That’s Amaury News and Commentary: The Checkbook is Overdrawn; Fisher sells Quakes for A’s stadium money

Earthquakes owner John Fisher during a game between San Jose Earthquakes and Nashville SC at PayPal Park on Sept. 23, 2023, in San Jose, Calif. Lyndsay Radnedge/ISI Photos/Getty Images

That’s Amaury News and Commentary:

While the Oakland A’s departed Oakland in 2024, and now settled in Sacramento for three years (according to the plan) and then by 2028 (according to the plan) land in Las Vegas where they expect to have a new $1.75 billion new permanent home, their owner Mr.John Fisher announced his other professional team, the San José Earthquakes of the Major League Soccer is now for sale. So Fisher is selling after all, but not the A’s, at least not yet.

Mr. Fisher requires more than $500 million for the construction in Las Vegas, where Clark County is contributing $350 million of the total cost, according to the 2023 Sportico list of MLS franchises. The average Major League Soccer (MLS) team is worth $721 million. Los Angeles FC ranks #1 at $1.28 billion, CF Montreal ranks last at $450 million.

The San José Earthquakes are reportedly worth around $600 million, according to Sportico, in terms of valuation.

According to Forbes, Mr.Fisher is worth $3 billion.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.

While in the Bay Area, great food and great prices. 998cuba.com

Sallói’s brace powers Sporting KC to 5-3 win over Earthquakes

Sporting Kansas City striker Dániel Sallói dribbles the ball as San Jose Earthquakes midfielder Niko Tsakiris looks on during Sporting KC’s 5-3 win at Pay Pal Park on Saturday APR 19, 2025. (Sporting Kansas City)

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Dániel Sallói scored twice as Sporting Kansas City cruised to a 5-3 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose has two matches in a row and four out of its last seven. Sporting KC has won two of its past three matches.

Sporting KC (2-6-1) scored three unanswered goals in a six-minute span early in the first half. In the 18th minute, Dejan Joveljic found Logan Ndenbe along the left side of the box and the left wing back rifled a shot to the far corner past Quakes goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. for his first goal of the season.

Two minutes later Sallói scored the first of his two goals of the match. Sporting KC goalkeeper John Pulskamp sent a long ball off of a free kick inside the box. Sallói got behind San Jose center back Rodrigues and deposited the ball top-shelf for his third goal of the season.

Then in the 24th minute, Shapi Suleymanov received a long ball from Nemanja Radoja along the right wing. Suleymanov crossed the ball into the box where Manu Garcia chipped the ball over a sliding Edwards Jr. for his first goal of the season.

“You concede three goals in the first 30 minutes; you don’t deserve to win. I give our team a lot of credit. We got it to 3-2 at halftime. I felt we were in position to win the game, but we continued to make some errors that were costly in the second half. Overall, it’s a poor performance on our part. There’s no two ways about it. … We were poor today. Give our opponent credit. They played hard. They converted the opportunities that were there. They deserve a lot of credit,” Quakes head coach Bruce Arena said.

San Jose (3-5-1) answered back in the 30th minute. Niko Tsakiris led a counterattack from midfield. Rodrigues dribbled in from the right slot and threaded a pass over to Josef Martinez who one-timed a right footed shot past Pulskamp for his fifth goal of the season.

The Earthquakes cut the deficit to one goal just before halftime in the 42nd minute. Cristian Espinoza’s free kick deflected off of Suleymanov to an unmarked Cristian Arango who headed the ball past Pulskamp for his fifth goal of the season.

Sallói completed his brace in the 73rd minute with an insurance goal for Sporting KC. Erik Thommy centered the ball into the middle of the box where Sallói snuck in from the left wing all alone and beat Edwards Jr. with a right footed one-timer for his fourth goal of the season.

“I think we need to look at ourselves in terms of responsibility, the team and the mentality going into it. Because, like you said, seeing the way we were playing, the way we came back in the in the first half, it was just a classic way-too-late situation of where the game gets going and the players start to pick themselves up, but it’s already too late,” Quakes midfielder Ian Harkes said.

Thommy put the game away for the visitors in the 85th minute. Sallói sent a pass over to the right side of the box where Thommy made a move around Ousseni Bouda before firing a shot to the far corner for his second goal of the season.

Arango completed the scoring with his brace in the fourth minute of stoppage time with a penalty kick. Martinez drew a penalty inside the box after being fouled by Pulskamp two minutes earlier. Arango made a hesitation move to get Pulskamp leaning left before chipping the ball into the middle of the net for his team leading sixth goal of the season.

