13th Man

God solid start to your time in Belgium! A poor performance that ends up a draw seems a decent result, if definitively disappointing. Squad looks solid enough. Good start, so you can reshape the club at your own pace.

A treble is never easy, and I think the supporters will take the CL over the league!

This is kind of the point of the save start - overcoming the American stigma, and having to prove it here the hard way. My first test save saw lots of League 2 English sides reach out, but I felt like that wasn’t realistic for an American without connections in England. For that reason, I’ve only just turned on the European leagues as playable. I expected 3-4 seasons but figured that an NACL and a (regular season) title win might shorten the timeline. Apparently not! VNL wins wouldn’t get a Scottish side interested so I think you’re about right in terms of how the game views the MLS. I’m a bit disappointed, but have found ways of getting interested in this season - especially by taking over transfers and the salary cap. I started reading your thread last night and it seems you and I shared a similar trajectory, though you went a step further and went semi-pro where I peaked at playing on sides that had players recruited to semi-pro and/or were made up of former lower league professionals and top college players in my New York days. Will be following your adventures as well. So I hear. I really don’t keep tabs on the drama in the USMNT, but even I heard a bit about all that. I really think the in game issues are just an FM AI thing, but I like the idea that it happened for external reasons as well.

Backroom Shakeup in Austin Back in mid July, it had been a normal day of practice for Austin. At least at first glance. Many players noticed that head coach Brian Lindsay was much more reserved than usual. The players knew the look. It was the look he has when they concede too easily, when they lose a ball carelessly in midfield, or after an especially bad game. Lindsay isn’t a coach who explodes at you. He is loud when he is happy, jumping with joy and pumping his fists at a beautiful goal or a wonderful performance. When he is mad, though, he gets a quiet, focused intensity that does not allow you to avoid admitting your mistakes. The players wondered what was going on. Who was in the doghouse? Why was Lindsay so quiet? They were on a great run and had just thrashed LA Galaxy in the US Open Cup the previous weekend. Then after practice Lindsay told the team that Gabriel Chapeco - arguably the best keeper in the MLS - had been sold and was on a plane headed back to Brazil. Everyone understood; Lindsay’s quiet fury wasn’t directed at them, but, most likely at Sporting Director Claudio Renya. A shifting of power Sources in the club say that Lindsay was furious with Reyna’s timing, especially considering how little he brought in for Chapeco, and with the later decision to loan out midfielder Pereira. It was also Lindsay who found replacements in free agent keeper Luthe and promising young midfielder Ben Bender. The latter deal especially had Lindsay’s fingerprints all over it as he engineered and negotiated the trade, apparently despite Renya’s objections. Like many in the media, Renya thought that Lindsay overpaid for the former 1st overall draft pick, but based on Bender’s performances, especially in the Leagues Cup, it is starting to look like Lindsay was correct. More importantly, the fact that the board let Lindsay take the lead on that deal showed a power shift within the organization. It now appears that Brian Lindsay is leading transfers, trades and contracts, with Renya reduced to an advisory role. Renya has had his moments. Olmes Garcia was the MLS signing of the season even if he fluffed his lines in the Western Conference final. Kamal Miller has been quite good in the center of defense even if he has gone missing on occasion. On the whole, though, it seems that Lindsay has been the driving force behind Austin’s most successful trades and transfers. It has since come to light that while Renya negotiated the deals, Lindsay was the one who recommended [LB/CB] Criscito, Chapeco, [LB] Venegas, along with bringing in [GK] Luthe and [CM] Bender. Having led Austin from the dregs of the MLS into a force in the postseason, it makes sense that Austin would give the lead to a head coach who has led this incredible run. This offseason will be a good test of Lindsay’s managerial chops. On tactics he is clearly doing well, but will he be able to juggle salary caps, trades, and the draft? Austin FC’s boardroom seems to think so. A year and a half ago they took a chance on Brian Lindsay, and now they are taking another leap of faith. Time will tell if it works out as well as the first. [To be clear, there’s no mechanic in the game that changed. Part of this save is that if there’s a DoF, I can’t interfere until I’ve ‘earned’ the trust of the board. Between selling GK Chapeco and Lindsay’s success, I felt it was realistic that the board would give him more responsibilities. Honestly, it would be an interesting mechanic in the game where the club decides how much say in transfers etc you get.]

