Category: San Jose Earthquakes

~ Photo by Eric Cech

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

~ Both teams returning from the two week international break and their last matchup with each other, San Jose was eliminated in the 4th round of the Open Cup, with a 2-0 win by Portland Tuesday.

This was the third overall Open Cup matchup between the teams, all of them played in Portland. All had one side going scoreless.

Shots were almost even 10-9, but the Quakes had no shots on target compared to seven for the Timbers.

After being ejected last game, Portland’s Dairon Asprilla, who had the first goal, had four shots, with a season-high three on target.

The first goal was a questionable goal in the 34th minute. Jack Barmby sent a ball to Jack McInerney, who only got a touch on it. Matheus Silva’s slide to save then went off goalie Bryan Meredith and to Asprilla. What made the goal questionable was that while the ball made its way to the net, McInerney was behind Meredith and as Meredith missed and then made another attempt, it could be argued that McInerney prevented Meredith from making the save.

For the second goal, a hand ball by Silva set up a free kick. McInerney’s teammate then faked a kick right before McInerney made sure at least one of his team’s goals were not in doubt, as he sent the ball above the wall past Meredith in the 40th minute.

San Jose started having more possession in the 55th thru 70th minutes.

The Quakes’ Marvell Wynne stopped a breakaway by Neco Brett in the 91st minute.

Game notes: It was the Timbers’ second straight clean sheet in as many games. San Jose has now been shut out their past three games. Meredith made a season-high five saves. A bright spot for the Quakes: for the first time since Week Two, Clarence Goodson was seen on the bench. San Jose will return to MLS play again Saturday when they face Orlando City SC at 4:30pm.  In case you didn’t notice, @ for #PORvSJ, first time in the 18 since Week 2 #quakes74 #usoc

 

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

photo from sanjoseearthquakes.com: The San Jose Earthquakes were close but not close enough losing in Portland 1-0

The San Jose Earthquakes were a veritable firing squad Wednesday night at Provedence Park, but the Portland Timbers survived volley after volley after an 11^th minute goal to win 1-0 at home. The Quakes fired off 13 shots in total to just 2 Timbers bids but defender Liam Ridgewell’s header off a free kick was the difference maker in the midweek match-up. It was the second straight contest that saw the Earthquakes missing the majority of their offense due to international duty.

Fatai Alashe’s offense on Diego Valeri in the Timbers’ attacking half in the 10^th minute set up the Portland strike. On the kick, Valeri chipped the ball to the far side just outside the penalty box. From there, Ridgewell headbutted the ball past Quakes keeper David Bingham for the lead.

Just two minutes later Quincy Amirakwa nearly tied the game after connecting on Matias Perez Garcia’s free kick attempt. Perez Garcia was active throught the game, nearly scoring on a free kick in the 53^rd minute. An Amirakwa header in the 76^th minute almost found the mark as well for the third of San Jose’s three shots on net.

The game got chippy early and often. In total, five cards were issued. San Jose’s Matteus Silva received the first yellow of the match in the 17^th minute, but Portland’s Dairon Asprilla was sent off with a red card in stoppage time to end the first half. The returning Jordan Stewart, Chad Barrett and Perez Garcia also were issued yellow cards for the Quakes.

The Quakes receive a two week respite while all eyes turn to the Copa America. Their next match will be in the Sunshine State on June 18^th against Orlando FC. The following Saturday San Jose takes the pitch at Stanford Stadium for the second leg of the California Clasico.

 

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

photo by USA Today: San Jose Earthquakes goaltender David Bingham get his fourth clean sheet of 2016 in a 0-0 draw with Dallas at Avaya Stadium on Saturday

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The unbeaten streak at Avaya Stadium continued Saturday night for the San Jose Earthquakes, but a chance at overtaking Los Angeles for second place in the Western Conference went by the wayside for a makeshift Quakes lineup. San Jose and FC Dallas crawled to a nil-nil draw in a match that saw the Quakes take the pitch without five players who have accounted for 75% of their total goals this season.

“Overall I’m not terribly thrilled,” assessed Quakes coach Dominic Kinnear of the team’s result. “But I’m not digging a grave either.”

