It’s simultaneously the end of one tough stretch and the beginning of another Saturday for Austin FC when it hosts the Los Angeles Galaxy.
The Verde & Black close out three straight matches — LAFC and Inter Miami being the previous two — against some of the higher-profile teams in MLS, while beginning a span where they will play five times in 14 days. (Austin FC has two consecutive midweek games, including Tuesday’s U.S. Open Cup opener at Louisville.)
Here are three things to know about the match and a prediction as Austin FC (1-2-3, 6 points) tries to pick up its second win of the season.
With what lies ahead, Austin FC seems to be getting healthy at the right time. Austin FC coach Nico Estévez said Thursday during his weekly news conference that Dani Pereira could be available to face the Galaxy, and the midfielder wasn’t listed on the league’s weekly injury report Friday night.
While it’s doubtful Pereira would start, he’ll be a solid option off the bench in the second half.
Estévez also noted that midfielder Facundo Torres isn’t being hampered by the groin injury he suffered Saturday during a 2-2 draw at Miami. Like Pereira, Torres wasn’t on the MLS injury report, so at worst, he’ll come off the bench after halftime.
Midfielder Owen Wolff, who was the club’s best player in 2025, will miss his seventh straight match recovering from sports hernia surgery in early January. Estévez said the club is targeting the April 18 contest at Toronto or the April 22 match at San Jose for Wolff’s debut.
Though Wolff’s recovery has taken much longer than the club initially projected, the 21-year-old hasn’t had any setbacks in rehab.
“It’s part of the process of the injury,” Estévez said. “I was talking with colleagues in Chicago, they had a player of similar age as Owen, and it’s kind of happened (on the same timeline). … Sometimes you have to rest a few days and then get back (to training and rehab), and this makes the recovery slower. But he’s feeling better every day.”
The Galaxy (1-2-3, 5 points) lost 4-2 on the road to Mexican league side Toluca on Wednesday in the first leg of a CONCACAF Champions Cup quarterfinal.
With an early kickoff of 1:30 p.m. and Los Angeles playing on two days rest, it's a situation that should play into Austin FC’s favor.
“Sometimes in league play, those who are in two competitions, it can be unfair to them,” Estévez said. “But after playing at Toronto, we have to travel to San Jose (four days later). The schedule is what it is, and big clubs like the Galaxy are used to (midweek) games and know how to handle them.”
Though the Galaxy is off to a sluggish start in league play — and is without star winger Joseph Paintsil, who is out with a thigh injury he suffered March 7 against Colorado — it’s been impressive in the Champions Cup and has a talented roster, including forward João Klauss and winger Gabriel Pec.
“They have a lot of quality and some top players,” Estévez said. “I put them in the level of LAFC and Miami. Maybe their results haven’t been as good as those two in the league, but they’ve deserved more points than they have. And they won the league two years ago, so that’s how we’ll treat them.”
Winger Joseph Rosales marked one of Austin FC’s more notable offseason acquisitions, and so far, he’s been a solid addition to the club.
Along with Torres and Jayden Nelson, he’s given the Verde & Black a jolt of athleticism in their midfield. In particular, he’s enjoyed the chemistry with Torres, who plays more centrally.
“There’s a good connection there,” Rosales said. “Playing with him is great, and we speak the same language, so it’s easy to communicate.”
With Pereira and Wolff presumably close to retaking their spots in the central midfield — though that’s not a complete certainty with how well Nicolás Dubersarsky has played — Rosales doesn’t expect any hiccups from a change in personnel when it happens.
“We know the importance of the players returning,” he said. “They’re slowly being integrated and they’ll continue to adapt to the rhythm that we currently have.”
As to the upcoming stretch of five games in 14 days? Rosales, an MLS veteran of six years, isn’t intimidated by it.