Austin FC secured a dramatic 2-1 victory over the Portland Timbers on Saturday night, courtesy of a late Oleksandr Svatok goal in the fourth minute of added time.
Svatok netted his second goal of the season with a composed first-touch finish from six yards out, completing a chaotic sequence from a corner kick in the dying stages of the match.
Joseph Rosales played an in-breaking corner that was initially cleared by Finn Surman’s header, keeping Portland alive momentarily before the decisive moment arrived.
Besard Sabovic’s header from the top of the penalty box was blocked by Surman, but Svatok reacted quickest to tap in the rebound and seal all three points for Austin.
The goal was Svatok’s second career MLS strike and came just five minutes after Portland had levelled through a penalty, making the finish all the more dramatic.
Antony Alves Santos, known widely as Antony, had pulled Portland level in the 89th minute by converting from the spot after Svatok himself had conceded the penalty.
Facundo Torres had given Austin the lead in the 25th minute, finishing from close range after a sharp team move involving Sabovic and Rosales opened up the Portland defence.
Sabovic played a short pass from outside the penalty arc to the top of the 18-yard box, where Rosales redirected it first time to Torres for a sliding finish.
Brad Stuver was solid throughout the evening for Austin, making four saves to help his side claim what turned out to be a memorable three points at home.
Austin, who sit at 6-10-6 with 24 points, are now unbeaten in three consecutive matches after having previously endured a difficult three-game losing streak.
The result keeps Portland, who are 8-10-4 with 28 points, in 11th place in the Western Conference, one point behind Minnesota United for the final playoff spot.
It also marked just the second defeat for the Timbers in eight matches since the World Cup break, and their first home loss under new manager Marti Cifuentes.
For Austin, the victory moved them to within two points of both the LA Galaxy and Seattle, and within five points of ninth-place Minnesota and the playoff places.
