Waiving of Rigoni just the start of Austin FC sporting director Rodolfo Borrell's summer
It’s going to be an interesting summer for Austin FC, and more than just on the field.
With the waiving of one of its three designated players, midfielder Emiliano Rigoni, on Tuesday, the club cleared not only a high-impact roster spot but also around $1 million in salary cap space. And while only Austin FC sporting director Rodolfo Borrell knows how much he can spend under the league’s cap and ownership’s budget, it’s obvious the club will be making moves.
In his meeting with the media Thursday, Borrell addressed Rigoni’s dismissal and where the club goes from here.
Borrell: Rigoni’s exit was known for months
It’s no surprise to anyone that Austin FC released Rigoni, considering his performance on the field. Six goals and six assists in 58 appearances for a designated player — whose salary above $684,000 doesn’t count against the cap — simply isn’t acceptable.
Rigoni’s subpar form also had him periodically coming off the bench, and with his contract of more than $2 million annually guaranteeing for next year after a 12th appearance this season, it was only a matter of time before Austin FC cut ties with him.
“The shocking thing about that contract is how do you do that with a designated player?” said Borrell, who was hired last summer after Claudio Reyna resigned in January 2023. “He’s supposed to play every game.”
(In a subtle shot at the way Reyna did business, Borrell noted there are “lots of surprises” in other player contracts he’s dealing with.)
While Borrell said waiving Rigoni was “not the ideal exit,” he noted that Austin FC made a concerted effort to loan or trade him over the winter.
“I called his agent at the end of last season and said, ‘We need to find a solution,’ ” Borrell said. “I found two solutions for an exit, but his agent didn’t agree to those solutions. … We did our job for this to happen in the offseason.”
Help might be on the way … in July
The Athletic has reported that Rigoni’s replacement is already in the works, stating that Austin FC will sign winger Osman Bukari, who plays for Belgrade Red Star in Serbia. Borrell declined to comment on players who aren’t under contract but said he will “bring players in when it makes sense to bring them in. To bring a player to MLS is not that easy because of all the rules and restrictions.”
More: Austin FC shrugs off short turnaround in win over Sporting Kansas City
Though Austin FC seems primed to make major moves — The Athletic has also previously reported that right back Mikkel Desler, who just completed a season with Toulouse in the French first division, will join the Verde & Black this summer — the club will have to get though the next two months with a skeleton roster.
New players can’t join until the summer transfer window opens July 18 — Austin FC will play 10 matches between now and then — and it will take players time to get up to speed with the club's tactics and get back in match shape.
Austin FC could also use more than two players, but as he has noted previously, Borrell said he isn’t, “willing to make panic decisions.”
Good start can’t be wasted
Austin FC sitting in third-place in the Western Conference isn’t lost on Borrell. With 19 points in their last nine matches, the Verde & Black are one of the top five teams in the MLS during that stretch.
“We should try to capitalize on this momentum,” Borrell said.
That doesn’t mean making plans for a postseason parade, though. Borrell is a pragmatist, and he said “massive changes” would be needed to compete for an MLS Cup, and that the club’s goal — to make the playoffs — is the same as it was in January.
If Austin FC does achieve its goal, its starting lineup in the first playoff game in late October might be dramatically different from the one it fields Saturday at San Jose.
“You’re always looking to improve every position,” Borrell said. “We need to be ready for all scenarios, and we need to have a plan A, B, C, D because of all the rules and regulations.”
Saturday's game
Austin FC at San Jose, 9:30 p.m., Apple TV, 97.5
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Waiving Emiliano Rigoni just the start for Austin FC's Rodolfo Borrell
