending Caribbean Club Champions without issue. But this is CONCACAF, so why take that chance? Why put your place in North America’s premier soccer tournament in the hands of a center back pairing of Tarek and Nick Lima? It reeks of arrogance, naivete, and shortsightedness.
And yet, with all of that said, there’s still time to clean up the mess. Violette has to defend its 3-0 aggregate lead at Q2 Stadium next Tuesday, and due to visa complications will likely have less than a full squad to do it. Wolff said he is prepared to empty the tank in that match, which presumably means a full-strength lineup, Driussi and all. “I have full confidence we can go home and still get a result,” Wolff said. Hope you’re right, Josh. After all, your nation is counting on you.
For more Austin FC news and analysis, visit The Austin Chronicle‘s Austin FC hub. Follow “The Verde Report” columnist Eric Goodman on Twitter: @goodman.
This article appears in March 10 • 2023 and March 3 • 2023.