The door slammed in his face Having won the NACL and the Supporters Shield while falling one point short of the MLS points record, Lindsay felt ready to move on to his next managerial challenge. The world, however, disagreed. Lindsay applied to three clubs in Europe that had all recently sacked their managers, LASK in Austria, Aberdeen in Scotland, and Willem II in the Netherlands. None were top clubs or in top leagues, and all three clubs were struggling. LASK and Aberdeen were low in their respective leagues, and Willem II was in the second division and struggling even there. The idea was that Lindsay would try and do what he’d done to Austin - take a team that was underperforming and get them on track. Lindsay’s applications were not just rebuffed, but laughed at. Lindsay took the hint. He may have taken the MLS by storm, but that apparently didn’t mean much in Europe. Americans don’t have a great reputation as footballers, but it's even worse for managers. It would take more from Lindsay for European clubs to overcome their distrust. So, instead of starting anew in Europe, Lindsay found himself stuck in Austin. Of course, continuing to lead a club that would likely continue to challenge for silverware wasn’t exactly a horrible place to be. He briefly considered resigning and waiting out a job, but how long would he have to wait? And what club would take him? Would taking over at some struggling second division club in a lesser European nation even help him get a good job later? Would he be better served by padding his resume with another season in the MLS? Lindsay decided to stay in Austin - and get his Continental A license while he was at it. He did have one other ask of the board however…

Fantastic form. [9 matches in one month? That's not so crazy right? Oh, okay, yes - I need to get Lindsay out of the MLS!] Good business with Swedburg out and Torres in. Great to have the guy you were looking for. Swedburg will be well remembered by the Man Utd support, but the move was correct. On another note - two MOTM awards for Hannibal??? Did you forget he was on my naughty list? A missed opportunity! You were one on one with the keeper and fluffed your lines there! Me, I would have just seen a graph and been like - wow, these guys and their stats! You should have just dropped it in, and left us pondering why it was an important stat...

He should be scoring even more. It's crazy how many one-on-ones he misses. It's not normally so bad. Again, it was so, so, so very hard not to savescum this one. That old temptation was strong, but I resisted. That's what I hear. I have tried several times to get into the MLS. It's on at reasonable times. It's local...but I just can't. There are many reasons, but that's one of them. Also, now that I'm getting my kids into football, we watch the in the morning together and let my wife sleep in and everyone's happy. As for where I'm going next...

Western Conference Final Kick off And we’re off in Austin. A place in the MLS Cup final on the line! 8th minute Austin on the counter here. Rigoni picks up the ball on the right flank. He sees Fagundez’s run through the middle. It’s a great ball. Fagundez chests it down. He’s a bit wide but get’s the shot off… BLOCKED! Fagundez can’t quite get the ball out from under his feet quick enough and allows Colorado to get the block in. 12th minute [Colorado’s] Priso intercepts. RB Lima is caught too far upfield. Priso sends the ball wide as Ausitn struggle to recover. Lewis shoots… SAVED! The shot is rather tame in the end and Luthe is down calmly to collect. 18th minute DM Valencia wins the ball in the center circle and nods it out to Druissi on the left flank. Druissi pauses…and sends the ball deep into Colorado’s half. Garcia is free! Only the keeper to beat! HE HITS THE POST!!! Garcia, under some pressure, doesn’t quite connect with the ball the way he wants but still very nearly opens the scoring here in Austin! 27th minute Rigoni with the ball down the right flank. He sends a lofted cross to the far post… OFF TARGET! Druissi meets the ball on the volley but skies it. It was not and easy chance, but you’d expect someone of Druissi’s quality to at least hit the target. Half time Austin have been the clearly better side, but have not been able to finish any of their chances. It has not been comfortable for Colorado, but they are defending stoutly. 70th minute Colorado will try to get out of their third…but Fagundez sticks a toe in there and it falls to Garcia. Just outside the box… SAVED!!! Garcia’s sidefooted shot is tame and right at Bond. With either power or placement Garcia could have scored, but he had neither and it’s a rather easy save. 71st minute Ring with the ball at midfield. He sends it wide to Druissi who is attacking the space between Colorado’s fullback and center half. He’s in space…but he one times it into the path of Garcia who is through on goal! BLOCKED! Garcia waits too long to get the shot off and the covering leftback is able to get the block in. Another chance goes begging! 79th minute [Colorado’s] Alves tries to being the ball to midfield but Ring dives into the tackle and wins the challenge. It falls to Garcia, who lays it off to CM(a) Pochettino. It’s right to Rigoni. Garcia’s made a run and Rigoni sends him through on goal… SAVED!!! It’s better from Garcia but the shot lacks conviction. The pace on it allows [GK] Bond to stick out a leg and put it out for a corner. 84th minute [GK] Luthe collects the ball…and sends it up high towards Garcia…who nicks it off [Colorado’s] Estrada! He drives at the keeper… MISSED! Garcia sends the ball high into the stands. 86th minute [BBM] Bender loses out with a wayward pass…but he and [LB] Criscito get the ball back. He turns and sends a glorious ball deep into Colorado’s half. Garcia is onto it. He’s through on goal again! WIDE!!!! With only the keeper to beat, Garcia somehow sends the shot just wide of the post. Austin’s normally reliable forward has had a torrid time in front of goal tonight, but you feel like one of these has to find its way into the net. 88th minute Austin on the break here! Pochettino spreads it wide to Rigoni. Rigoni charges down the flank. Centers it for Garcia in the box again… WIDE!!! Garcia misses again. This time he was under some pressure, but he should be hitting the target from this range! End of Regulation Austin’s Gracia had three fantastic opportunities to win this game for Austin in the last ten minutes alone but couldn’t find the net. At this point Lindsay must be wishing he’d put on forward Urutti, but with how dangerous Garcia looked, you can’t fault him for keeping the faith in the club’s leading scorer. 95th minute [RB] Lima loses out in the challenge with [Colorado’s] Elis. He’s been caught far too narrow. Where is [CB] Gabrielsen and why was Lima tucked in challenging for a header? It’s out wide for [Colorado’s] Zardes, free with the right flank at his mercy. Lima sprints back to cover but overruns the ball as Zardes stops. Zardes with the cross into the middle… GOAL!!!!! COLORADO TAKE THE LEAD!!!! Elis rises over [CB] Miller and finishes with a powerful header. Luthe gets a hand to it but can’t keep it out! Can you believe this! Colorado have found a goal! 96th minute Austin charge forward straight from the kickoff. Bender plays it forward to Garcia, who beats his man on the dribble. Garcia is forced wide but…a great move beats his man again and he’s into the six yard box…. CLEARED OFF THE LINE!!! Garcia does everything right here! His shot finally beats Bond in goal only for Markanich to save Colorado’s lead with a goalline clearance. Rigoni was right there as well, and had he gotten any piece of his body to it the ball would have been in the net. 104th minute Druissi down the left flank towards the byline. He send the ball in. Garcia is there to meet it… HITS THE POST!! The ball hits the post, then [GK] Bond, but the keeper is able to dive on top of the ball before it rolls into the net. This is getting ridiculous. On another day Garcia would have three goals or more! End of Extra Time Colorado have done it! They’re Western Conference Champions and on to the MLS Cup final to face Atlanta! Absolute heartbreak here for Austin and especially Garcia. After scoring 31 in 41 appearances, he simply couldn’t find the net in this crucial match. Garcia’s xG - 2.49, goals - 0. It must be said, however, there has to be some controversy about the way that Colorado were able to foul Austin constantly without being truly penalized. They had six yellow cards, and 28 total fouls, but were able to keep all 11 players on the pitch despite consistent and persistent fouling throughout the match. [It has been a long time since I’ve had to resist such a strong temptation to savescum. This was positively brutal.] There can be no doubting that Colorado deserved nothing from the match. Though they were able to harras Austin and keep them from getting comfortable, they created almost nothing until extra-time, and then only really after Austin were forced to chase the game a bit more. So the season ended in heartbreak for Austin. With an MLS first NACL trophy as well as the Supporters Shield, they’ve put two major trophies in the cabinet, but they seemed destined to win the MLS Cup as well only to fall cruelly short.