Pulskamp finished the match with three saves on six shots on goal to earn his second win of the season. Edwards Jr., who made his first start of the season in place of the injured Daniel, didn’t record a save on the five shots on goal in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with six corner kicks. Sporting Kansas City had none.

The Earthquakes move to 27-33-10 all-time vs. Sporting KC, with an 18-9-8 record at home. Tonight’s result evens the season series. In their last meeting back on March 1 in Kansas City, Kansas, the Quakes won 2-1 for their first road win over SKC since Aug. 19, 2015.

San Jose regained their spot atop the MLS team goals leaderboard after scoring three more to run their total to 19, two more than Vancouver.

Fullback Max Floriani made his MLS and Quakes debut in the 88th minute, coming on for Rodrigues. Floriani was selected second overall by the San Jose Earthquakes in last December’s Major League Soccer SuperDraft out of Saint Louis University.

UP NEXT: San Jose travels out east to take on the Columbus Crew on Saturday April 26th at 4:30pm at Lower.com Field.

Martinez’s hat trick highlights the Earthquakes 6-1 route of DC United

San Jose Earthquakes striker Josef Martinez blows a kiss to the crowd at Pay Pal Park as he celebrates one of his three goals with teammate and fullback Ian Harkes against DC United on Sunday APR 6, 2025. (San Jose Earthquakes)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Josef Martinez proved why he is still one of the league’s most dangerous strikers.

Martinez recorded a hat trick during the San Jose Earthquakes 6-1 thrashing victory over DC United on Sunday afternoon at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose has won for the first time since Week 2 against Sporting KC. DC United has lost three matches in a row.

It was a celebration of the first ever MLS game between the two clubs 29 years ago when they played at Spartan Stadium in San Jose. A game that featured the game winning goal by former Clash and U.S. Men’s National Team player Eric Wynalda in the 88th minute. Wynalda and former DC United fullback Jeff Agoos reacted the goal during a ceremony before the game.

Quakes head coach Bruce Arena made one change to his starting XI as Niko Tsakiris made his first start of the season at attacking midfield.

San Jose drew first blood in the eighth minute off of a set piece. Cristian Espinoza’s corner kick to the center of the box was headed by Chicho Arrango. The ball deflected off of Christian Benteke and into the back of the net for Arango’s team leading fourth goal of the season.

The Earthquakes struck again in the 16th minute. A pretty give and go between Niko Tsakiris and Josef Martinez helped double San Jose’s lead. Martinez headed the ball over to Tsakiris and the third-year midfielder headed it back down the line along the left wing. Martinez raced in with the ball and beat DC United goalkeeper Joonhong Kim with a laser of a shot to the near post for his second goal of the season.

Four minutes later the Quakes scored its third unanswered goal of the opening 45 minutes. Beau Leroux was fouled inside the box by Matti Petola that resulted in a penalty kick for San Jose. Cristian Espinoza cashed in the penalty for his first goal of the season with a shot to upper middle of the net.

“A good afternoon. But let’s be fair, I don’t think that’s a fair scoreline today. That’s not a 6-1 game, but I’m going to take it. If we can schedule this game every 30 years, we would be in good shape,” Arena said.

DC United broke through late in the first half to get on the scoreboard. In the second minute of stoppage time, Derek Dodson serviced a ball into the middle the box and Benteke’s header hit off the right post and into the back of the net for his team-leading fifth goal of the season.

The second half opened with DC United controlling the pace of play and created quick scoring chances. Quakes goalkeeper Daniel stopped back-to-back point-blank chances by Benteke in the 51st minute to keep the visiting team from making it a one-goal game.

Martinez’s second goal of the match iced the game for San Jose in the 81st minute. Amahl Pellegrino slid a past through one of the DC United defender’s legs just outside the box over to Martinez who kept himself onsides on the play. Martinez chipped the ball past Kim for his third goal of the season.

“Today is special,” Martinez reflected after the match. ” It’s not because of the three goals (I scored), it’s because my son was here. That’s what’s most important for me. We worked hard this weekend, we pushed a lot. We deserved (to win) this game.”

Pellegrino joined the scoring party when he finished off a beautiful looking tic-tac-toe type of goal. Mark-Anthony-Kaye sent a long ball over to Jamal Ricketts. The center back, who came into the match as a sub in the 76th minute, headed the ball into the middle of the box where Pellegrino one-touched a right footed shot past Kim for his first goal of the season.

Martinez recorded his hat trick after taking a pass off of a long ball from Espinoza. The Man of the Match made one touch with the ball before chipping the ball high over Kim into the back of the net for his fourth goal of the season in the second minute of stoppage time.

“When you have the right mentality in every game and every training session, then things start to work out in your favor,” Espinoza said.