With Copa America almost underway, the Quakes leading scorer Chris Wondolowski (7 goals) was absent from Saturday’s competition. He instead was playing 1,800 miles away in Kansas City, representing the United States in an international friendly tune-up against Bolivia.

Apart from Wondolowski, the Earthquakes were also without Anibal Godoy and Alberto Quintero (Panama), Kip Colvey (New Zealand) and Simon Dawkins (Jamaica). That group makes up for 12 of the Earthquakes total 16 goals.

Mix in injuries to a number of Quakes players like Innocent, Matheus Silva and Clarence Goodson as well and San Jose seemed short more players than were dressing. It was a struggle to field a fit 18.

“It’s been difficult,” said Kinnear. “But every team goes through it. I’m not going to say our team is the only team to go through injury problems and call-ups. It’s just coinciding with each other and leaving us a little short-handed.”

Chemistry was an early and ongoing issue for the ragtag Quakes, but the team still managed to connect on 74 percent of their passes. They did struggle in the final third, connecting on just over half (53 percent) of their passes, and didn’t generate many chances. In fact, both teams managed only two shots on target a piece.

“At times we let ourselves down with our side passing the closer we got to goal,” said Kinnear. “But the effort we got from everyone was 100 percent.”

While two shots on target for isn’t enough for the Quakes, the two going the other way were nice. Despite struggling to fill the roster, the Quakes still managed to bog down a Dallas team that has scored 23 goals this season over its first 14 games and nearly found three points late in the game. Tommy Thompson, playing the full 90 minutes at midfield for the first time all season, narrowly missed bouncing a header past Dallas keeper Chris Seitz in the 88^th minute. Seitz managed to corral the ball and keep the contest even, earning a point on the road for Dallas.

“When Tommy got his head on that ball late in the game it was going to be something good for us,” said Kinner.

With only one point in hand, San Jose will have little time to try to develop a cohesive unit. They head to Portland to face the Timbers Wednesday night again facing the possibility of being shorthanded.

“It doesn’t matter who is playing and who is not,” said Kinnear. “The expectation is always the same. We expect to win a game.”

 

 

~ Photo credit: San Jose Earthquakes

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

CARSON– Late goals in the California Clasico highlighted the already intense competition between San Jose and the Los Angeles Galaxy in a 1-1 draw.

It was the largest crowd of the year at the StubHub Center, a 27,167 standing-room-only sellout.

As Thuc Nhi Nguyen mentioned, another Sebastian Lletget cross turned into an own goal, after a deflection by Marvell Wynne in the 83rd minute.

The own goal came after a flurry of shots against goalie David Bingham, several handled directly by him. Robbie Keane had a breakaway in the 78th minute and Giovani dos Santos followed with another breakaway in the same minute. Robbie Rogers also missed with a close chance in the 81th minute.

For the second goal, Shea Salinas put the ball towards the net from the right side. Goalie Brian Rowe was able to get a hand on it and Chad Barrett got to the ball after it landed on the grass on the left side. Barrett hung on to the ball, was blocked, played with his defender and then sent the ball in from the left side. Fatai Alashe finished with an equalizing header past Row in the 87th minute.

It was the fewest goals for Los Angeles since April 2.

Bingham was called on to make three saves in his 50th start for the team.

The Earthquakes had the majority of the possession in the first half, even in the early minutes, including a sequence for a while, that involved two corner kicks by Matias Perez Garcia leading up to the 9th minute.

Then Keane bounced a header wide in the 10th minute, during the Galaxy’s next opportunity.

Alashe had San Jose’s first shot in the 11th minute and forced Rowe to make his first save.

Rowe made his second save when the Earthquakes’ Chris Wondolowski made a shot from right outside the goal box after a collision with his defender caused him to go parallel in the 14th minute.

San Jose’s Shaun Francis had a nice takeaway from Mike Magee in the 20th minute.

The Earthquakes’ Alberto Quintero & Rogers made contact twice in a row in the 22nd & 23rd minutes. The second one ended with the game’s only yellow card to Quintero.

