Tag: mls

by Marko Ukalovic

COMMERCE CITY, Colo- The San Jose Earthquakes are stuck in an abyss they can’t escape from. Its latest tough pill to swallow was a 5-0 shutout loss to the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday evening at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

San Jose is winless in eight straight games since the regular season resumed. Colorado has won two matches in a row and three out of their last four.

Colorado (5-4-4) dominated the first half attempting nine shots on goal. They controlled the possession battle 64%-36%.

Kellyn Acosta appeared to have have scored his second goal of the season at the 29th minute. He recovered his attempted pass that was blocked by a Quakes defender. His shot from 20 yards out beat Quakes goalkeeper Daniel Vega to far right. However a video review showed that midfielder Jack Price was offsides before he fed a pass to Acosta as referee Drew Fischer overturned the call.

Price redeemed himself six minutes later off a set piece. Price placed a free kick into the middle of the D box where an unmarked Cole Bassett headed the ball past Vega to the far left corner for his fourth goal of the season at the 35th minute.

Giving up goals off of set pieces have been a big glaring weakness for San Jose this season.

“We definitely practice it enough, and I think it’s more of a concentration thing and communication thing,” said Chris Wondolowski regarding his team’s failure on set pieces. “I think that set pieces are a bit more complicated than they sometimes look. There is a lot of crossing. There are picks, but there is a lot of time where easy communication can sort that out and sort that out easily. I think that we’re lacking on that right now.”

San Jose’s (2-6-5) best chance to get on the scoreboard came in the 39th minute. Acosta fouled Tommy Thompson setting up a free kick from 15 yards out. However, Jackson Yueill’s shot attempt sailed to the right of the net.

The Rapids doubled its lead just five minutes into the second half. Acosta made a pass out to a racing Jonathan Lewis who flew in from the left slot and chipped a ball past a challenging Vega for his fifth goal of the season at the 50th minute.

Danny Hoesen, who returned to action as a substitute in the 63rd minute after missing the past two games with a lower body injury, came with in two yards of cutting the Rapids lead in half. Chris Wondolowski, who came on as a sub to start the second half, kicked in a ball into the middle off a corner kick that landed right on the foot of Hoesen. However, Rapids goalkeeper William Yarbrough made a point blank save to keep San Jose off the board.

Colorado iced the game in the 70th minute thanks to some bad luck from San Jose. Andre Shinyashiki received the ball after a throw-in and made a nice move around Tanner Beason near the goal line. Shinyashiki’s centering attempt was deflected into the net off the foot of Thompson for an own goal.

Quakes head coach Matias Almeyda is beyond frustrated and still looking for answers.

“Realistically, we have all been really looking at ourselves. There are no excuses. It’s really sad to lose the way we have been losing, mostly because we have fans that have accompanied us at a distance. Every team has their history, some more successful than others but nonetheless it’s all history. This is a moment I’ve never experienced in my life. I have some of the blame to not find a way…”, Almeyda said.

The Rapids kept pouring it on after some shady defense by the Quakes. Auston Trusty crossed a ball into the middle from the right to a wide open Nicolás Mezquida, a sub in the 60th minute who went in all alone against Vega and chipped the ball into the left corner of the bet for his first goal of the season in the 79th minute.

Colorado finished off the scoring in the 84th minute when Bassett led a two-on-zero break with Shinyashiki. Bassett touched a pass to the left and Shinyashiki buried the ball past Vega for his second. goal of the season.

This match was very similar to the Quakes last match against Portland where the Quakes conceded three goals in the last 20 minutes of the second half.

Yarbrough finished with four saves for his second shutout of the season. Vega also finished with four saves in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose had three corner kicks. Colorado had four.

Colorado won the possession battle 60%-40%.

UP NEXT: San Jose travels to Los Angeles to take on LAFC on Sunday 9/27 at 7:30pm at Banc of California Stadium.

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif- Portland Timbers goalkeeper Steve Clark made five saves against the San Jose Earthquakes. His fourth one was a game saver that allowed his team to escape with a 1-1 draw on Wednesday evening at Earthquakes Stadium.

