Austin FC midfielder Diego Fagundez was named to the MLS Team of the Week for Week 20 of the regular season, with defender Ruben Gabrielsen named to the Team of the Week Bench following their performances in Austin’s 3-1 win over Houston Dynamo FC on Tuesday night at Q2 Stadium. Gabrielsen has now earned three (3) Team of the Week selections this season, and Fagundez has earned two (2).
With the Verde & Black trailing early, Fagundez brilliantly scored the Club’s first-ever goal from a direct free kick in the 15th minute, placing a well-hit strike into the top corner to level the score. He passed at an 87 percent success rate in the match, including two (2) chances created, and won possession six (6) times.
Gabrielsen continued a stellar run of defensive performances, winning four (4) duels and gaining possession six (6) times. He completed 60 of his 67 pass attempts (90 percent), and played a key role in limiting Houston to just 0.77 expected goals during the match.
The full MLS Team of the Week honors for Week 20 are as follows:
F: Ronaldo Cisneros (ATL), Cucho Hernandez (CLB), Jhon Duran (CHI)
M: Randall Leal (NSH), Jamiro Monteiro (SJ), Ryan Gauld (VAN), Diego Fagundez (ATX)
D: Kai Wagner (PHI), Maxime Chanot (NYC), Nicolas Isimat-Mirin (SKC)
GK: Pedro Gallese (ORL)
Coach: Gonzalo Pineda (ATL)
Bench: JT Marcinkowski (SJ), Ruben Gabrielsen (ATX), Cristian Dajome (VAN), Johnny Russell (SKC), Hany Mukhtar (NSH), Brenner (CIN), Dejan Joveljic (LA)
