Austin FC II is on the road for a second consecutive matchday this Sunday, heading north to face Minnesota United FC 2. The match is scheduled for a 2:00 p.m. CT kickoff and will be available to watch on MLSNEXTPro.com.
Austin FC II recently experienced a setback against St. Louis City 2, falling to a narrow 3-2 defeat against the second-place team in the West. However, the overall trend remains positive for Austin with three wins from their last four games.
Currently, Austin is one point outside the playoff positions with each team in the conference having five matches left on its schedule. The team will draw confidence from their recent 2-1 win over Minnesota at home.
Left back Rubén Bonachera has been impressive, picking up his fifth assist of the season in the match against St. Louis. Diego Abarca and Micah Burton scored goals, while CJ Fodrey added another assist to his recent contributions.
Minnesota United FC 2 sits at the bottom of the MLSNP Western Conference with 21 points from 23 games. They ended a run of four consecutive losses by picking up two points against Real Monarchs.
Anthony Markanich and first-teamer Zarek Valentin scored Minnesota’s goals in that match. Rory O’Driscoll has been a consistent contributor for Minnesota's second team with four goals this season.
Minnesota’s defense has allowed an average of 2.6 goals per match, which is currently the worst in the league—a weakness Austin will need to exploit if they hope to secure points.