Austin FC loses another back line starter, this time for the season with Zan Kolmanic
Luck hasn’t been on Austin FC's side through the first two months of the season when it comes to staying healthy.
Heading into Saturday’s home game against Vancouver, El Tree announced this week that it has lost a second member of its starting back line, and this time it’s for the entire season. Left back Zan Kolmanic tore an ACL in training earlier this week.
That comes after starting center back Julio Cascante suffered a groin injury in the first 10 minutes of the season opener Feb. 25. He hasn’t stepped on the field since.
Cascante will return in late May, but Kolmanic’s injury puts a defense that was already lacking depth in an even more precarious position.
Head coach Josh Wolff will presumably move Jon Gallagher to left back and start Nick Lima at right back, the duo who started most of the games last year, but offseason acquisition Adam Lundkvist is the only true option now to come off the bench for either.
“It’s disappointing and unfortunate for (Kolmanic) as he put in a lot of work to prepare for this season,” Wolff said during his weekly press conference. “From that standpoint, we still have four outside backs, and Alex (Ring) and Leo (Väisänen) have worked well together in the middle.”
El Tree (2-3-1, seven points) is coming off a 3-0 loss to Los Angeles FC last week that goalie Brad Stuver referred to as a “wake-up call.”
In a refreshingly blunt session during his time with the media, Stuver said the players haven’t done what they’ve needed to this season from a preparation standpoint and haven’t duplicated the work they put in that led to last season’s success.
“We’ve taken our foot off the gas a little bit, and you’ve seen the results of that,” he said. “For us to compete, we have to realize that we can’t just rest on what we did last year. We have to continue to grow, fight and get better. This is a brand new year and brand new team. For me, it’s we have to get back to who we are, and that’s working hard and getting a rhythm, and once we get that we’ll be fine. But as a team, you need to go out and put the work in and do what is expected of you.”
Vancouver (2-3-2, nine points) is one spot ahead of Austin FC in the standings and was eliminated from CONCACAF Champions League play with a 3-0 road loss to LAFC on Tuesday, but the focus for El Tree this week has been on itself. Stuver noted that the dissatisfaction with the team’s first two months came to a head this week among the players but said it was done in a productive manner.“We’re all a little bit pissed off and on edge because we expect more out of ourselves and more out of our group,” he said. “This week has been a little bit testy. There’s been some anger, nerves and disagreements, and that being in the locker room is fine. Sometimes that needs to happen to get the best out of each other. What we have in the locker room is try to hold each other accountable as we want to win games and championships. For us, it’s about getting back to the form and performances we were at in previous years.”
Austin FC vs. LAFC rivalry
The budding rivalry between LAFC and Austin FC received some gasoline last week.
LAFC gave out banners to its fans featuring the score of the Western Conference final, which it won 3-0 over El Tree. It also made public address announcements about the Western Conference final and had a trivia game in which three of the five answers were Austin FC.
“I take it as a huge compliment as they’re thinking about us nonstop,” Stuver said. “We know that them talking about us means there’s a lot of respect — as there should be. We’re thinking about this week’s game at the moment, but we definitely have the next game against LAFC here at Q2” in the back of their minds.
Radovanovic officially joins El Tree
Recently acquired center back Aleksandar Radovanovic joined the team in training for the first time this week.
On loan from Belgian club KV Kortrijk through the end of June, though the deal includes a permanent transfer option, the Serbian national said he’s physically ready to play, but it will take time to get up to speed on Austin FC’s style of play.
“My biggest challenge is tactically,” he said. “Physically, I’m in good shape, but tactically I need to get involved in the group, and that’s the most important thing for me immediately.”
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Wolff noted that he could see action as soon as next week on the road against the Los Angeles Galaxy.
“When you’re coming from abroad, settling in is about how quickly you can acclimatize into your new environment with housing, car and all the things that make your life go,” he said. “We have a lot of games in May, but we’re hopeful he’ll get in some games in April as well.”
Club extends deal with Cascante
Cascante will be in Austin through at least 2025.
The club announced a contract extension with him this week that is guaranteed through 2025 and has a team option for 2026.
“Julio’s been exemplary since the inception of our club both on and off the field,” Wolff said. “His growth the first year was impressive. He took in a lot of information and then came in last year and really nailed down the starting position. He’s been fit, so we rewarded him with a contract extension to show our commitment to him. But it also shows his commitment to the city.”
Saturday's match
Vancouver Whitecaps FC (2-2-3, nine points) at Austin FC (2-3-1, seven points), 7:30 p.m., Q2 Stadium, Apple TV, 97.5
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin FC loses second back line starter to major injury in Kolmanic