Daniel finished the match stopping nine of the ten shots on goal to earn his third win of the season. Kim made three saves on nine shots on goal in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with three corner kicks. DC United had four.

San Jose is currently 19-15-9 (72 GF, 69 GA) against D.C. United, with a 10-5-7 (41 GF, 31 GA) record at home. San Jose is now unbeaten in their last four against D.C. dating back to 2019 (2-0-2).

The Quakes scored six goals for the first time in MLS play since Sept. 19, 1999, when as the Clash, they defeated the Miami Fusion 6-1 powered by a brace from Ronald Cerritos.

With his 20th-minute penalty kick goal, Espinoza passed Landon Donovan for fourth on the club career scoring list with 33.

With his three goals, Martínez passed Bradley Wright-Phillips for sixth on the MLS career scoring list, going from 117 to 120 goals. The Venezuelan now has 12 goal contributions (11g/1a) in 15 matches vs. D.C.

Martínez also became the seventh player in club history to record a hat trick. Only Chris Wondolowski has multiple three-goal games for San Jose (5).

Assisting on Martínez’s 16th-minute goal, Tsakiris notched his first helper of the season and second of his early MLS career.

Assisting on Pellegrino’s 90th-minute goal, Jamar Ricketts notched his first career MLS assist. Kaye also assisted on the goal, amassing his second helper of the season and 28th in his MLS career.

Daniel now leads all MLS goalkeepers with 37 saves, four ahead of Charlotte’s Kristijan Kahlina with 33.

UP NEX: San Jose travels down south to take on their SoCal rival LAFC on Saturday April 12th at 7:30pm at BMO Stadium.

Quakes Stymied by Rapids 2-1 on a cool Star Wars Night in Pay Pal Park

San Jose Earthquakes lose the match at Pay Pal Park in San Jose to the Colorado Rapids in MLS action Sat Mar 15, 2025 (San Jose Earthquakes X image)

By Michael Roberson

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Force Was Not with the San Jose Earthquakes (2-2) as the Colorado Rapids (2-0-2) were able to flood the Silicon Valley 2-1, on Star Wars Theme Night.

San Jose was on the attack early, as they had two shots on goal within the first two minutes of the match.  Their aggression was impressive, but did not lead to any goals during the early moments.

Their defense was stellar, as they did not allow a shot, let alone a shot on goal for nearly 40 minutes,  However, Colorado used patience and was very efficient in their tactics.  They scored on their lone SOG and shot at the 38-minute mark on a timely kick by center midfielder Cole Bennett.  Rapids 1-0 over the home team.

At that point the ‘Quakes were Shakespearean Moment: Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing.  However, that would change before the end of the half.  They were playing at a 12:8 ratio, Shots:S.O.G., and 0 goals to show for their efforts.

At the 45-minute + 1 extra minute, attacking midfielder and newcomer, Cristian Arango converted a one-timer boot to the back of the net off of a corner kick assist by Cristian Espinosa.  The game was tied 1-1 at recess.

The second half was a continuation of the Earthquakes trying to shake things up for their opponent.  Although no scoring opportunities came to fruition.  on the other side of the pitch, Colorado parlayed their efforts into a game-winning goal by striker Calvin Harris.  At the 71st minute the Rapids took the lead for good, even though there were 19 regulation minutes left in the game, with an additional 7 minutes of stoppage time.

Ten minutes after Harris’ goal, Arango received a yellow card for violating the space of a Colorado player performing a free kick.  San Jose still tried to get a second equalizer with the multitude of minutes left in the contest.  Unfortunately for the Earthquakes, their last attempt to tie the game was a header that was easily stopped by the Colorado goalkeeper, Zachary Steffen.

After 90 minutes + 9 more stoppage ticks, the Earthquakes were on the losing end of a one goal game for the second straight week at PayPal Park, 2-1.

The Quakes are next in action in the state of North Carolina, as they take on Charlotte FC, Saturday, March 22 at 7:30 PM ET/4:30 PM PT.  The Rapids head back to the Rocky Mountain State to host the Portland Timbers on the same date, at 7:30 PM MT.

Quakes can’t stop LAFC onslaught in 3-1 loss in last match of the season

San Jose Earthquakes defender Rodrigues (26) and LAFC forward Kei Kamara (23) fight for the ball during the second half at BMO Stadium on Sat Oct 19, 2024. Photo Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

By William Espy

The San Jose Earthquakes closed out a 2024 season they’ll certainly like to forget on the road against LAFC at BMO Stadium. With no implications really on the line for either team, it was difficult to know what to expect. LAFC is postseason-bound, and they’re essentially locked into the second seed in the Western Conference. Meanwhile, the Earthquakes are guaranteed to finish last in the MLS. LAFC took it to the Quakes with a two goal 3-1 win in the last match of the regular season.