Shea Salinas crossed a ball into the middle of the box to Chris Wondolowski in the 89th minute. Wondo headed the ball heading into the left corner of the goal before Clark’s diving attempt swatted the ball away preventing San Jose from scoring the potential game winning goal.

The Quakes poured on the chances late in the match, including a free kick by Vako from 15 yards out in the 88th minute that was blocked the Timbers defense, but Clark made sure they didn’t complete the comeback.

San Jose now sits in the cellar of the Western Conference with only 11 points. Portland moved into seventh place with 15.

San Jose head coach Matias Almeyda injected some youth into the starting lineup in attempt to spark his team that has looked anemic in the past two matches. Jacob Akanyirige made his debut for San Jose. The 18-year old fullback from Pleasanton, Calif is another homegrown talent to make his debut this season. He joined the Quakes Academy when he was 14 years old.

Another big lineup change by Almeyda was inserting goalkeeper James Marcinkowski into the starting lineup. Marcinkowski, who replaced Daniel Vega, made his first start since October 28, 2018.

“I think what was going through my head was hoping to help the team win. I think that’s what all of us try to do. We try to go out there and perform our best. At the end of the day, we’re trying to get three points. It was nice to be back out there of course, but a little unlucky to not get all three tonight. Secondly, with the save, I think it’s just one of those things where time slows down, and you just try to make the save. It wasn’t anything too spectacular I don’t think. It was kind of down to my right, but, yeah, at the end of the day I’m just trying to help the team get three points. It kind of leaves a little bit of a sour taste in your mouth, but it was great to be back out there,” said Marcinkowski.

San Jose (2-4-5) had its first quality scoring chance in the 29th minute when Oswaldo Alanís sent in a free kick initially saved by Steve Clark. Florian Jungwirth had a point-blank chance but kicked it off the arm of Clark for his third save of the first half.

Portland (4-4-3) capitalized on a Quakes turnover at midfield four minutes later. Diego Chará, found his brother Yimmi Chará down the left side of the pitch. Chará beat Paul Marie in a one-on-one battle down the field before he chipped the ball past Marcinkowski into the right corner of the goal for his first goal as a member of the Timbers.

The Quakes Vako was inches away from evening the score when his shot hit off the right post in the 39th minute. San Jose out shot Portland 12-3 in the first 45 minutes.

San Jose kept the momentum they built in the first half, when Andrés Ríos crossed a ball into the middle and Tommy Thompson’s shot deflected off the head of a Timber’s defender in the 59th minute.

The Quakes finally scored the equalizer in the 76th minute after a pretty give-and-go between Vako and Wondo. Vako chipped the ball over to Wondolowski who returned it back with a header. Vako then danced around Clark and slid the ball into the net for his third goal of the season.

“I believe the players adapted well to our system tonight on the field. I will say again, when you have time to train, you can practice in many areas of a game plan. But when you cannot train, you can’t. The interpretation from the players has been really important, their concentration, and execution because most of the planning is done in drawing. They haven’t really trained. But in these last two games, we really have had resistance, love for the game, and we have to keep going,” said Almeyda.

Initially the goal wasn’t called on the field as a Timber defender cleared the ball away. After a couple of minutes where both teams played on, the VAR ruled to have the play reviewed. Referee Alex Chilowicz needed only a second to determine the goal counted.

It was the 10th goal conceded by Portland in the second half this season.

Marcinkowski made three saves for his first win of the season.

GAME NOTES: San Jose seven corner kicks. Portland had two.

Alanís left the game at the end of the first half with a lower body injury.

San Jose dominated the possession battle 64%-36%.

Portland was without its star midfielder Sebastian Blanco due to an ACL injury.

The Quakes have now a 5-2-5 overall home record vs. Portland. The Earthquakes have a 4-1-1 record in their last five home meetings against Portland, outscoring them 11-4.

UP NEXT: San Jose and Portland return to the pitch once again on Saturday 9/19 at 7:30pm at Earthquakes Stadium.

The San Jose Earthquakes Oswaldo Alanis (4)  and the Los Angles Galaxy’s Jonathan Dos Santos (8) meet before their match at Avaya Stadium in San Jose on Sun Sep 13th, 2020 (@SJEarthquakes photo)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif- The difference between two extra points is a matter of inches.

