Doomed from the start. Hell of a response. Then a collapse.
Five minutes into the Colorado Rapids’ Decision Day match against Austin FC, midfielder Djordje Mihailovic went down with a rolled ankle that required a substitute and a stretcher. On the same play, Austin earned and converted a penalty via Sebastian Driussi in the eighth minute after Mihailovic was treated.
Goals in the 42nd and 75th for the Rapids seemed to have secured a quality win in what coach Chris Armas considered a must-win for his team, but two headed goals from Austin in stoppage time flipped the result and subjected the Rapids to the seventh seed in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
Here are three takeaways from a 3-2 loss that reawakened the demons of losing to bad teams on the road heading into a playoff matchup with L.A. Galaxy:
The run through
Down their best player and a back-bending early goal, the Rapids did not tuck their tails. While production in the final third teetered between half-decent and nonexistent for most of the first half, effort and swarming around the ball on defense was quite the opposite.
In the 42nd minute, it was rewarded. Defender Lalas Abubakar, for his first assist of the season, won a duel in a position where he looked more like an attacking midfielder, and spilled it to forward Rafael Navarro.
The Brazilian only needed that lone good look to tie the game up heading into the break and end a five-game scoring drought.
In the 75th minute, winger Omir Fernández earned and converted a penalty of his own on a counterattack where he was pushed down just inside the box.
Coach Armas stressed during the week that this match would have to serve as a “run through” for the playoffs, not only for the way his team would play but also how intense the match should be, no matter the fact Austin had already been knocked out of playoff contention.
But the circumstances, the response to adversity and late drama against Austin was exactly what should be expected in any sort of playoff run for these high-flying, all-or-nothing Rapids.
One up, one down
While there is no timetable for a return for Mihailovic, the initial play — and his reaction — did not look promising.
While running toward a 50/50 ball in the fifth minute, the ball was kicked into Mihailovic’s ankle around midfield, which forced it to roll so much his ankle bone nearly touched the turf. Immediately, he went down and raised his hand for assistance, needing a stretcher to get off the field.
He returned to the bench later on with crutches and an ice pack.
In the second half, winger Kévin Cabral made his return from a broken elbow he sustained on July 17 against his former club, LA Galaxy.
He nearly made an instant impact in the 67th minute, just seconds after subbing on for Calvin Harris, by taking his first touch-and-run into the box and forcing a save out of Brad Stuver.
If Mihailovic misses significant time, any help from elsewhere would be welcome, and Cabral provided something to look forward to despite the loss of the Rapids’ best player.
Rapids to play L.A. Galaxy in first round
Not the result you wanted on Decision Day. Certainly not the matchup you want in the first round of the playoffs.
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With the loss to Austin and Minnesota United’s lopsided win over St. Louis CITY, the Rapids slipped to seventh place in the Western Conference after occupying third place as recently as a month ago.
The Galaxy, which lost hold of the one-seed to LAFC via a thrilling late loss to Houston, won both matchups against the Rapids this season, one at each venue.
Galaxy star Riqui Puig had his way with the Rapids just two weeks ago at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park with two goals from the same spot and nearly the same play to lead his team to a 3-1 win despite missing incoming German star Marco Reus for that match.
The matchup, a three-game series for the second-straight season, is slated to start as soon as Friday, but an exact date and time have not been determined.
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