A lovely reunion! Overall, good value signings. Summer looked a bit more fun than January, but still good work.

Western Conference Semi-Final The regular season was done, with Austin the runaway title winners. This is America, though, so all that matters is the playoffs. The regular season title was the lesser trophy than the MLS Cup. Austin were so close to winning it the season before, losing only on penalties. Austin’s first place finish in the Western Conference gave them a ‘bye’ in the first round of the playoffs, and put them directly into the Western Conference semifinals. Really, this meant that they would only need to win three games to lift the MLS Cup, rather than four. It was as simple a playoff match as Lindsay could hope. Remembering how effective the high press was in their previous meeting, Lindsay used the same tactic here to good effect. Sporting KC were pinned back. 3-0 was maybe a bit generous for Austin, with their third in stoppage time, but they were rock solid at the back and clinical up front against a good team. It gave Lindsay hope that his side was rounding into form just as it mattered most. Just two more wins and Lindsay could get the trophy that had alluded him the season before. Austin would host a Colorado team in the Western Conference Final (MLS semifinal) who had beat them in both their previous meetings - both in cups - though only one was anything close to a full strength side. Lindsay knew he’d have a tough matchup, though having his full squad fit and available made him feel much more confident.

A lot of was rest too. Squad was a bit too small for fighting on all fronts plus the truncated MLS season - 6/7months instead of 9. Once the exhaustion dissipated, results and performances improved.

I think this is the right move. I also believe rules are meant to be bent. Win the title in Belgium and I think your within the spirit of the challenge. Also, games are supposed to be fun! I’d hate the idea of you playing season after season waiting to win title when you need luck etc to beat RB? Then MOVING to them???

Brutal few matches and some glorious ones. Theres something to be said for the CL, especially now that you’re so far back. A CL run is something that would definitely live long in memory.