For the San Jose Earthquakes that was the case as a potential game winning goal in the final minutes was waved off due to an offside call that resulted in a 0-0 draw with their SoCal rival the Los Angeles Galaxy on Sunday evening at Earthquakes Stadium.

In the 89th minute of the match, Marcos Lopez centered a ball into the middle of the box where Andy Rios was able to kick it past Galaxy goalkeeper for what would have been a 1-0 lead for San Jose. However Rios left a split second too early and was flagged for offsides, negating the goal.

San Jose, despite picking up a point, remains winless in five consecutive games (0-3-2) since coming back from the bubble in Orlando. LA’s three-game winning streak was snapped but their point streak continued at four games.

The second installment of the California Classico of the season featured quality scoring chances by both teams throughout the match, however both goalkeepers played spoilers as they kept the ball out of their nets.

San Jose controlled the possession battle in the first half with a 56.7%-43.3% edge. Their defensive play was a major upgrade after a humiliating 7-1 loss to Seattle just three nights earlier.

Galaxy goalkeeper David Bingham was the man of the first half stoning away two quality scoring chances by the Quakes.

First in the 18th minute off a free kick by Jackson Yueill, Bingham punched Yueill’s ball back into the middle where Guram Kashia’s first attempt was kicked away by Bingham. Kashia recovered the ball and his second attempt sailed wide left.

Then in the 34th minute, Yueill received the ball from 12 yards out and his shot was knocked aside to the right by Bingham resulting in a corner kick San Jose failed to cash in.

Los Angeles controlled play in the final five minutes of the first half. Efrain Álvarez came within inches of breaking the deadlock when his left footed shot from 20 yards out hit the right post in the 42nd minute.

In the second half, it was Quakes goalie Daniel Vega’s turn to play heroics as the Galaxy controlled play in a 23 minute stretch from the 57th minute to the 80th minute of play.

Sebastian Lletget’s header from the center of the box was saved by Daniel Vega in the 75th minute. It was one of LA’s best chances to score but were left frustrated.

San Jose ended up winning the possession battle 56.6%-43.4%.

Both Bingham and Vega finished the match with two saves a piece.

GAME NOTES: San Jose had six corner kicks. Los Angeles had eight.

The Galaxy were issued two yellow card during the match Daniel Steres received one in the 17th minute for a dangerous tackle on Shea Salinas and Julian Araujo received at the end of the match for persistent infringement . San Jose’s Nick Lima received a yellow card in the 3rd minute of the match for unsporting behavior.

San Jose is 0-1-1 against the Galaxy this season and are 4-2-2 in their last eight matches.

UP NEXT: San Jose hosts the Portland Timbers on Wednesday 9/16 at 6:30pm at Earthquakes Stadium.

The Colorado Rapids and San Jose Earthquakes played to a draw on Saturday night at Avaya Stadium in San Jose (USA Today photo)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif- Drastic changes to the starting lineup almost paid off for Matias Almeyda.

Colorado Rapids Kai Kamara headed in a ball off a corner kick in the 81st minute as the set piece allowed the Rapids to earn a 1-1 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday evening at Earthquakes Stadium.

San Jose is winless in three straight games since coming back from Orlando and started the first phase of teams returning to play in home markets. Colorado’s winless streak reached a season high at six games.

Quakes head coach Matias Almeyda went looking for answers after an embarrassing 5-1 loss to LAFC this past Wednesday as he dramatically shook up his lineup with six changes to the starting lineup. In was Chris Wondolowski, and Danny Hoesen up front, while three quarters of the back line was switched, including Orlando Alanis, who returned from an injury.

It was the Quakes’ first at Earthquakes Stadium since March 7, nearly six months since their most recent home game. The match is the first live sporting event in Santa Clara County since the onset of COVID-19.

Both teams had early scoring chances in the first half but weren’t able to cash in any of their opportunities as they headed into halftime tied at zero.

Colorado (2-3-3) came close to breaking the deadlock in the 54th minute when Diego Rubio was open on the right slot but his shot hit off the right post.

