Austin FC hammers FC Dallas in strong start to second half of season: our five takeaways
To start the second half of the season, Austin FC turned in its best performance of the year Wednesday night.
El Tree dominated FC Dallas 3-0 at Q2 Stadium in a game that ended close to midnight after inclement weather delayed kickoff until 10 p.m. Ethan Finlay, Diego Fagundez and Gyasi Zardes scored for Austin FC (6-8-4, 22 points), which had more than 58% possession and at times did what it wanted to while missing several chances that could have put the game at a score of 5-0 or 6-0.
Here are some thoughts from the match as El Tree has a quick turnaround as it hosts Houston Dynamo FC in another derby Saturday.
This was the best version of El Tree
Wednesday's win was a glimpse of what Austin FC can be at its best.
Entering the game after 10 days off, relatively healthy and with the majority of its best players available, El Tree looked rejuvenated and played like the 2022 version that confidently dictated play and for a two-month stretch was the best team in the league.
While it’s only one game and no one’s going to accuse Dallas of having its best night or even remotely fielding its best lineup — half of its regular starters are either injured or, in the case of star forward Jesus Ferreira, on international duty — it’s still an important win and way to begin what the club hopes is a second-half run up the standings.
There’s also something to be said about controlling a game against an opposing lineup in a way you’re supposed to.
When Fagundez and Sebastián Driussi are healthy and on the field with Dani Pereira and Owen Wolff, it’s one of the better midfields in the league and one that can have an enormous impact on a weekly basis.
Diego Fagundez was excellent
This was also Fagundez’s best individual performance of the season.
Appearing to be fit and having his form from a year ago when he scored nine goals, Fagundez was brilliant for the 80 minutes he was on the field with his goal showing the touch that makes him a potential all-star when he’s at his best.
If Austin FC wants to have a successful second half of the season, make a run in the Leagues Cup and advance a couple of rounds in the playoffs, Fagundez has to be near the top of his game.
Ethan Finlay was an important piece
Aside from arguably being the best postgame interview on the team, Finlay continues to be strong in his performances on the right wing and shows no signs of slowing down approaching his 33rd birthday in early August. While he’s not a star player, he’s a dependable one who rarely makes mistakes and has proved invaluable during his two years with the club.
As noted in our midseason grades, more production is needed from El Tree's wings the rest of the year, and Fagundez and Finlay certainly provided that.
Defense continues to shine
On the defense, center back Aleksandar Radovanovic was crucial with a solid performance in a position that has constantly been injured. He was smart in decision-making and his passing helped lead to a buildup of attacks.
Along with Jon Gallagher, Nick Lima and Julio Cascante playing well, it continued a season-long trend of the backline being very good.
It was a needed performance
The MLS season is a marathon, and not too much can be made of one result, but this was certainly a win and performance Austin FC needed.
Whether it can back it up in two days with a win over Houston remains to be seen, but this was a perfect start to the back half of the year.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Five takeaways from Austin FC's 3-0 win over FC Dallas at Q2 Stadium