Title Race Heads to the Wire!!! With the Leagues Cup finished, the MLS season entered its final act, the race was heating up…for 2nd place in the MLS Supporters Shield standings. As much as the media tried to hype up Atlanta’s chances to win the title, those chances were almost purely mathematical. They would need to win nearly all their remaining matches while Austin would need to lose most of theirs. Even with injuries and fatigue still plaguing Austin, it was hard to see Austin collapsing to that extent. Austin would not play at home for the month of September as they traveled the USA from its southeastern most corner in Miami to its northwestern most corner in Seattle (3,300 miles/5,310 km), with a stopover in St Louis. At least, mercifully, Austin’s schedule would feature only one game per week, marking the first time all season that Austin would have more than one week without two games. Inter Miami (A) Druissi was back from injury but lacking in match fitness, but his return to the bench was a welcome sight. This was absolutely dire finishing from Austin. Normally a side that outscored its xG, on this occasion they massively underperformed. xG = 2.58, goals = 0. This wasn’t one of those games where the xG doesn’t tell the story either, they had four clear cut chances, hit the woodwork once, but somehow failed to score. At least they didn’t allow bottom feeding Inter Miami to score at the other end. For once, an injury scare turned out to be not too serious. DM Valencia, injured during the match, would only be out for a few days with a muscle cramp. St. Louis (A) St. Louis City weren’t a great team, but their 4-4-2 featured two huge strikers that could cause all kinds of trouble. CB Miller was on duty with Canada Gabrielsen was one game away from suspension, and Lindsay wanted him to play against Seattle the following week. He considered playing a pairing of De los Santos and Criscito, but both weren’t especially good in the air, so he went with his two backup CBs who were both strong and good in the air. Lindsay had mixed feelings about this one. It was a fightback, with St Louis scoring first, and looking the better side for decent portions of the match. The game looked over when, in the 54th minute, Austin gave up a penalty. At 2-0 the game would likely be over. Austin GK Luthe picked the right way and saved it, and while St Louis were able to pounce on the rebound, the ball was cleared off the line. Ten minutes later, CB Kip Keller rose up to head home a free kick, and then, in the second minute of stoppage time, PF Garcia raced through to score the winner. It was a fantastic feeling to win in stoppage time, but there were worrying signs. Seattle (A) Austin were unable to get revenge for the loss in the reverse fixture, but managed to rescue a late draw. They looked better than they had against St Louis, but Austin were still lacking something. Around the MLS A midweek match between Montreal and Atlanta saw 2nd place Atlanta fall. There would be no late race for the league title. The result confirmed the title for Austin! Their form was nothing like the early season, but Austin had done well enough to finish up the title race with two games to spare. Cincinnati (A) Garcia ended the match with a hat-trick, but he honestly should have had four or five goals. The seventh minute might sound like an early goal, but Garcia had three clear cut chances, through on goal in the first five minutes alone. He missed badly twice, hit the woodwork once, and finally slotted home. He then went on to score two more and complete his hat trick. Finally, Austin were back to their best. Happily for the moment, Austin would not play again for 11 days, so Lindsay sent a lot of the squad on vacation for a week. He hoped they would return refreshed and ready to finish the season strong. Other than the Cincinnati game, Austin had labored through most of September. NACL - Cavalry (A) Again Austin win fairly comfortably, but are very wasteful in their shooting. Three clear cut chances and only one taken against a Cavalry FC side lucky to be on the same pitch as Austin. Other than the scoreline, the match was notable for the interesting formation the Canadian Premier League side used. 4-1-2-2-1. Fair to say it didn’t work especially well - their goal came off a set-piece - but it was interesting nonetheless. MLS - LAFC (H) Austin finished the regular season at home against a struggling LAFC side. Lindsay considered resting his starters, but wanted to keep up fitness before a long wait for the next NACL match and the Western Conference semi-finals. Summary Overall it was a successful two months for Austin after a somewhat disappointing exit to the Leagues Cup. There was a stinker against Inter Miami, but otherwise it was a good run as Austin went into the playoffs. Yet Lindsay didn’t feel confident. His side were winning, but they weren’t playing with any sort of fluidity or purpose. Despite the fixture list loosening up, they still looked leggy. At both ends of the pitch they were far worse than they’d been earlier in the season. Up front they went from outperforming xG to underperforming and they weren’t keeping clean sheets anymore. There’s a lot of talk in American sports about “peaking at the right time”, which is heading into the playoffs. Austin certainly were not doing that, even if they were still in good form. Lindsay often thought of the loss of GK Chapeco and wondered what would have been if they’d been able to keep the Brazilian. It was impossible to know if Chapeco would have made a large difference, but he had been one of the top keepers in the MLS before returning to Brazil. MLS Standings Austin FC finish out the season with a nine point cushion over chasers Atlanta United. They fall short of the MLS points record set by Columbus the year before (79) by a solitary point but lose only twice all season. With 68 goals scored, they were the best in the MLS by 13 goals, and they also boasted the joint best defense in the league with only 27 conceded. NACL - Group Stage Austin finished the NACL with a win over FC Dallas and topped the group with a 100% record. Hopefully, this would mean an easy draw in the first round… Notable Player A shout out to Austin’s excellent IWB on the left Francisco Venegas. He’d arrived after his contract expired with Tigres in Liga MX, and slotted in perfectly into the IWB role in Austin’s 4-3-3. He was solid enough defensively, worked hard for the team, and popped up regularly with excellent passes from the left flank. His triad with BBM Ring and DM Valencia also was foundational to the way Austin were able to build from the back. Up next Austin would look to translate their regular season success into an S Cup. [Remember, Americans value the playoffs over all else] They would start with Sporting Kansas City, who beat a Seattle team that Austin had struggled against. A good start?

