The Verde Report: Austin FC Trims the Fat
Meanwhile the Mexican National Team sizes up Q2 Stadium
By Eric Goodman, Fri., Dec. 3, 2021
Austin FC is doing some downsizing. Faced with big decisions concerning over one-third of the club's inaugural season roster, the club announced Tuesday that just three players out of a possible nine had their contractual option years for 2022 exercised.
Among the three returners is midfielder and captain Alex Ring, by far the club's most important contributor among those who had option years. He will be joined on the 2022 squad by defender Freddy Kleemann and goalkeeper Will Pulisic, two young reserve players who combined for just 47 total MLS minutes in 2021. Both had their options picked up.
Kekuta Manneh, who struggled on the pitch but was a star off it, had his option declined, as did Aaron Schoenfeld, Ben Sweat, Brady Scott, and Aedan Stanley, all players who were either too injured or too inexperienced to make an impact for the Oaks in 2021.
Sebastian Berhalter and Manny Perez are also off the squad after Austin FC elected not to make their loan deals permanent.
The moves free up close to $1 million total in salary budget and leave the Verde with as many as eight roster spots to fill during the offseason.
“El Tri” Heads to Q2 Stadium at Pivotal Juncture
Q2 Stadium wakes up from its monthlong hibernation Wednesday when the Mexican men's national team crosses the border to face Chile in a friendly match in Austin.
Mexico, like every major footballing nation at present, is focused on qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar. Although they are still on track to do that – El Tri currently holds the third and final automatic qualification spot in the CONCACAF standings – it's been a struggle lately. After back-to-back road losses to the United States and Canada last month, some Mexican fans and pundits had seen enough of head coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino, who remains at the helm.
"It's true that November wasn't an easy month for us," Martino told the Chronicle in a Zoom interview last week. "We're in an uncomfortable position but we have to keep working and we have to keep looking for alternatives.
"These friendlies are very important for us because it's an opportunity to scout new talent, see them play amongst [veteran] players and see how prepared they are to play for the national team," Martino said.
It's no secret that Mexico needs its future to quickly become its present. The average age of the squad that fell short in both Cincinnati and Edmonton was just under 30. Martino believes Austin will provide an exciting new stage to feature some fresh faces.
"It's a city in a state where we are quite comfortable in. We've played in Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio and have always been very well received and welcomed," Martino said. "We have a lot of high expectations to show up in Austin and play well for our fans."
The Argentine coach also commended the way in which the city has newly embraced soccer. Martino can relate. Prior to accepting the Mexico job, he led 2017 MLS expansion club Atlanta United to an MLS Cup championship in just two seasons after coming into the league. Austin FC shouldn't be expected to repeat that feat, he stressed.
"The example of Atlanta [United FC] is an exception and not the norm amongst expansion teams across the league," Martino said. "The norm is for expansion teams to have a prolonged period of time where they are learning how to compete across MLS. Patience is needed with expansion teams and fans need to continue supporting these teams because they eventually start to work out and compete better with time."
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