Earthquakes Starting XI: Daniel, Costa, Rodrigues, Wilson, Akapo, Gruezo, Yueill, Marie, Lopez, Espinoza, Ebobisse
LAFC Starting XI: Lloris, Segura, Chanot, Long, Palencia, O’Brien, Tillman, Campos, Bogusz, Giroud, Bouanga

Surprisingly, the Earthquakes got out to an early 1-0 lead off of a goal from Jackson Yueill in the ninth minute. Over the course of the first half, the Quakes were outplayed in terms of possession and total shots but LAFC wasn’t able to challenge the San Jose goalkeeper, Daniel. LAFC were getting shots off, but they weren’t able to get any on target in the first half which would undoubtedly change in the second 45 minutes. 

After a bit of hibernation in the first half, LAFC woke up hungry for the second half. They dominated the second half and Denis Bouanga scored an equalizer in the 68th minute from inside of the box. The Earthquakes were struggling, and those struggles only got worse after both sides made a few substitutions as they attempted to get the all-important second goal that would almost certainly decide the outcome of the game. 

In the 75th minute, LAFC took the lead off of a goal from midfielder Eduard Atuesta. The goal, which was assisted by Kei Kamara, gave the home side a 2-1 lead and put the Earthquakes in a situation which they were certainly familiar with this season, trailing late in a game. From there, LAFC continued attacking. They seemed determined not to let the visitors back into the match and there was clearly a massive difference in the talent levels of the two sides. 

The Quakes showed some signs of life late in the game but were unable to find an equalizer. Eventually, LAFC scored a third off of the head of Marlon Santos in extra time, putting the game out of reach for the Earthquakes. They fell to their California rivals 3-1 to end their 2024 MLS season. 

The San Jose Earthquakes’ final game of the season essentially summarized their entire season. They played well in the first half, but were unable to play with a lead and ultimately lost to a much better team. It’s a season that the organization and fans alike will certainly want to forget as quickly as possible. 

Luna’s late goal the difference in Real Salt Lake’s 1-0 shutout victory over the Earthquakes.

The San Jose Earthquakes celebrated super fan Krazy George before their game against Real Salt Lake as George posed with the team’s starting 11 as part of the team’s 50th-year celebration at Pay Pal Park on Saturday OCT 5, 2024. (San Jose Earthquakes)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Sunnyvale’s Diego Luna had a happy homecoming as he returned to haunt his hometown team.

Luna scored in the 78th minute was the only goal Real Salt Lake needed to defeat the San Jose Earthquakes 1-0 in the Quakes home finale of the season on Saturday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose finished 4-13-1 at home including games at Levi’s Stadium and Stanford Stadium. The Earthquakes have lost three out of its last four matches with one match remaining in the season. With the win, Real Salt Lake has earned points in five straight matches and is tied with Seattle for third place in the Western Conference.

Real Salt Lake had the presence of their leading goal scorer Chico Arango who has been out with a hamstring injury he suffered during a 2-0 loss to the Earthquakes on August 24th when he was knocked to the ground by midfielder Carlos Gruezo. Arango came in as a substitute for Anderson Julio in the 55th minute.

The first half featured a scoreless deadlock. Neither team generated that many quality scoring chances. The best opportunity for San Jose came in the 20th minute when a shot from Hernan Lopez from the center of the box missed wide right of Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Zac MacMath. Quakes goalkeeper Daniel made a nice save on RSL’s best chance of the half, a shot off of the foot of Luna in the fourth minute.

Real Salt Lake (15-7-11-56 points) looked to have broken the deadlock in the 56th minute when Arango scored with a shot from point-blank range near the left post. However, he was ruled offsides and the goal was wiped off the board.

San Jose’s (6-24-5-21 points) interim head coach Ian Russell brought in a pair of fresh legs in the 63rd minute. Jack Skahan and Amahl Pellegrino came in for Jeremy Ebobisse and Paul Marie.

“Niko [Tsakiris] and Jackson [Yueill] broke the lines decently well, but I felt like after that, we didn’t have a lot of tempo change to get in behind them. I think Salt Lake does a pretty good job. They press pretty well, but I actually liked some of the combination plays with Niko, Hernán [López] and Jackson. But I think we were missing that next step to create a big chance,” Russell said.

The Earthquakes had a close call in the 70th minute when Nelson Palacio crossed a ball into the box where Dominik Marczuk’s header hit the crossbar and into the stands. Both players were subbed out a minute later by Matt Crooks and Emeka Eneli.

