San Diego FC will attempt to end a nine-game winless streak in league action Wednesday when they host an Austin FC side that is riding a three-match unbeaten run and playing its second tough road game in four days.
San Diego (3-5-4, 13 points) has shown signs of a long-awaited breakthrough recently, earning a 2-2 draw at home against LAFC on May 2 and a 1-1 result at Seattle Sounders last Saturday.
In that most recent outing, manager Mikey Varas’ squad came within 10 minutes of securing a road victory at one of the league’s most challenging venues.
Marcus Ingvartsen opened the scoring with his team-leading eighth goal of the season in the 18th minute, and San Diego controlled possession and shots on target for much of the contest.
However, a late surge from the Sounders led to Danny Musovski’s equalizer in the 80th minute, highlighting that Varas’ side struggles when it concedes possession.
“The learning lesson against Seattle is we renounced the ball at the end a little bit, and they start to gain momentum and we get pushed back,” Varas said. “We also are a team that defends well because we have the ball so much. We just need to remember that we’ve got to stay brave and we’ve got to keep playing our game.”
Austin (3-4-5, 14 points) is unbeaten in its last three matches. The Verde showed resilience by rallying for a 2-2 draw at Minnesota on Sunday, after the Loons scored twice in nine minutes through assists from James Rodriguez to take a second-half lead.
Two minutes after the second goal, Christian Ramirez equalized in the 79th minute with his fourth goal of the season since joining Austin in the second week of the campaign.
All four of the 35-year-old veteran striker’s goals have either tied the match or given Austin the lead.
“This is why we brought him,” manager Nico Estevez said. “We felt like he could help the team throughout the season and we believe in his qualities and how he is as a person also. … I think he’s doing exactly what we expected.”