San Jose’s Victor Bernardez left the field temporarily after a kick in the face by Jelle Van Damme in the 24th minute.

Van Damme was able to avoid a yellow when he tripped Simon Dawkins outside the box in the 34th minute, resulting in a free kick.

In the 38th minute, Wondolowski with Daniel Steres behind him, hit the crossbar kicking from a left corner angle.

The last attempts in the first half came in stoppage time. Bingham made his first save when dos Santos shot at 45:24 and Wondolowski shot in the 46th minute.

Keane was the only one with multiple shot attempts for Los Angeles in the first half. Alashe, Perez Garcia and Dawkins all had two shots apiece. Wondolowski led all with three.   

In the first half, the Earthquakes had more passes, passing accuracy and possession with the Galaxy winning duels. In the second half, it was the opposite.

There were several upsetting challenges on both sides.

Los Angeles had its own missed opportunity off the crossbar when dos Santos’ shot bounced off in the 72nd minute. Giovani had a crossbar shot

San Jose’s Cordell Cato came on for his first MLS action of the year in the 77th minute. After being injured in the preseason, Cato played in the Earthquakes’ previous friendly game against La Liga Side Real Sociedad.
Game notes: The Galaxy now have a nine-game unbeaten streak and San Jose now three. Los Angeles’ is now 3-0-3 versus the Quakes at Stubhub since the 2012 playoffs. The Galaxy’s Nigel de Jong returned to play 88 minutes. Teammate Alan Gordon came in during the 90th minute. San Jose next plays FC Dallas Saturday at 7:30pm.

By Ben Leonard
Follow @ben___leonard
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photo by USA Today: The San Jose Earthquakes Chris Wondolowski scores the first ever Earthquakes goal brace against an La Liga opponent at Avaya Stadium on Wednesday night
SAN JOSE, Calif — It’s not how you start that matters. It’s how you finish that does, they say. The San Jose Earthquakes were living proof of that unproven adage Wednesday night, scoring two unanswered goals to upset La Liga’s Real Sociedad 2-1 in a friendly.

Star forward Chris Wondolowski scored both goals for San Jose, including the go-ahead goal on a beautiful bender to beat goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli in the 79th minute.

But before Wondolowski sent Avaya Stadium into a frenzy, things were a little different. The Earthquakes more closely resembled a chicken running around with its head off than a shattering force of nature for the first twenty minutes, as midfielder Shea Salinas described.

Having not done any scouting or watching any film, the Earthquakes were listless, succumbing to Sociedad’s press, hardly every possessing the ball. “I thought for the first twenty minutes that they might have had twelve guys on the field,” Salinas elaborated.

Sociedad quickly made them pay, scoring a left-footed goal in the tenth minute, forcing them to stare down a 1-0 deficit. It seemed hopeless — Sociedad was just too well-conditioned and quick for the MLS’ Earthquakes to keep up with. The Earthquakes would get tired out and blown out, they said.

“Sometimes, the speed of the game and the speed of the opponent can catch you by surprise,” San Jose head coach Dominic Kinnear said Wednesday.”And I think it did — it forced us into making mistakes [early on]. But as the game went on, we got used to it. The goal didn’t shake us, and I think that was a good thing.”

After those first painful twenty minutes, something clicked. The Earthquakes figured out how to defend these new players and started communicating better, and everything fell into place. Even in a “low key” friendly as Kinnear called it, the Earthquakes kept battling. With Kinnear only coaching to call players out for lack of effort, it was on the Earthquakes to find it within themselves. And boy did they ever.

After several missed chances, San Jose finally broke through on Wondolowski’s first goal of the night. In the forty-second minute, Salinas drove to the corner of the net and dished it out to Wondolowski at the edge of the goal area, who drove it into the back of the net for his eighth goal of the season.

Later, in the second half, Wondoloski added the decisive goal on a scorching bender that just nestled in the bottom right corner of the net. Wondolowski now needs just sixteen goals to pass Jaime Moreno for third on the all-time MLS goals list.