Real Salt Lake’s hard work finally paid off in the 78th minute. Braian Ojeda threaded a pass past two Quakes defenders over to Luna. The South Bay native dribbled out to the left before firing a perfectly placed shot off the right post and into the back of the net for his seventh goal of the season.

“It was a really good strike by [Diego] Luna. Good player. They had some chances early on, and then most of their chances came from outside the box. Unfortunately, that one went in,” Russell said.

San Jose had a golden chance to score the equalizer in the 90th minute but MacMath stopped a point-blank shot from Preston Judd from 10 yards out in the middle of the box.

MacMath finished with one save on one attempt on target to earn a clean slate. Daniel made five saves on six shots on goal in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with two corner kicks. Real Salt Lake had nine.

San Jose is 16-15-12 against Real Salt Lake in the all-time series.

San Jose split the season series with Real Salt Lake after defeating them 2-0 in Utah on Aug. 24. The Quakes also saw their two-game unbeaten home streak against RSL snapped after drawing 2-2 with them in 2022 and beating them 2-1 last year.

The Quakes celebrated 50 years with Krazy George, who has been leading cheers since the club’s first match in 1974. The first 5,000 fans through the gates received a Krazy George wig courtesy of Habbas Law.

Cristian Espinoza extended his run of consecutive MLS regular-season games played to a current league-high of 108 (Oct. 2, 2021 – present). The streak is not only a Quakes record but tied for fifth longest in MLS history. He now stands equal with Darlington Nagbe (May 1, 2021 – Apr. 6, 2024) in the all-time annals and second among all field players. Espinoza can pass Nagbe in the season finale on Oct. 19 in a road contest vs. LAFC. Goalkeeper Luis Robles holds the league record with 183 straight appearances (Sept. 29, 2012 – May 12, 2018).

UP NEXT: San Jose close out the regular season on the road against LAFC on Sunday 10/19 at 6:00pm at BMO Stadium.

Quakes can’t stop CF Montreal’s Martinez scores twice in four minutes in 3-0 shutout win

CF Montreal’s Josef Martinez left takes a shot against the San Jose Earthquakes goalie Daniel in the first half in MLS action at Stade Saputo in Montreal on Sat Sep 28, 2024 (Canadian Press via AP News)

By William Espy

The San Jose Earthquakes were on the road once again, this time they went north of the border to visit Stade Saputo in Montreal, Quebec to face CF Montreal. Montreal entered the night two points behind the Philadelphia Union for a playoff spot. Their 3-0 victory over San Jose on Saturday night wouldn’t be enough to put them into a playoff spot though, as the Union recorded a point of their own in a draw against Atlanta United on Saturday.

Montreal Starting XI: Sirois, Campbell, Alvarez, Waterman, Marshall-Rutty, Piette, Saliba, Edwards, Duke, Clark, Martinez

Earthquakes Starting XI: Daniel, Costa, Rodrigues, Munie, Akapo, Gruezo, Tsakiris, Pellegrino, Lopez, Espinoza, Ebobisse

The Earthquakes were able to keep Montreal off of the scoresheet in the first half, but it was pretty clear that Montreal was in control for most of the night. Right out of the gate, Caden Clark drew two fouls on Carlos Akapo.

The first ten minutes were all Montreal, as Daniel was forced to make two early saves before the Quakes got an opportunity of their own. Rodrigues nearly gave San Jose an early lead against the run of play, but his header went high to the left.

The next five minutes, the Quakes showed some life, getting quality chances of their own but they were unable to get them on target. From there, momentum swung back in the home team’s favor as they maintained a majority of the pressure for the remainder of the half.

Montreal’s Josef Martinez opened the scoring in the 51st minute off of a corner. The assist was given to Bryce Duke, who’s cross found Martinez’s head perfectly. Montreal picked up a couple of yellow cards early in the half, with Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty and Raheem Edwards each getting a booking within four minutes of one another.

Martinez made it a brace, scoring his second of the night four minutes later with a shot from inside of the box. At that point, the Quakes made a few changes to try to spark the team’s energy levels but ultimately Ii wouldn’t help. Clark would extend Montreal’s lead to 3-0 in the 72nd minute with another shot from inside of the box.

The Earthquakes applied some pressure as the minutes winded down, but they weren’t able to disrupt Jonathan Sirios’s clean sheet. Montreal would walk away with a 3-0 win in a pretty one-sided match up. Montreal lead in almost every category, including a dominant 57/43% possession percentage.

They took 16 shots, ten of which were on target, compared to San Jose’s 12 general shots but a majority were low quality as only two were on target. San Jose likely didn’t deserve to be on the other end of a shutout, they had some quality chances overall but it was clear right out of the gate that Montreal was likely taking home three points.

