Austin FC will be a part of MLS’ “Decision Day” — what the league calls its final matchday — Saturday when it hosts Colorado in an anticlimactic season finale for the club because it is out of playoff contention.
But there will be plenty of decisions for the Verde & Black brass to make over the next three months in what will be an offseason of change.
As Austin FC searches for a new head coach , there’s a level of uncertainty that not only hangs over members of the current coaching staff about whether they’ll be retained, but also for players who will become free agents or have a club option on their contract for next season.
Davy Arnaud, the team's lead assistant the past four years and the interim head coach Saturday, is no stranger to the situation. He was Houston’s interim coach to finish the 2019 season after the firing of Wilmer Cabrera, a scenario that eventually led to him landing in Austin.
However, that doesn’t make a future where he doesn’t know where he’ll be in January when training camps start easier to deal with.
“I think as a coach you understand that these moments can happen,” said Arnaud, who played for Kansas City, Montreal and D.C. United during a 14-year career before entering coaching. “Part of our job is that (it can be unpredictable), and that’s the case in any sport. … We understand that you have to be ready for these type of moments.”
Arnaud said he and his family have “loved” their time in Austin and he’d “definitely” be open to staying with a new staff.
Ultimately, though, it’s not going to be his call.
Though some current staffers might be retained, the new coach will probably want to bring in his own people. Arnaud might have a better chance than most to be retained as he’s widely respected around the league, but the odds say he will be an assistant elsewhere when the calendar hits 2025.
For Austin FC players, Saturday might be viewed as a showcase or tryout, not only for Verde & Black sporting director Rodolfo Borrell, but for other clubs.
“They have a motivation for their own individual situations,” Arnaud said. “They want to show well for whoever the next coach is because decisions have to be made on players, too.”
Team captain Alex Ring is one of those whose future is up in the air. The club has an option on him for next year in his current deal; however, with a salary around $1.7 million, it’s highly unlikely that the club will exercise it with him turning 34 in April. Ring said there haven’t been conversations between his agent and the club yet but that he’d like to stay in Austin with his family having rooted itself here and his kids having “basically grown up here.”
“This is a special city with great people, hospitality and the fan base,” Ring said. “I think these are things I try not to take for granted, and I would advise others not to, either.”
Like Arnaud, Ring said that at the end of the day sports is a business and there are decisions out of his control.
“That’s the reality,” he said. “In MLS, the influx of players coming and going is much higher than in Europe. ... No matter what happens, I'll always be grateful I had this opportunity.”
Arnaud facts
Arnaud, who is a native Texan from outside of Beaumont and starred at West Texas A&M in college, went 3-5-1 during his interim stint in Houston. He noted that the experience was extremely beneficial during the past two weeks while preparing for Colorado.
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“One of the biggest things I took away from that is there’s a big difference between being the head coach and (being the lead assistant),” he said. “When you become the head coach, there’s a lot of things that change and that you have to think about. You can’t fully understand that until you’ve been through it.”
Colorado playoff positioning
The game does having meaning for Colorado. The Rapids can finish anywhere from fifth to seventh in the Western Conference standings and would prefer to avoid the seventh spot and a first-round playoff matchup with one of the Los Angeles clubs.
Saturday's match
Colorado Rapids (15-13-5, 50 points, sixth in West) at Austin FC (10-14-9, 39 points, 10th in West), 8 p.m., Q2 Stadium, Apple TV, 97.5, 104.3 (Spanish)
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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin FC coaches, players have uncertain future entering MLS Decision Day
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