Austin FC hammers Minnesota 4-1, moves up to fifth in West

Austin FC continues to climb up the standings.

El Tree pounded Minnesota United FC 4-1 Saturday night at Allianz Field in Saint Paul behind Sebastián Driussi’s two goals and scores from Diego Fagundez and Emiliano Rigoni.

Here are some thoughts from the match as Austin FC (8-8-5, 29 points) is now up to fifth place in the Western Conference — it was in 12th less than a month ago — and has a quick turnaround and another long trip as it plays at Vancouver on Wednesday.

A notable win considering the defensive injuries

Any road win is big in the MLS, but this was particularly a strong three points as Austin FC started its fourth or fifth center back on the depth chart in Kipp Keller.

It’s not ideal to have him play 90 minutes — 15-20 minutes would be preferable — but with El Tree’s injury situation at the position, that’s where it’s at. And to Keller’s credit, he was adequate and made no major mistakes.

El Tree came out of the first 25 minutes of the match clean despite a barrage of counterattacks from Minnesota. Goalie Brad Stuver made two big saves, including a one-on-one, and Minnesota hit the post and could arguably have been ahead 3-0.

But part of soccer is converting your scoring chances. The Loons didn’t, Austin FC did, and El Tree now has 10 points in its last four games and is in a good spot in the Western Conference with 13 games to play.

Man of the match: Sebastián Driussi

This is stating the obvious, but having Driussi healthy and in top form makes a world of difference.

He was clinical in his finish on the third goal, then completely set up Rigoni’s goal in stoppage time with an overlap run and brilliant cross.

When he steps to take a penalty, it’s essentially a no-brainer that he will convert it.

Driussi has had to deal with an injury and being the focus of every opposing defense this season, but he’s starting to heat up in terms of production, and that only means good things going forward for Austin FC.

This was a performance that shows why he’s one of the best players in the league and being paid $6 million this season.

Dani Pereira, Diego Fagundez were excellent

In addition to health, part of the reason Driussi can produce more goals and assists is the rest of El Tree doing so, too.

Midfielders Dani Pereira and Fagundez teamed up for a phenomenal give-and-go on Fagundez’s goal, with Pereira providing a perfect through ball and Fagundez executing a finish.

Pereira is turning into one of the league’s more dangerous dribblers and creators of chances, and Fagundez is returning to his form of last year where he had six goals and 13 assists. Combine that with players like Ethan Finlay now frequently contributing goals and assists, and that will allow Driussi more freedom to run free and have more chances.

Brad Stuver deserves USMNT consideration

Stuver continues to have an excellent season, and the number of times he’s prevented Austin FC from falling behind early or giving up a goal late is too many to count.

It’s too bad he wasn’t rewarded with a shutout for his efforts, but the Loons ended with an expected goals stat of more than three and had 15 corner kicks. The fact that he kept them to only one goal is notable, and though Minnesota could have done a better job of finishing, Stuver’s effort is what we’ve come to expect.

It’s time the U.S. men’s national team starts to think about giving Stuver a look in its next camp and consider him for a backup spot.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin FC starts off busy stretch with impressive road win