Austin FC played their sixth-straight match on the road as the Club’s inaugural season continued on Sunday, losing 1-0 to Nashville SC at Nissan Stadium.
During a tight first half Austin was forced into a substitution with Jhohan Romaña leaving the match in the 34th minute due to an apparent right leg injury. He was replaced on the backline by Julio Cascante.
Shortly after, Nashville scored the opening goal of the match. In a transition moment, Jhonder Cadiz received the ball on the right wing. The forward was able to pick his cross and found Randall Leal, who put the ball into the net.
The Verde & Black pushed for an equalizer for the rest of the match and thought they found one through second half substitute Jared Stroud. The winger picked up the ball just outside the box after a flick-on header from Daniel Pereira and fired a rocket into the bottom corner to beat Joe Willis. However, after Video Review, Stroud was ruled offside and the goal was disallowed.
Brad Stuver was able to keep the score 1-0 in the 82nd minute when he came up with a big save on Dom Badji after the striker was able to find himself 1v1 with the goalkeeper on the break. Austin continued to push for an equalizer in the final minutes when they controlled the lion’s share of the possession. However, ATXFC couldn’t find one against a strong Nashville defense that has conceded just four goals through six matches.
Austin FC will play two (2) more matches on the road before returning to Q2 Stadium for the Club’s inaugural home opener against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday, June 19. Next up, Austin will travel to play Seattle Sounders FC at Lumen Field on Sunday, May 30 at 8:30pm
Quotes
Austin FC Head Coach Josh Wolff: "[We were] certainly not dangerous enough in front of goal. Chances came -- some of the shots were probably from distance -- but having said that, in the opening minutes of the game we had two chances from inside the box. Clean looks, open looks... You need to make those."
Wolff's message to the fans after recent run of games: "Hang in there. It's part of our process right now. The fans were great again today -- they're in the stadium, outside the stadium -- it's beautiful to see."
Goal-Scoring Summary
NSC (0-1) Randall Leal, ‘35 (assisted by Jhonder Cádiz)