Sebastián Driussi's late goal sends Austin FC past Houston Dynamo FC
Style points sometimes count for something in soccer, but the points that come with a win actually move you up the standings.
Austin FC didn’t have its best performance of the season or anything close to it Wednesday at Q2 Stadium, but at the end of the day it came away with a 1-0 win over Copa Tejas rival Houston Dynamo FC.
Here are some thoughts from the match as Austin FC (5-4-4, 19 points) has its quickest turnaround of the season when it hosts Sporting Kansas City on Saturday:
Notable result
Massive credit has to be given to the Verde & Black for gutting out a win when they clearly weren’t in top form.
Austin FC coach Josh Wolff called the match “sloppy at times” and noted his squad wore down in the final 20 minutes.
More: MLS names Austin FC's Q2 Stadium as host site for all-star game next summer
He’s not wrong. There were some eye-bleeding stretches of play, particularly in the second half.
Yet the Verde & Black still found a way to win thanks to another solid performance defensively and Sebastián Driussi’s goal in the 87th minute when he finished a loose ball in the box off a corner kick.
Austin FC’s goal also came when three of its better players in forward Diego Rubio, winger Jáder Obrian and midfielder Alex Ring were not in the game, as all three had been subbed off earlier. That makes the result even more impressive.
As fellow media noted in the press box during the second half, this won’t be a contest anyone will remember a few weeks down the road. However, the three points are something that will be in the standings the rest of the season.
Defense continues to be fantastic
It’s been stated in this space multiple times over the last two months, but it bears repeating how solid the Verde & Black defense was again.
While the offense was average the first half and subpar the second, the back line and Brad Stuver made all the plays when they needed to.
Zan Kolmanic made his first start since the season opener and played a mostly quality 76 minutes, Jon Gallagher continues to be a rock at right back and center backs Julio Cascante and Brendan Hines-Ike remained outstanding.
After a bad giveaway by Austin FC in the game’s first few minutes, Stuver made a diving save on what looked like a sure goal.
The defense has four shutouts in the last five games and has only given up three goals in the last six contests.
While it may be unrealistic to expect that kind of pace to continue, it’s something that’s certainly notable and the main reason the Verde & Black have compiled 16 points in their last eight matches.
Man of the match: Sebastián Driussi
Driussi seems to have a knack of being in the right place at the right time.
It’s part of what makes him one of the best and most dangerous players in the MLS.
With as much attention as he receives from the opposition, it will be tough for him to repeat his numbers from 2022 when he had 21 goals and five assists. But simply being the threat he is and coming up with clutch goals like he did Wednesday and versus San Jose make him worth every penny to the club.
Bottom line
As noted in our game preview, there are no must-wins in the MLS before September. However, this is an important three points when you consider Austin FC didn’t get a result in a game it mostly dominated Saturday at Dallas and will be back on the field in less than 72 hours against a team playing on a week’s rest.
The possibility existed late Wednesday for the Verde & Black to end this three-games-in-eight-days stretch with one or zero points. Now, no matter what happens Saturday, they’ll still be in adequate shape heading into the rest of the month.
Austin FC also reasserted the club’s control over Copa Tejas going into its final two matches of the competition, which will take place in July and September.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Sebastián Driussi's late goal sends Austin FC past Houston Dynamo FC