The Earthquakes are going to finish last in the MLS at this point, with just 18 points through 31 games but they’ll look to crawl out of the league’s basement as much as possible in their next game against FC Dallas at home.

Marie saves the night as Quakes draw with Sounders at Lumen Field 2-2

San Jose Earthquakes and Seattle Sounders battled to a draw at Lumen Field in Seattle on Wed Sep 18, 2024 (SI photos/Getty Images)

The San Jose Earthquakes are back on the road, this time they visited their Pacific Northwest counterparts, the Seattle Sounders at Lumen Field.

San Jose Starting XI: Daniel, Verhoeven, Rodrigues, Munie, Akapo, Gruezo, Tsakiris, Pellegrino, Lopez, Espinoza, Bouda

Seattle Starting XI: Frei, Roldan, Yelmar, Ragen, Nouhou, Roldan, Vargas, Rothrock, Rusnak, de la Vega, Morris

The Quakes got out to an early lead in the 16th minute when a pass by Cristian Espinoza landed loose inside of the box for Amahl Pellegrino who was able to put it away and make it 1-0 in favor of the visitors. It didn’t take long for Seattle to tie it up though.

After Hernan Lopez was shown a yellow card, the Sounders got a dangerous free kick from roughly 35 yards out. The ball was crossed into the box, and after quite a bit of a scramble with the ball inside of the area it eventually found its way to Jordan Morris who was able to put it past Daniel. In the 39th minute, Morris got his second of the night on a volley inside of the box giving the Sounders a 2-1 lead that they’d carry into half time.

Heading into the second half, the Earthquakes found themselves in a very similar situation. They were trailing with 45 minutes to figure out a way to get a point or potentially all three. Although they controlled possession quite a bit in the second half, the Earthquakes were unable to find an equalizer for quite a while in the second half. The Quakes brought quite a bit of pressure, bringing their shot total closer to that of Seattle’s but the Sounders still led in that category.

It was ultimately a pretty uneventful second half, as although chances were being created many of them weren’t high-danger opportunities that truly seemed like they could change the complexion of the match. Seattle was the better team overall, even though San Jose was able to maintain possession on a more regular basis.

Considering Seattle currently find themselves fourth in the Western Conference while the Earthquakes are dead last in 14th, it would’ve been hard to be upset if San Jose left Seattle without a point. Overall though, San Jose did do a fantastic job keeping it close against a team that clearly has much more talent on it.

Picking up three points would’ve desperately helped the Sounders as they’re currently in the midst of a massive playoff battle. While a single point is definitely better than nothing, a tight race makes every point crucial. Everyone from second to eighth in the conference are only separated by a few games’ worth of points, so every game is crucial for teams hoping to get a higher seeding.

The Quakes on the other hand continue to struggle mightily in a season that has left their fans very little hope about the immediate future. Outside of Hernan Lopez and Espinoza, there’s no true offensive weapons on the team who can help them squeak out some wins in crucial games like this one.

The Quakes had a strong outing against Seattle earlier this season when they defeated the Sounders 3-2 at PayPal Park, so it seemed like they should be able to earn another point on the road and a late goal by Paul Marie made that a reality.

In the 89th minute, he was able to find the back of the net to even it up when it seemed like the Sounders were going to walk away with three points. Instead, both teams got a single point which will undoubtedly have drastic playoff implications later on down the road.

With only five games remaining in the season, the Earthquakes have already been eliminated from playoff contention. The results of coming games aren’t meaningless though, as now is the perfect time to turn things around and carry some momentum into the 2025 season while also potentially playing spoiler for other organizations. Considering it seemed at one point that San Jose would be leaving Seattle with a loss, their late goal truly changed everything.

Vancouver’s Picault and Armstrong each with a goal defeat Quakes 2-0 at BC Place

San Jose Earthquakes Tanner Beason (15) blocks the penalty kick by the Vancouver Whitecaps Ali Ahmed (22) in first half action at BC Place in Vancouver on Sat Sep 14, 2024 (Canadian Press via AP photo)

By William Espy

The San Jose Earthquakes are back on the road, this time heading to BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia to take on the Vancouver Whitecaps. Since the Leagues Cup, Vancouver is 1-0-1, defeating Austin FC and drawing with FC Dallas. Meanwhile, the Quakes are 1-1-0, defeating Real Salt Lake and falling to Minnesota United FC.

Vancouver entered the night as a heavy favorite, and that’s for good reason. Not only did they have the all-important home-field advantage, but they also found themselves sixth in the Western Conference while the Earthquakes were last in the conference by a considerable margin. The Quakes were shutout on Saturday night at BC Place in Vancouver 2-0, as the Whitecaps got goals from Fafa Picault and Stuart Armstrong.

