Wolff’s Revenge: Dynamo Defeat Austin FC 2-0
A Vazquez-less Verde attack struggled in the loss to Houston.
The Big Bad Wolff returned to the lives of Austin FC fans on Saturday night.
Now that Josh Wolff’s an assistant with the Houston Dynamo - appropriately enough, a team noted for lots of toothless possession in recent seasons - Verde supporters formerly fond of a particular hashtag can enjoy a nice synergy of loathing: the ex-head coach they don’t like is currently employed by a team they don’t like.
In the first Austin/Houston Copa Tejas match to feature the additional dose of Wolff-fueled antipathy, the Dynamo emerged victorious 2-0 in Houston after a strong second half featuring goals by new signing Ondrej Lingr and underperforming Designated Player (DP), Ezequiel Ponce.
Befitting the occasion, Austin FC’s attack delivered a tribute to Wolff-ball at its somnambulant worst. Despite having nearly half of the ball (possession was narrowly in favor of Houston 51% to 49%, all stats per FotMob.com or FBRef.com), Nico Estevez’s team only managed to produce .45 expected goals (xG) to the Dynamo’s 1.31. Austin FC’s attack was compromised by illness and injury, however.
When MLS’s Matchday 10 injury report was released and featured Brandon Vazquez’s name with the word “illness” in parentheses beside it, a pang of frustration must have hit those of a Verde and Black persuasion. Yes, Vazquez has yet to reach the heights in Austin many hoped and projected he would, but he scored his last time out against the Los Angeles Galaxy and pummeled LA goalkeeper John McCarthy’s net with seven shots (though one of those shots was a saved penalty attempt). Vazquez’s absence in Houston nixed any hope of Austin FC’s striker building on last week’s positive performance.
For those who drink their water from half-full glasses, one of Austin FC’s two center forwards missing a match might have presented an opportunity to uncomplicate the team’s struggling attack. Vazquez and Myrto Uzuni have thus far displayed a chemistry reminiscent of uncomfortable Love is Blind reveals. And though the shunting of Uzuni to a wide forward position in the 4-3-3 formation Estevez has preferred of late could work, it still puts the Albanian international a bit out of his element.
Against the Dynamo, by playing with one center forward flanked by two natural wingers (Uzuni through the middle with Jader Obrian on the left and Osman Bukari on the right), Austin FC’s front three had a natural balance in theory. In practice, Uzuni failed to capitalize on the opportunity to play as a lone striker. He recorded just one shot and - crucially - accrued a minuscule 10 touches. More than any goal-scoring threat he may or may not currently possess, Vazquez’s all-around work linking play was badly missed by Austin FC in Houston. The United States international had 40 touches last week against the Galaxy, and Austin FC’s pass map from the match illustrates his involvement.
Compare that to Austin FC’s pass map in Houston and note the isolation of Uzuni.
You can also see how Verde’s positioning was less advanced. Without Vazquez’s excellent work presenting himself as a progressive passing outlet, Austin FC failed to move the ball forward cleanly against the Dynamo. Verde completed more passes in the Dynamo match - 380 versus 358 last week - but amassed fewer touches in the attacking half of the field: Austin had 165 opposition half touches against the Galaxy to 149 versus Houston.
Also hurting Verde’s ability to move the ball forward was a 32nd-minute injury to Dani Pereira, who had to come off after landing awkwardly following a long-range shot attempt. Besard Sabovic replaced Pereira as Austin FC's right-sided attacking midfielder. Although the Swede has been an effectively disruptive defensive presence in Austin FC’s midfield, he’s not the passer Pereira is. Before the Houston match, Sabovic averaged 3.45 progressive passes per 90 minutes, while Pereira averaged 6.05. Per Estevez, in response to a question from Phil West in the post-match press conference, Pereira could miss at least a month. Austin FC will have to seek alternative ways of advancing the ball in his absence.
Missing key attacking pieces didn’t help the Austin FC cause on Saturday, but 10 matches and multiple formations into the 2025 season, and there’s still a disconcerting lack of identity to the team’s possession play. Estevez should be lauded for turning around the team’s defensive woes, but even when chasing the match after Houston’s breakthrough goal in the 61st minute, Verde looked bereft of ideas on the ball. Here is a match momentum chart from the contest. Notice the minimal green after the Dynamo’s first and second goals
The 2025 version of Austin FC is averaging 1.60 points per match, while the 2024 version picked up an average of 1.24 points per match. There’s no doubt Estevez has improved the team. Seven goals through 10 games isn’t good enough, though. For Austin FC’s current coach to remain more popular than his predecessor, he will need to find an answer to that most vexing of questions: how do you score in this notoriously low-scoring sport?
Sorry to see Wolff enjoying any success against the Verde!!! Tough luck injury issues prior and during the game surely influenced the outcome! The writer does an excellent job of sharing the production differences between the starters and their replacements!