Austin, TX– The Colorado Rapids (10-1-12, 7th West) look to bounce back quickly as they head to Texas to face Austin FC (6-7-10, 14th West). It was one of those games for the Rapids against Columbus Crew, as Colorado found themselves with another multi-goal road loss without scoring. It was a similar showing against Columbus as it was against San Diego. The Rapids have failed to win an away match since the World Cup break. They also have continued to lose every game where they go down a goal. It has been over two years since Colorado won a game after going down a goal. Matt Wells and co. will look to get the three points without going down in the first place. Austin has relatively turned it around since the last meeting between these two sides. Let’s take a look at the matchup.
When: Wednesday, September 9th @ 6:30 p.m. MST
Where: Q2 Stadium
TV/Streaming: Apple TV
Technical Disaster in Columbus
There were few, if any, bright spots from Colorado’s loss in Columbus on Saturday. Columbus came into the game as a broken team, desperate to retool. Colorado should have been the team with the upper hand. It certainly didn’t look like that on the field. Colorado relied on players far down the depth chart in this game. It showed in the quality.
That felt like the big difference between the two teams. Despite the Rapids being much higher in the table, the two teams were in a similar spot in roster construction. The difference was how quickly Columbus got their business done. Their replacements were ready for this match, while Colorado still has their three big signings waiting on the sidelines. Wells echoed this after the match, and the frustration that Wells has had with the team’s lack of urgency in the transfer window seemingly hasn’t gone anywhere.
Darren Yapi was the biggest depth piece to start the game, but off the bench it was a nightmare for Wells to figure out. Of the five subs he used, three of them were outside backs. He left only two Rapids 2 players, Vincent Rinaldi and Bryan Dowd, alongside another outside back, Jackson Travis, on the bench. Alex Harris and Donavan Philip were his only attacking substitutions. No game made it clearer that Colorado needs reinforcements more than this game. They are on their way, but they will be getting to the party quite late.
An interesting stat from the game involved third-string goalkeeper Adam Beaudry. Beaudry has appeared in four games for the first team in the last three years. In three of those games, he has conceded three goals. He chose a good game to break that streak, earning a clean sheet against RSL. Beaudry wasn’t great on the first goal, but this result wasn’t solely on him. It will be important for the young keeper to look forward, with Nico Hansen still questionable against Austin.
Lineup Prediction:
Beaudry / Cannon, Holding, Williams (c), Navarro / Ojedrian, Maziz, Frederick / Minoungou, Yapi, Aaronson
The only differences in the availability report are that Hamzat Ojediran is back from suspension and Nico Hansen is listed as questionable rather than out. Hansen is still a big question mark, and it would not be surprising to see Beaudry again.
This is the same lineup prediction from the Columbus game, and it shows how little this team can rotate at this point in the season. There’s a chance that Noah Cobb or Kosi Thompson could sneak into the backline, but outside of that, there is no depth piece that can make an appearance and not make this team worse. The importance of getting Morgan Whittaker, Imbrahim Sadiq, and Sayed Abu Farkhi available and up to the standards that Wells has set cannot be overstated.
A Somewhat Revival for Austin
Since the Rapids won on a late penalty at home against Austin on August 1st, the Texas side has been pretty good. They have won four, drawn three, and lost only two in both MLS and Leagues Cup play. That is much better form than expected from a team in 14th place in the West. Like Columbus, questions remain about how this team has fallen so far down the table.
Austin was able to get third in the MLS side of the Leagues Cup bracket, with an eight-point haul in three group stage games. A Lalas Abubakar towering header helped FC Dallas beat Austin in the only game since August 1st that Austin had lost. This Austin side is starting to learn how to get points on the table, and it couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Colorado Rapids.
Austin has also become somewhat of a late-game team since the Rapids won it late in the reverse matchup. Austin has taken three points from Portland with a 93rd-minute winner, and they found an equalizer in the 98th minute in their last match against the San Jose Earthquakes. Colorado will hope this trend doesn’t continue on Wednesday.
Prediction: Colorado road woes continue in Texas, and the Rapids find themselves at the hands of another 3-0 defeat.
Thank you for reading Burgundy Wave. Support us via our Patreon starting at $5/month. You can also make a one-time contribution via Tip Jar. We’re always looking for new talent. Let us know if you’re interested in covering Colorado Soccer.
Matt Pollard 
Eamon Shaw 