Earthquakes Starting XI: Daniel, Marie, Beason, Rodrigues, Akapo, Kikanovic, Yueill, Tsakiris, Lopez, Espinoza, Judd

Whitecaps Starting XI:Takaoka, Utvik, Veselinovic, Blackmon, Ahmed, Vite, Priso, Schopf, Adekugbe, Picault, Gauld

The Whitecaps were controlling the game in the first half. They more than doubled up the Earthquakes on shots, both total and on target. The Whitecaps had 8 total, five of which were on target. Meanwhile, the Quakes only had 3 and 2 respectively.

Possession was in Vancouver’s favor as well, with them having 56% possession after 45 minutes. Despite that, it took Vancouver until the 35th minute to get on the scoreboard when Fafa Picault scored off of an assist by Ryan Gauld on a set piece. Gauld took the corner kick, and it landed directly on Picault’s head giving Daniel no chance to make a save. It was a picture-perfect corner by Vancouver.

With the Whitecaps already the favorites heading into the match, and their early lead making it even more likely that they walk away with three points, the Earthquakes had a lot of work to do to overcome the odds.

San Jose had a couple of substitutions to start the second half with Ousseni Bouda and Vitor Costa coming on for Preston Judd and Benjamin Kikanovic. About ten minutes later, they make another change, taking off Niko Tsakiris for Alfredo Morales.

Despite the changes, Vancouver looked even more dominant to start the second half. They were controlling possession at an even more extreme rate, weren’t allowing the Quakes to get shots off, and overall were outplaying the visitors.

They fired a considerable number of shots at Daniel, and many of them forced the goalkeeper to make a save. All in all, they’d have 11 shots on target and 19 total.

In the 86th minute, Gauld got his second assist of the night on a very unselfish pass which found Stuart Armstrong wide open. He was able to put it away with no issues, giving the Whitecaps a 2-0 lead which they’d carry to the end of the match. The Earthquakes only managed two shots for the entirety of the second half, and none of them forced the goalkeeper to make a save as they were both off target.

It’s not very surprising that the Earthquakes dropped points against a top-half team in the Western Conference while on the road. The Whitecaps are a strong side in the midst of a playoff push, while there isn’t much optimism around the Earthquakes in general at the moment.

The lack of any type of offensive production, specifically in the second half certainly should be concerning though. In a season where there’s no hope in the standings, you have to at least hope for a moral victory, and in this case there weren’t even any of those to speak of. The Earthquakes will look to right the ship as their road trip continues in Seattle to take on the Sounders this Wednesday.

St Louis City’s Kijima and Lowen scores goals in 2-0 shutout of Earthquakes

The 12th and 14th place teams in the Western Conference faced off on Wednesday night, as the San Jose Earthquakes visited Saint Louis City SC. Neither team has lived up to expectations to start the season and both have already made a manager chance this season.

For the Quakes, Ian Russell took over for Luchi Gonzalez on June 24. Meanwhile on July 1, Saint Louis fired Bradley Carnell who was replaced by John Hackworth on an interim basis. The change of coaches for St Louis must have worked Hackworth coached St Louis City SC to a 2-0 shutout of the Earthquakes.

Earthquakes Starting XI: Yarbrough, Costa, Beason, Rodrigues, Munie, Tsakiris, Skahan, Yueill, Kikanovic, Judd, Espinoza

Saint Louis Starting XI: Burki, Totland, Durkin, Parker, Reid, Blom, Klein, Lowen, Kijima, Vassilev, Thorisson

Saint Louis came out with a lot of pressure early, getting a couple shots in the first few minutes and dominating possession right out of the gate. San Jose got their first quality chance in the 9th minute when a counterattacking opportunity by Preston Judd forced Roman Burki to make his first save of the night.

The ensuing corner led to Burki punching the ball away before the play was ultimately called offside, ending the attack. In the 15th a Saint Louis cross found Nokkvi Thorisson right in front of the net, but he kicked it over the goal.

A shot from John Klein in the 20th minute nearly gave the home team an early lead but William Yarbrough was able to get a hand on it and tip it wide. Off of the corner Tim Parker had an attempt off of a header which went wide right of the goal.

Saint Louis broke the deadlock in the 28th minute when Yabrough misjudged a bouncing ball which went into the back of the net following a soft shot from Eduard Lowen. In the 41st minute, Saint Louis added a second goal off of a free kick.

