With loss to Portland Timbers, Austin FC fails to gain ground on league leader LAFC
The result was a letdown but not the performance as Austin FC fell to the Portland Timbers 2-1 Wednesday night at Q2 Stadium.
Five days after an impressive 4-1 win over league-leading Los Angeles FC, El Tree couldn’t build momentum as Portland’s Bill Tuiloma scored on a header off a free kick in the 16th minute and Zac McGraw finished a rebound in the 73rd to give the Timbers a 2-0 lead.
Sebastián Driussi scored on a header in the 79th minute for the home side, but there would be no comeback from a 2-0 deficit for Austin FC this time.
Here are some observations from the game as Austin FC enters its quickest turnaround of the season, heading to Nashville on Saturday:
Opportunity to gain ground missed
Austin FC generally played quality soccer — especially in the second half when it dominated possession and hit the crossbar multiple times — but the result was especially disappointing because LAFC lost earlier in the night, so an opportunity to gain points in the Supporters’ Shield race was missed.
More:Austin FC routs league-leading LAFC behind two goals from Maxi Urruti
El Tree now has to refocus quickly as it will play a surging Nashville SC team that has won its last three games by a combined score of 10-1 after blasting Colorado 4-1 Wednesday.
Austin FC caught on counterattacks in first half
Portland has speed to burn and arguably is the fastest team in the MLS.
The Timbers nearly hurt Austin FC several times on counters in the first half, but some stellar saves by goalkeeper Brad Stuver, a sliding clearance by Ruben Gabrielsen and some defensive blocks in general kept the team from facing a bigger halftime deficit than 1-0.
Surprisingly, Portland didn’t keep up that style of play in the second half, as it dissolved into an extremely compact defense that rarely challenged the Austin FC box outside of McGraw’s goal.
The Timbers also engaged in plenty of time-wasting techniques in the final 45 minutes, which combined with their overly conservative play is the type of soccer that makes it hard to attract the casual fan.
Lightning forces late kickoff at Q2 stadium
Due to lightning and the storms rolling through the area, the game started just before 10 p.m., nearly two hours later than its scheduled 8 p.m. kickoff.
The majority of the fans dealt with being rained on for about 30 minutes and stuck around for the game, which further cements that Austin FC has one of the top-three fan bases in the league.
Emiliano Rigoni makes debut
Recent acquisition and designated player Emiliano Rigoni made his debut in the second half and played the game’s final 30 minutes.
He wasn’t involved in play too much, but he showed quickness and a nice first touch.
Driussi's goal was his 20th of the season, which leads MLS.
Urruti leaves with injury
Forward Maxi Urruti left the game in the first half with what appeared to be a hamstring injury.
Austin FC has depth at the position with Danny Hoesen and Moussa Djitte, but losing Urruti for a significant amount of time would be a big blow as he’s made a huge impact this season with not only his nine goals, but his work ethic and team chemistry with Driussi, Diego Fagúndez and others.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin FC vs Portland TImbers: Highlights, updates, scores