Two Colorados and a Tigres Leagues Cup Regional Finals (Quaterfinals) While Austin got six days off between the Monterrey NACL match and the Columbus Leagues Cup tie, they had only two days of here and many of the players had not fully recovered. Captain Ring found himself on the bench as Lindsay wasn’t sure he’d last the 90 with the shape he was in. New signing, and promising young midfielder Ben Bender started in his place. Bender repays Lindsay’s faith as he sets up a Garcia goal with a perfectly weighted pass into the path of the striker to put him through on goal. More and more, it looks like Lindsay was onto something when he traded for the 23 year old midfielder. HIs ability to pick a pass is as good as anyone at the club. But then it all went downhill from there. Colorado was clearly the better side. Austin looked tired and second best to the 50/50s, and Colorado was full of energy. Lindsay tried to push the lines up, to stop crosses, to push Colorado inside as they were dominating the flanks, but it did nothing to solidify Austin. In fact, they looked quite like Austin did against many other sides. Still, when Colorado scored a powerful effort from distance following a corner, Austin were still totally capable of winning the game. Colorado were clearly better, but rarely managed any decent chances. Austin let two golden chances get away from them either side of half time before Colorado scored on their one truly good chance of the match. Again, CB Miller made the wrong choice and didn’t track the more dangerous player who was allowed clear on goal. Lindsay was disappointed, he felt like the Leagues Cup was there for Austin to win. But with the sheer number of matches his side was forced to play, and without their best player in Druissi, this was a hurdle they couldn’t jump. Lindsay main regret was not starting his captain Ring. It may not have made a difference, and Ring was clearly not fit enough to last the 90, but he would have helped bring the intensity and drive needed to win this match. A lesson learned for Lindsay. NACL - Tigres (A) After hosting one side from Monterrey, Austin traveled to the Mexican city for this fixture. Fresh from the Leagues Cup disappointment, Lindsay hoped his side could bounce back. It would be a tough match, Austin had met Tigres in the NACL semi-finals the previous spring and had struggled in away before diminishing them in Austin. Twice Austin went ahead, and twice they were pinned back. Garcia’s two goals were well taken, one with a powerful header from a cross and the other following a glorious through ball from former Tigres player, IWB Venegas. Both Tigres goals, however, could be blamed on CB Miller, again. The first saw Venegas lose out in the air, but Miller should have been there to cover. Instead he checked his backing run and Tigres forward Soteldo was able to score one on one with Luthe in Austin’s goal. The second was far more inexcusable, with Miller taking a terrible line as he halfheartedly challenged sub forward Quinones, and was then left for dead. Venegas, despite being much further behind the play, was closer to the Tigres forward when he crossed the ball to a wide open Andre-Pierre Gignac to sidefoot it home. Lindsay had lost patience with CB Miller, and the Canadian international was pulled form the game. Only three minutes later, RW Rigoni stormed through from the right and scored a beautiful goal for the winner - but injured himself in the process. It was clearly no less than what Austin deserved, but at what cost? Now Austin would be forced to play without either of their first choice wingers - both of which were clearly Austin’s best players. US Open Cup Semi-Final - Colorado (A) With injuries piling up, and general fatigue severely affecting the players, Lindsay decided he didn’t care enough about the US Open Cup to field a full strength side. Though they’d have week’s rest after the match, Lindsay simply couldn’t risk any more injuries, especially with half the squad not fully recovered from the Tigres match. He decided instead to keep his starters more fresh for the last section of the season. Unsurprisingly, the backups lost 2-0 to a very good Colorado side who were taking the competition much more seriously. UP NEXT - Title race heads to the wire!

