Gyasi Zardes turns back the clock with two goals as Austin FC downs New York FC

Striker Gyasi Zardes turned back the clock while helping Austin FC overcame a slow start and pick up a needed 2-1 win Saturday against visiting New York FC.

Once a fixture on the U.S. men's national team, the 32-year-old Zardes had been reduced to a part-time role before recent roster limitations forced Austin FC coach Josh Wolff to start the veteran twice in the past three matches. He responded with his first two goals of the season and his first goals in 356 days.

Zardes' first goal came off a header in injury time in the first half to even the score at 1-1. His second, in the 69th minute, gave Verde the lead and helped secure three valuable points.

Austin FC (8-6-8, 30 points) entered Saturday in 10th place in the standings, but they were just two points back of a playoff spot and only four points behind fifth-place Vancouver.

The team will get reinforcements later this month the MLS summer transfer window officially opens on July 18. Austin FC. Ghanian winger Osman Bukari, fresh off a starring role for Red Star Belgrade in Serbia, has signed for record money as Austin FC's newest designated player. The club has also acquired Ukrainian center back Oleksandr Svatok, who spent much of his last match with his national team at the European Championship man-marking Belgium star Romalu Lukaku in a grueling 0-0 group-match loss that eliminated Ukraine from the tournament. The team will also welcome Danish veteran right back Mikkel Desler, which will add to the wealth of defensive options for Wolff.

The rambunctious weather that rolled through Central Texas delayed the start of the game by 90 minutes, and it seemed to delay any sense of urgency for Austin FC.

The visitors from Gotham opened the match full throttle with a wave of attacks. That early energy paid off when Andrés Perea sprinted through the heart of the Verde defense and punched home a cross from Tayvon Gray to give the Pigeons a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute.

The dominance continued for New York, which had 80% possession 20 minutes into the match.

But Austin FC built their way into the contest. Sebastian Driussi launched a long ball into the box that Owen Wolff almost corralled for a point-blank shot in the 24th minute, and Wolff had a rocket from the edge of the box deflected out by a diving NYC FC defender.

They had just one more shot in the first half, but Verde's patience in possession paid off in extra time when Jadier Obrian gathered himself on the left wing and launched a cross to a wide-open Zardes, who easily tapped in a header for the evener just before the break.

Zardes capped his flashback performance midway through the second half when he collected a pass from Owen Wolff in the box and beat NYC FC keeper Matthew Freese to the far post for the go-ahead goal.

Austin FC now has an all-time record of 10-5-2 against Eastern Conference teams and a 6-3-2 home record this season.