San Jose (2-3-3) capitalized on a gift from Colorado just four minute later when Sam Vines conceded a penalty kick for the Quakes when a Christian Espinoza cross attempt went off his hand in the 58 minute.

Wondo finished off the penalty the kick right down the middle as Rapids goalkeeper guessed wrong to the left side. The MLS all-time leading goal scorer now has three goals on the season and 162 for his career.

Colorado woke up offensively as they controlled possession for the final 30 minutes of the second half and generated quality scoring chances. Quakes goalkeeper Daniel Vega came up with some key saves during that stretch, including a diving save off a header by Cole Bassett in the 77th minute.

The Rapids tenacity finally paid off with Kamara’s 129th career goal as the set piece has been the Quakes Achilles heel ever since they came back from Orlando and is an issue Almedya’s squad has yet to remedied.

San Jose best chance to go ahead late in the game came at the 84th minute when Alanis’ free kick from 20 yards out just sailed high over the net resulting in a free kick for Colorado.

GAMES NOTES: Wondolowski was named Man of the Match.

San Jose had seven corner kicks. Colorado had eight.

San Jose had four yellow card. Colorado had three.

The Quakes are recognizing an honorary captain at each of the team’s next two home matches, that included tonight. Honorary captains were selected with program partner Austen Everett Foundation. Tonight’s honorary captain was 10-year-old Santiago Lopez from San Jose. He was diagnosed on Thanksgiving 2019 with a rare form of brain cancer called DIPG. He had have a custom player card created and shared on Instagram. He also received a goody bag with a customized Earthquakes jersey, plush toys and soccer balls, with gear given to his sibling as well. The club recently captured and sent Santiago a video message from his favorite Quakes player Andy Rios.

UP NEXT: The Quakes travel up to Seattle take on the Sounders on Thursday 9/10 at 7:00pm at Century Link Field.

The Final score tells it all as LAFC remains unbeaten with a 5-1 win over the San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday night (@SJEarthquakes photo)

~ By Pearl Allison Lo

~ September 2, 2020

~ San Jose and LAFC went the way it has gone Wednesday, with the latter still unbeaten in now five games engaged with the former.

57th minute substitute Danny Hoesen and Cristian Espinoza connected however, with no time left, in minute 92 giving LAFC the 5-1 win over San Jose. This avoided a matching of the worst loss between the two teams March 30, 2019 where LAFC were victorious 5-0.

The Quakes did not help themselves though, this time, in that giving the ball away led to two goals. LACF outshot San Jose 19-9. 

Rossi scored the lone goal of the first half in the 21st minute.

After a 33rd minute yellow to Diego Palacios, considering his kicking position, Yueill´s shot just glanced over the top of the net.

San Jose´s Florian Jungwirth tackled Bradley Wright-Phillips before Rossiś goal and Judson was able to stop a breakaway by him in the 43rd minute. 

Wright-Phillips´s attack right at the start of the second half gave the Quakes a glimpse of what was to come as he would score soon and LAFC´s lead would grow larger by bounds. 

Tanner Beason, in his second start, gave the ball away to Rossi, and then Beason found himself in a foot race with Wright-Phillips. Wright-Phillips went ahead and keeper Daniel Vega slid to stop him. Wright-Phillips remained standing to clean up in an empty net in the 49th minute. He finished with a game-high six shots. 

Vega got his hand high to save a free kick from Brian Rodríguez in the 58th minute. 

In the 64th minute, Rodríguez again with ample room was stopped, but as he slid surrounded by two defenders, he was able to knock the ball through Jungwirth´s legs upon second touch to José Cifuentes. The Ecuadorian then turned around and looped the ball towards the net for his first MLS goal and a 3-0 lead.

Rossi made it 4-0 in the 69th minute. Palacios´s kick went off Jungwirth´s foot as Rossi swooped in before Vega after running past Beason for his second half goal.

Cifuentes´s teammate Danny Musovski also got in on the action with his first MLS goal in the 83rd minute.

Up Next: San Jose looks to recover on the weekend Saturday 7:30pm verus the Colorado Rapids.