Leagues Cup With a Bit of NACL Mixed In Leagues Cup Regional Quarter-Final (Round of 32) Sporting KC actually looked the better side in the first half and had the better chances. Lindsay noticed that the danger was coming from crosses and direct balls from deep. At halftime he switched to a high press and instructed his players to stop crosses. After half it was all Austin, with Garcia opening the scoring and utility man and second half substitute Duka finishing off Sporting KC. It was their only two shots on target, but they all but silenced KC in the second half. Austin would face Columbus again in a cup competition. NACL Interrupting the Leagues Cup was the first match of the revamped North American Champions League - now with a group stage! As luck would have it, the draw pitted the most recent winner, Austin, against the five time [most] winners Liga MX side Monterrey. Austin were drawn as the hosts, so the decorated Mexican side traveled over the border into Texas. [To put the size of North America into perspective for any Europeans out there, the 375 miles (602 km) between Monterrey, Mexico and Austin, USA (a 6 and a half hour drive) is short travel compared to a lot of the away games. Traveling to Seattle, in the American northwest, is 2,116 miles and a 33 hour drive from Austin. That’s not even the furthest they have to travel in the league but it’s further than the distance between Madrid and Warsaw.] What a match. Austin dominated possession as usual, but Monterrey was consistently dangerous too. The first half saw them trade blows, with Monterrey having a fantastic early chance while Austin had more half chances. Two thirds of the game gone, new signing De los Santos, playing here as a CB, scored off a well worked set piece. Austin looked on top, and scuffed two excellent chances before Monterrey came back in the 79th minute with a goal when CB Miller failed to see the danger from a ball from deep and lost his mark. Parity lasted only a minute, however, as Austin attacked down the right straight from kickoff. RW Rigoni and Venegas - filling in at RB instead of his usual LB - combined before the latter found DM Valencia on the edge of the box. The BWM loves this spot, and once again scored with an unstoppable howitzer to open Austin FC’s 2023-2024 NACL campaign with a win. Leagues Cup Regional Semi-Final (Round of 16) After the Monterrey match Austin enjoyed a rare luxury - almost a full week’s rest between games. Austin came into the match fairly fresh and able to field a full strength side. Another demolition of a Columbus side that must be getting quite tired of Austin. Lindsay, on the other hand, was getting quite tired of injuries to key players. After scoring the opening goal, Druissi went down with an injury after only 20 minutes. As so often seemed to be the case, he’d be out for a month. PF Garcia punished Columbus with a hat trick while Austin held them to only one shot on target. Austin would face a surging MLS side Colorado in the Regional Final (quarterfinals), the same club they would face in the US Open Cup semi-finals a week later. Lindsay was a bit disappointed, having hoped to meet more Liga MX sides in this competition for some variety. Instead, after the group stage, it seemed to be all MLS. Maybe it was because the MLS was paused for the month while the Liga MX was starting their new season?

MLS All-Star Game Another thing about American sport is that we have a strange tradition of All-Star games where we pick the best players in each position and have them play a game against each other. It’s unclear why this is done, because no one really cares about these games. They could just as easily pick a “best 11” like any other league, but no, all American team sports insist on having an All-Star game. They’re sometimes kind of fun with skill challenges and such, but the actual games are basically friendlies that are even less interesting than regular friendlies because none of the players play in the same systems or styles - which is true in American football and basketball, though matters less in baseball. Usually, it’s the two national conferences that face off. The current MLS version is to pit the MLS All-Stars against either a foreign team in the States for friendlies, or, in this case against the Liga MX All Stars. Why even bring this up? Because Lindsay was picked to manage the side and it was littered with 5 Austin players out of 18 picked. It was no surprise that Austin’s deadly front 3 were all picked, and they were joined by CM/W Fagundez and CB Gabrielsen. Lindsay guessed that Chapeco would have been picked too, had he not left for Brazil. Wanting to protect his tired players - as well as be fair to the other sides in the league - Lindsay didn’t start all 5 Austin players and did a straight swap of his two wingers at halftime. It was a tale of two halves, with an MLS All Stars side filled with Austin players already used to playing in Lindsay’s style, they blitzed Mexico’s All-Stars with four first half goals as they dominated possession. The Liga MX squad came back in the second half, with former France international winger Thauvin scoring twice, but then a penalty was missed that would have made the scoreline a bit less lopsided. It was a fun, if very silly diversion for Lindsay and another trophy to add to his cabinet, however minor.

[My kids have been home sick all week so far. Sad for my sick days at work, but with them flopping around I’ve actually had a lot more time to play FM! I’ve made it through this season and preseason of the next so lots more updates to come.] Leagues Cup Group Stage A strange competition, the Leagues cup was a cup tournament between the American/Canadian MLS and Mexico’s Liga MX. It started out with a three team group stage followed by seemingly endless knockout rounds - regional quarters, semis, finals…regional finals which are really just the quarter finals of the actual Leagues Cup. So five knockout rounds and two group stage matches. Austin, fresh off their injury crisis and relentless schedule were, of course, going to be forced to play two games in a row after the NYCFC match at the weekend while both their opponents would get a week's rest before and in the case of one, between the two games as well. At. San Luis (H) With their first opponents in the bottom half of the Liga MX, Lindsay left a few normal starters on the bench to keep them fresh for the tough match away to more familiar foes Atlas. This included a debut for new signing Bender as a BBM. Though featuring some tired legs, Austin jumped ahead in front of their home fans. Druissi got in behind and scored in just the third minute. It would be the theme of the match as can be seen from the passing diagram - Durissi got in behind again and again down the left. It led to another goal in the 33rd minute when new signing Ben Bender scored on his debut [good robot] after a wonderful pass from Druissi put him through on goal. Druissi himself completed the scoring from the spot. A consolation goal for the visitors did little to take the sheen off the win…but then backup RB Ataide went down with a hamstring injury moments before Lindsay was going to sub him off. This left Austin with no right backs for the next three weeks. AD Atlas (A) With both RBs out injured Lindsay had to find someone to fill the hole in the team sheet. The unlucky player would be BBM Ring. With the workrate, endurance and combination of offensive and defensive skills, he had the ability to do a job there, even if the position would be unfamiliar. Once again Austin raced ahead. Unlike their previous meeting, this was not a cagey affair. Austin showed no fear, despite being in front of a hostile crowd, and outplayed Atlas for most of the match. Up 2-0 at half time and only allowing Atlas one shot in the first half, Austin looked to be cruising. Then Atlas created two excellent chances in the second half and finished both to earn a draw. Austin were through to the knockout rounds but Atlas had a chance to top the group if they beat San Luis by 2. Instead, Atlas turned around and lost, so Austin topped the group and would face MLS side Sporting KC in the next round. UP NEXT - The Most Friendliest of Friendlies: the MLS All-Star Game

Excellent work getting to the CL! As @Hootieleecesays, the aim has to be the Europa League. I see from your quote above though that maybe the league isn't going so well?