The cross landed right in front of the goal, and Hosei Kijima tapped it into the netting. Tanner Beason prevented Saint Louis from making it 3-0 in the 45th with a fantastic goal line clearance after the ball was tipped by Yarbrough.

Despite the fact that the home team had a two goal lead heading into halftime, that score line didn’t fully show just how dominant of a performance it had been for Saint Louis. They were undoubtedly the 12th and 14th place teams in the Western Conference faced off on Wednesday night, as the San Jose Earthquakes visited Saint Louis City SC.

Neither team has lived up to expectations to start the season and both have already made a manager chance this season. For the Quakes, Ian Russell took over for Luchi Gonzalez on June 24. Meanwhile on July 1, Saint Louis fired Bradley Carnell who was replaced by John Hackworth on an interim basis.

Earthquakes Starting XI: Yarbrough, Costa, Beason, Rodrigues, Munie, Tsakiris, Skahan, Yueill, Kikanovic, Judd, Espinoza

Saint Louis Starting XI: Burki, Totland, Durkin, Parker, Reid, Blom, Klein, Lowen, Kijima, Vassilev, Thorisson

Saint Louis came out with a lot of pressure early, getting a couple shots in the first few minutes and dominating possession right out of the gate. San Jose got their first quality chance in the ninth minute when a counterattacking opportunity by Preston Judd forced Roman Burki to make his first save of the night.

The ensuing corner led to Burki punching the ball away before the play was ultimately called offside, ending the attack. In the 15th a Saint Louis cross found Nokkvi Thorisson right in front of the net, but he kicked it over the goal.

A shot from John Klein in the 20th minute nearly gave the home team an early lead but William Yarbrough was able to get a hand on it and tip it wide. Off of the corner Tim Parker had an attempt off of a header which went wide right of the goal.

Saint Louis broke the deadlock in the 28th minute when Yabrough misjudged a bouncing ball which went into the back of the net following a soft shot from Eduard Lowen. In the 41st minute, Saint Louis added a second goal off of a free kick.

The cross landed right in front of the goal, and Hosei Kijima tapped it into the netting. Tanner Beason prevented Saint Louis from making it 3-0 in the 45th with a fantastic goal line clearance after the ball was tipped by Yarbrough.

Despite the fact that the home team had a two goal lead heading into halftime, that score line didn’t fully show just how dominant of a performance it had been for Saint Louis. They were undoubtedly the better team, and looked to be taking advantage of the boost that typically comes with a coaching change.

Heading into the second half neither team made any changes, which was surprising for the Earthquakes. The first booking of the match came in the 56th minute when Jayden Reid tripped up Benjamin Kikanovic.

After the ensuing free kick, two members of Saint Louis went down for a short period of time before getting back up to their feet. Paul Marie, Hernan Lopez, Jeremy Ebobisse and Alfredo Moralesentered the match for Cristian Espinoza, Judd, Rodrigues and Niko Tsakiris in the 62nd minute.

For Saint Louis’s first substitution of the night, Sam Adeniran came on for Thorisson in the 64th. Adeniran nearly made an instant impact when he found himself inside the box with the ball and some space, but the shot went directly to Yarbrough.

San Jose’s substitutions weren’t doing quite as well, in the 66th minute Lopez picked up an almost instant yellow card. Vitor Costa got called for a foul and shown a yellow card during the 72nd minute. As the game seemed to be a lock for the home side by this point, Saint Louis made a couple of more substitutions in the 80th.

Although San Jose played better in the second half, they were unable to break the shutout and Saint Louis walked away with a 2-0 win. better team, and looked to be taking advantage of the boost that typically comes with a coaching change.

Heading into the second half neither team made any changes, which was surprising for the Earthquakes. The first booking of the match came in the 56th minute when Jayden Reid tripped up Benjamin Kikanovic.

After the ensuing free kick, two members of Saint Louis went down for a short period of time before getting back up to their feet. Paul Marie, Hernan Lopez, Jeremy Ebobisse and Alfredo Moralesentered the match for Cristian Espinoza, Judd, Rodrigues and Niko Tsakiris in the 62nd minute.

For Saint Louis’s first substitution of the night, Sam Adeniran came on for Thorisson in the 64th. Adeniran nearly made an instant impact when he found himself inside the box with the ball and some space, but the shot went directly to Yarbrough.

San Jose’s substitutions weren’t doing quite as well, in the 66th minute Lopez picked up an almost instant yellow card. Vitor Costa got called for a foul and shown a yellow card during the 72nd minute.

As the game seemed to be a lock for the home side by this point, Saint Louis made a couple of more substitutions in the 80th. Although San Jose played better in the second half, they were unable to break the shutout and Saint Louis walked away with a 2-0 win.