“Once we got caught up to the speed of the game, because they were playing pretty good and made it difficult for us, we got better,” Kinnear said. “We were making some silly mistakes, but our possession was better, our ball movement was better, and then we started to create some chances and open the game up a little bit. All in all, I was really happy with the result — it gives you a good feeling when you walk off the field.”

The only negative came when midfielder Matheus Silva took a big blow to the head, and had to leave the game in the first half. He felt dizzy after the collision with a Sociedad player, and his fate was left in the doctor’s hands. The team physician barred him from playing in the second half for precautionary reasons, and his status for Sunday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Galaxy is uncertain.

By: Joe Lami

USA Today photo: San Jose Earthquakes celebrate with three goals and a win against the Houston Dynamo at Avaya Stadium in San Jose

SAN JOSE, Calif.–The San Jose Earthquakes remain undefeated at home after another impressive mid-week victory at Avaya. This time, the victim was the Houston Dynamo, also known as the Ex-Quakes.

San Jose got on the board with their earliest goal of the campaign, just three minutes into the contest in the 3-1 victory. Alberto Quintero got his first of the night after Chris Wondolowski hit a low cross down low in the box. Quintero just got enough of it with his right boot to poke it past Dynamo keeper Tyler Deric.

“No matter what the circumstances, getting an early goal is always great,” said Quakes coach Dominic Kinnear.

However, the lead wouldn’t last forever as the Dynamo tied things going into halftime, thanks to a Ricardo Clark strike in the 43rd minute. He one timed the ball from 24 yards out, after an initial save from David Bingham. The ball found the top right corner of the net to draw the game.

San Jose came out of the half the better team, as whatever Kinnear said at the half seemed to work. Quintero continued his great night, as he picked up an assist on the game-winning goal as Anibal Godoy scored his first of the season off the give and go with his fellow countryman. Godoy snuck it to the left of Deric for the lead in the 50th minute.

Quintero kept things going with his second goal of the night in the 70th minute. Wondolowski earned another helper, as he beat a double team passing to his left to a wide-open Quintero. Quintero had no problem burying it from six yards out.

Fans also were treated to a rare moment in the 80th minute, as Deric earned a red card after fouling Simon Dawkins outside of the box. Unfortunately for Houston, they were out of substitutions, as they used all three in the 59th minute. Being forced to put a defenseman in goal, Jalil Anibaba volunteered himself to be the makeshift keeper. Anibaba was challenged with a few good chances, but came up with the saves to keep the score 3-1.

The Quakes have this weekend off before they travel to Los Angeles next weekend, as they hope to try and end their winless streak on the road in a crucial game with a team that is higher on the table.

~ PC: San Jose Earthquakes

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

~ In a game with a lot of close chances, the Seattle Sounders won over San Jose 2-0 Saturday.

Both Jordan Morris and Chris Wondolowski had three close chances, but the one that went through put the game away.

As a rookie, Morris tied a MLS record with his fourth goal in as many games.   Silva first MLS start

The Quakes lost to Seattle for the first time since May 17, 2014 and went scoreless for the first time in 23 straight matches.

Sounders goalie Stefan Frei faced his least number of shots and saves since October 25th, 2015.

San Jose goalie’s six saves was the most he had since July 5, 2015.

Morris led with four shots, two of them were saved and one hit the post.

Clint Dempsey broke the deadlock in the 26th minute, aided by Erik Friberg and Morris. It was his first goal since April 2. It was Morris’ first assist.

Wondolowski lost his footing right in front of Frei in the 37th minute.

The Quakes’ Simon Dawkins hit the crossbar in the 59th minute.

Wondolowski had a high header in the 80th minute.

He then missed a rare penalty in the 84th minute. Wondolowski’s shot hit the post, just his second miss since 2014 and second miss in his last 12 penalties. He has now gone two straight games without a goal for the first time this season.

After two shots being saved and hitting the post throughout the game, Morris put the game away in the 89th minute, helped by Osvaldo Alonso. With a lot of players before Morris, he shot as defenders closed in from 25 yards out.  It was his first two point game and his most shots in a game (three).

There were four minutes of stoppage time. The last chance for San Jose came in the 91st minute, when Adam Jahn missed right with a header.