You make decent points in terms of Swedburg - if another club comes in with a good offer you obviously have to take it. I do wonder if, once he went down the pecking order, he'd be more agreeable towards taking a low salary. Still, worth moving him when he's so far down and using those funds to help buy a top player. Interesting choices at GK and CB. Bringing in Bazunu would be a nice thumbing your nose at City, but maybe an unrealistic transfer for that reason and being new at Bayern - especially if he's playing regularly. With Torres and Marsa both in a similar price range, it does make sense to bring in Torres. If Kaique is the future, you don't need to worry about longevity necessarily. The pro for Marsa is that if he is replaced in the starting lineup, he'd likely get a decent transfer fee down the road too. Interesting updates. I like how Iniesta is trying to be aware of finances even though Man U generally likes throwing money around.

Four days between matches? Wow! Finally, mercifully, the matches started to slow down a bit. There would be four to five days between most of the matches, nearly a week in one case! Joking aside, it would be massive to get that extra day or two of rest between matches, allowing Lindsay to make tactical subs or rest specific players rather than play triage. It would be an interesting mix of a month, with fourth best in the MLS Orlando City coming to Austin, but at this point Lindsay feared no team in the MLS. Of course, any team, Austin included, would have off days, but Lindsay knew his side could beat anyone easily when they were on their game. Future Departure One important player during Lindsay’s time in Austin would be leaving following the season. Forward Urutti had fallen behind Garcia in the pecking order, but still was a big contributor. Lindsay would be a hypocrite to blame him though, considering his plans to find a new job after the season. Little did Lindsay knew that this would just be the beginning of the madness that would take up so much of his time and energy during July… The Matches Second in the East and forth in the MLS, even Orlando could barely trouble the juggernaut which was Austin FC. An early penalty sent Austin on their way, and while Orlando notched a late goal, the result was never in doubt. Nashville had fallen off after an excellent start to the season, and Austin piled more misery upon them, starting with another early penalty. Transfer Alert! Sporting Director brought in a good depth option in Uruguayan Matías De Los Santos. Aggressive, brave, and hardworking, he’d be a good rotation option for DM Valencia and at CB if necessary. It took a bit of buying down the salary cap to get him registered, but it ended up being quite simple. US Cup With Austin in the quarterfinals, he decided to put on a decent if still rotated side, including giving De Los Santos his first start. The result was another brutal match for the opposition. The match started with yet another (relatively) early penalty, only this time it was saved. Didn’t matter though, like the Champions in waiting that they were, Austin still ran out 3-0 winners. Transfer Alert! Just as it seemed as if Austin would coast through the rest of the season, Sporting Director Renya accepted a bid for their excellent GK Gabriel Chapeco. Lindsay was stunned. Not only did it leave Austin without one of the team's best players, it also left them scrambling mid season. The offer wasn’t even that good - $4.3m when Lindsay would have never wanted to let him leave for less than $5-6m, especially mid-season. Chapeco agreed to terms and headed back to Brazil. There was no time to get a keeper in ahead of the next league match which left Lindsay concerned. The backup was a massive drop off. Lindsay was just glad they were so far ahead of the competition. MLS Austin didn’t deserve any more than a draw here, but Lindsay still felt as if Chapeco would have stopped at least one of the two goals. The backup was much less adept at commanding his box and seemed lacking in confidence. It should be said, though, that Montreal’s striker simply bossed the game and once again, Austin hit the woodwork twice so it wasn’t all of the keeper/ Even worse Austin lost RB Lima for 4-5 weeks, just before the Leagues Cup, a competition Lindsay had honestly been looking forward to. Fagundez went down too in the match, though he’d only be out for a week or so. Transfer Alerts! German veteran Luthe arrived quickly on a free (Lindsay had to do a bit of cleaning up after the mess Renya made, though the negotiations were left to the Sporting Director). A solid all around keeper, Lindsay especially appreciated that he had Chapeco’s aerial ability while boasting good communication skills and a good command of the area. With Austin being a top side that tended to dominate, these qualities were more important than just shot stopping. Instead, Lindsay needed Luthe to command the area and the defense to avoid having to stop shots in the first place. As Lindsay helped put out one fire, Renya allowed another to start. Zwolle from the Netherlands wanted to loan backup CM Pereira. After swatting away another offer from Sparta Rotterdam earlier, Lindsay was surprised when Renya accepted this offer for a key rotation option that Lindsay needed to keep already jaded players rested. MLS Austin were in the midst of an injury crisis that left Lindsay with serious selection headaches just in terms of fielding a team. RB Lima, CM/W Fagundez were joined in the treatment room by CM Pochettino who went down in training. RW Rigoni was still returning to fitness. It was an especially challenging injury pileup