Diego Fagundez bringing unrelenting energy to Austin FC

Photo Credit: Scott W. Coleman

Diego Fagundez is the Energizer Bunny of Austin FC.

The tireless midfielder went the full 90 minutes against D.C. United last Saturday, played 120 minutes in the U.S. Open Cup loss to San Antonio FC on Wednesday night and played 79 minutes in Saturday’s home win against Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

“I was in the game, and I was telling myself, ‘just one more play,’” Fagundez said on Wednesday. “I was trying to recover my legs to keep going at them. Towards the end, my legs were just giving up. It’s tough.”

He was on the field for 289 of a possible 300 minutes for Austin FC in the last three games.

Fagundez had two assists against D.C. United as Austin FC scored three goals in the final 10 minutes for a dramatic 3-2 win and scored the only goal in the 2-1 Open Cup loss in San Antonio.

“Diego is a special player, he's got quality and energy,” Austin FC head coach Josh Wolff said. “There's a selflessness about him that's really clear.”

Fagundez is just 27 years old. But he’s already an MLS veteran with 12 seasons and more than 300 appearances to his name.

He became the second-youngest player to accumulate 50 goals and 50 assists in MLS last season, and he is the 89th player in league history to play 20,000 career regular-season minutes.

The two assists against D.C move Fagundez into a tie atop the MLS leaderboard with five on the season, and his 55 career assists are sixth-most among active players.

“I think this team can go far in the season,” Fagundez said. “We just have to keep focused and keep doing what we’ve been doing. I think people are going to keep talking about us, but we’ve got to take it game by game.”

Fagundez signed with the New England Revolution as a 15-year-old in 2010. He spent nine years with the club and made more than 250 appearances.

Perhaps more than any other Austin FC player, Fagundez has a special connection with the fans. After scoring the first-ever goal in team history last year in Colorado, he flashed the ‘LV’ hand sign, signifying the Los Verdes supporter group.

He wants his first major trophy to come in Verde & Black.

“I just want to give everything I have to this club,” Fagundez said. “They gave me a new spark, and I’m going to keep giving them as much as I can.”

Austin FC dominated just about every statistic in its first-ever Open Cup match Wednesday night against the second-tier USL team San Antonio FC, controlling 65./7% of possession and outshooting SAFC 28-20.

Fagundez opened the scoring just after halftime, but Wolff was forced to make massive changes to the backline after Julio Cascante injured his knee and Kipp Keller was forced out with cramps.

Elliot Collier tied the game for San Antonio with less than 10 minutes left in regulation, and Carter Manley sealed the win in extra time.

“We’re frustrated,” Fagundez said. “We had a few good opportunities that we finish, and we could walk away with a win. But that’s how Open Cup is. Especially because it’s San Antonio, we knew they were going to come with everything.”

There’s still a positive mood in the Austin FC team.

It’s still very early in the MLS season, but unlike last season, there isn’t a sense of defeat when the Verde & Black give up a goal or need to hold onto a lead.

“I think everybody feels like (we’re in it until the end),” Fagundez said. “When it gets later on, we need to make sure we’re all on the same page and not giving sloppy goals away.”

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