With 11 additional minutes added in the second half of Austin FC’s away match against the LA Galaxy on Wednesday, the task was simple: hold on to its two-goal lead and win a valuable three points for the playoff race.
However, in the second minute of added time, Austin defender Mikkel Desler was called for a foul in the box against Galaxy’s Joseph Paintsil. The Ghanaian forward slotted the penalty into the bottom left corner and past Austin’s all-star goalkeeper Brad Stuver.
Paintsil remained dangerous as in the final minute of the game, he attempted to curve a shot from the left corner of the 18-yard box to the far side of the goal.
Curling past Desler and fellow Austin defender Brendan Hines-Ike, an outstretched Stuver put a hand on the ball to secure an important 2-1 win for their playoff race.
“Right now is the moment where any point that we get is a point that puts us in a better position to make the playoffs,” head coach Nico Estévez said.
The Verde & Black are now eighth in the Western Conference standings, tied on points with the Colorado Rapids but with two more games to play. Austin is now in a prime position to jump into the top seven and automatically qualify for the playoffs, instead of a play-in match.
Outside of the playoff implications that come from the win, it could also be the turning point for Albanian forward Myrto Uzuni’s season, who had failed to register a Major League Soccer goal since his first on March 30 versus St. Louis City SC.
In the 40th minute, from his own half, Hines-Ike broke Galaxy’s midfield line. Connecting through forward Diego Rubio, Uzuni got the ball, his first two touches bringing him into the 18-yard box. He then struck the ball into the bottom left corner of the goal, ending a 13-game scoreless streak in the MLS.
“Against
New England
, (Uzuni) played amazing, and today he played also amazing,” Estévez said. “The difference is the other day he didn’t score, and today he has scored. I think he’s playing really well and I have total confidence in him and total belief in him since day one, and it’s about time he started scoring goals because he has the quality.”
Uzuni also managed to grab an assist in the 63rd minute after he chased down a loose ball in the box, getting a slight touch on the ball before goalkeeper Novak Mićović could collect it. Midfielder Owen Wolff was there to take a touch and blast it past two defenders.
The win is Austin’s first in the MLS since its 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls on June 14.
“My job is to show (the players) that we believe in them and they believe in their teammates,” Estévez said. “Sometimes things are not going your way … but you are having the chances. It’s about someone believing in you and help you to keep having that confidence because it is very easy to abandon the players, coaches and everyone when things are going the wrong way.”
After the MLS All-Star game on July 23, Austin FC will return to the field on July 26 to play D.C. United at 6:30 p.m.