because it was concentrated in two positions both filled by utility man Dilly Duka, but he couldn’t fill both at once. Pereira’s departure also meant that he was not available to fill one of the roles. Lindsay decided it might be a good chance to try out a formation that he’d liked the look of after being reduced to ten men a few months before - especially with LW Druissi comfortable playing as a forward. NYCFC ran a 5-2-1-2 (DM) so wouldn’t be able to overload the flanks and Lindsay hoped the two forwards could help punch through the middle. It…did not work. NYCFC dominated possession and looked by far the better team. Austin had a few chances, but they looked disjointed, unsure and nothing like the juggernaut that had dominated the MLS. Lindsay admitted defeat - up to that point NYCFC had 70% of possession - and was about to switch back to the 4-3-3 when backup CB Kip Keller got distracted remembering a funny meme and lost track of his marker and it was 1-0. After the switch back to the 4-3-3, Austin looked much better, but they couldn’t manage to get back into the match. Lindsay also decided not to chase the game too much as the Leagues Cup started only two days later… Lesson learned - it was not a good tactic for a team looking to play on the front foot, and maybe was more suited to playing on the counter. Of course, not having trained the tactic much played a role, but the signs for using it with this club were not promising. Transfer Alert! With a major need of depth in the midfield, Renya was little help. He suggested 37 year old free agent James Millner, but the former Liverpool and England player was going to ask far too much for a contract and Austin had very little salary cap space. Lindsay took matters into his own hands and scoured the scout reports. There were plenty of quality players suggested, but none at a price that Austin could pay - at least in terms of wages. Parting with $400k and Atlanta’s 1st round pick (traded as part of a previous trade) Lindsay personally brought in 22 year old Ben Bender, making the first transfer of his career. There was a lot to be desired in a lot of areas (mental toughness and physicality especially), but he was a good technical player who could pass. The media seemed to think Lindsay had been fleeced, but Austin had money - especially after bringing 75% of the Chapeco $4.3m and the young man took up $0 in cap space due to being a developmental player (or something). Time would tell if Lindsay had made a rash decision. Atlanta’s first round draft pick would also be very low, considering Atlanta’s high league position. Summary Things had been looking too easy. Running away with the West, enjoying a comfortable lead in the Supporters Shield, and the games finally spacing out a bit, Lindsay had hoped to just make it to the Leagues Cup unscathed. Even better, Atlanta had a miserable June/July that saw them lose even more ground in the title race - suffering three losses and three draws. Then, out of nowhere injuries and ridiculous decisions by Sporting Director Renya created a series of personnel crises, this led almost directly, Lindsay felt, to four dropped points. Tables Happily, stumbling Atlanta were still 15 points back, or 9 if they won both games in hand. In fact, Colorado were only three points behind them. Though suffering a little wobble, Lindsay felt confident that Austin would steady the ship. With the departures replaced, Lindsay expected to see out the MLS season fairly comfortably. Now the focus shifted to the Leagues Cup, a competition which Lindsay was looking forward to. Had the title race been any closer, Lindsay may have been frustrated with the distraction. As it was, Lindsay saw it as a welcome way to add novelty to a season that kept finding ways to turn into a slog. Right away, Austin would find some variety as they faced Mexican side San Luis, followed by a more familiar foe in CD Atlas, who they’d defeated on penalties in the NACL Quarter finals. UP NEXT - Leagues Cup Group Stage

You’re in an interesting spot here. Doing as well as could be expected when you’re fighting against financial might you can’t match, and it’s hard to see the next step. Still, brilliant work in the transfer market - which is necessary if you want to take a run at Rancid Barf (🤮) Salzburg. That WCB looks perfect as you say. Are you thinking you’ll give it another go? Or will you jump at the chance to leave Austria? Or maybe a bit of both - give it a go while hoping for a way out?

Great run continues maybe you should keep the youth? No need to rush him out Okay, I’m done. Still, I like to keep the youngsters that perform around until they get restless or get to thinking they own the place. Why rush to sell him if he’s performing? Ouch, that’s just brutal. Great win over Barca though and good form overall.

Lose to one rival, Great win against another Tragedy and joy. Injuries abound Youngsters step up for their club That’s football for you Yes that was a double haiku, you’re welcome.

Been a crazy good run, approaching the MLS points record (73). In terms of moving on, several European league are coming online - Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Scotland and the Netherlands will come online in July. I’d kept off everything but North America the first season so that Lindsay didn’t get any unrealistic offers. I do think that with a NACL win, a (very likely) Supporters Shield and possible MLS points record, Lindsay has earned his move. That’s probably a good idea. There’s been more rotation and more subs thrown on earlier (see Columbus) but never a full throwing of a match. Might be a wise choice though.