Game notes: The Quakes’ Matheus Silva made his first MLS start and had one shot. San Jose next plays the Houston Dynamo Wednesday at 7:30pm.

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

AP photo: The San Jose Earthquakes Simon Dawkins who earned the penalty that set up Chris Wondolowski for the penalty kick for the game’s only goal on Sunday at Avaya Stadium

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The home cooking continues to taste so sweet for the San Jose Earthquakes as they ran their home undefeated streak to 5 straight games Saturday at Avaya Stadium. Chris Wondolowski scored his 116^th career MLS goal on a penalty kick and David Bingham had a 5-save shutout to defeat Sporting Kansas City 1-0.

“It was a grind,” said Wondolowski. “Kansas City is a great team. We knew it was going to be a tough battle. It was a little windy too. That always makes it a little more difficult. I thought our defense did a great job shutting down a very potent attack.”

The win moves San Jose (4-2-2) into a tie for third place on the Western Conference table, leapfrogging 5^th place Kansas City (4-4-0). The shutout marks the 20^th time the Quakes have blanked Kansas City, the most times any team has shutout Sporting KC. It is also Bingham’s 3^rd clean sheet of the season, putting him in a tie for the league lead.

“When you get a shutout there are a couple things that go into it,” said Earthquakes coach Dominic Kinnear. Maybe the other team is missing their chances or you’re defending well. David snuffed out some crosses and relieved pressure. I think we did a good job limiting their movement through the middle and push them to the outside where it’s easier to defend.”

The two teams battled to a nil-nil first half, with each team managing a number of dangerous opportunities. The Earthquakes held the corner kick advantage 5-2 while Sporting KC outshot its host 11-5.

“Those shots were really from like 30-35 yards,” said Kinnear. “It wasn’t like we were giving them great chances. We were sloppy with our passing, which led into those chances.”

5 of Kansas City’s double-digit shot total was on target, while San Jose didn’t force keeper Tim Melia to make a save in the half. At the other end Bingham was stellar for the Quakes, nabbing all 5 shots he faced.

“We’ve had games like this where we’ve gotten behind,” said Bingham. “It’s great, when you’re under pressure, to survive the storm.”

A bit of luck played into the game’s lone goal, and lack of another goal in the 2^nd half. Kansas City’s leading scorer, Dom Dwyer, was racing towards the Quakes net unimpeded in the 55^th minute. Bingham challenged him, coming into contact with Sporting KC’s striker. Referee Jair Marrufo signaled for play to continue.

“100 percent a penalty and a red card,” said Kansas City coach Peter Vermes. “That changes the game. It doesn’t get called. Other things are going to happen in the game.”

“From where I was sitting, it would have been a penalty to me,” agreed Kinnear. “Red card, I would have to make a decision after watching a replay.”

After getting away with a similar penalty at the other end, the Earthquakes drew a penalty shot in the 58^th minute. Midfielder Simon Dawkins was in the penalty box unguarded trying to work around Melia’s right. The keeper came off his line to contest Dawkins, dragging the San Jose midfielder to the turf. Marrufo awarded the Quakes the penalty kick.

 

The choice of shooter was elementary for the Quakes, as they sent the 4^th highest goal scorer in MLS history to the line. Just as elementary was Chris Wondolowski’s shot, beating Melia to his right for the strikers’ 7^th goal of the season in 8 games for a 1-0 lead. The game-winner is Wondolowski’s 8^th career goal against KC.

“It’s a 12 yard shot, one-on-one with the keeper,” said Wondolowski. “You should make them. You’re not going to always make them. I remember the ones I miss. I work on them every day at practice, but you have to have different philosophies.”

The Earthquakes will hit the road for their next two games, facing the Philadelphia Union and the Seattle Sounders over the next two Saturdays. San Jose had a three-game unbeaten streak snapped in its last home game against Portland and has yet to pick up a win on the road (0-2-1). They have not lost back-to-back games all season.

“Anytime you can follow up a loss with a win shows good character,” said Kinnear. “It means guys are going into a shell. They’re trying to get better the next time around. That, for me, is a huge thing.”