Tag: San Jose Earthquakes

Galaxy spoil Earthquakes 50th anniversary party with 3-0 shutout win

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder Ricky Puig entered the game as a substitute in the second half of the 101st California Classico against the San Jose Earthquakes at Stanford Stadium on Saturday JUN 29, 2024. (Los Angeles Galaxy)

by Marko Ukalovic

PALO ALTO, Calif. — On a night where the San Jose Earthquakes were celebrating the team’s 50th anniversary, the Los Angeles Galaxy played party poopers with a 3-0 shutout victory in the 101st California Classico on Saturday evening at Stanford Stadium.

San Jose has lost five matches in a row. Los Angeles has won four matches in a row and continued to hold on to second place in the Western Conference.

This was the first match with interim head coach Ian Russell at the helms as he took over for Luchi Gonzalez who was relieved of his duties this past Monday. Gonzalez had led a team that had lost a potential of 20 points in matches they had leads in.

“We have a lot of respect for him,” Earthquakes captain Jackson Yueill said on the team playing their first game under Russell as the head coach of the team. “He brings a calm energy, but he wants to press, he wants to play, he wants to be dynamic. So, guys are still eager to make their marks, still make something of this season. It’s the Cali Classico, so it’s an important one. We’re here to play for him.”

Los Angeles (11-3-8-41 points) had the first scoring chance of the match early on in the eighth minute. An odd man counterattack led to a shot attempt by Joseph Paintsil that was easily handled by ‘Quakes goalkeeper William Yabrough.

San Jose (3-15-3-12 points) had scoring chances a minute apart in the 20th and 21st minute by Jeremy Ebobisse and Hernan Lopez that went wide left. Then in the 23rd minute a ball centered in the box was headed on the net by fullback Daniel Munie but Galaxy goalkeeper John McCarthy made a point-blank save.

The match opened up in the final 15 minutes of the first half. Each team had quality chances to break the seal. Ebobisse received the ball inside the center of box from 10 yards out. After moving past a Galaxy defender, Ebobisse’s left footed shot sailed high over the net. A minute later a shot from the left wing inside the box by Amahl Pellegrino was thwarted away by McCarthy.

The Galaxy finally drew first blood on a counterattack in the 37th minute after the Earthquakes failed to get a shot on target off of a corner kick. Gabriel Pec possessed the ball from midfield down the right wing and crossed the ball into the middle and Paintsil beat Yarbrough with a left-footed shot from 15 yards for his sixth goal of the season.

“I think that’s what frustrating,” said Russell regarding his team outplaying Los Angeles in the first half yet were down heading into the intermission. “You see the score line. If you didn’t watch the game, and you see the score 3-0 you think oh man they didn’t play well. I was very happy with a lot of the game. But then there’s again a big mistake that keep on hurting us and we got to fix those.”

Los Angeles threw a dagger through the hearts of San Jose in 72nd minute. A shot from Riqui Puig from outside the box went past the outstretched reach of Yarbrough off the right post. The rebound went to an unmarked Dejan Joveljic who headed the ball into an empty net for his team leading 12th goal of the season.

Mauricio Cuevas put the cheery on top for the Galaxy in the first minute of stoppage when he finished off a great cross into the middle of the box from Miki Yamane for his first goal of the season. Cuevas came into the match in the 86th minute when he subbed for Diego Fagundez.

McCarthy stopped all five shots on target to earn the clean sheet. Yarbrough made four saves on seven shots on target in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with five corner kicks. Los Angeles had six.

The Earthquakes honored the 50th anniversary of the team with a special celebration at halftime that included past players, coaches and staff from over the team’s 50-year history, including Quakes legend Paul Child.

The announced attendance was 40,844.

UP NEXT: San Jose travels out to the Midwest to take on St. Louis CITY SC at 5:30pm at CITYPARK.

Rodriguez’s late goal lifts Timbers in 2-1 win over Earthquakes

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Portland Timbers striker Jonathan Rodridguez scores the go-ahead goal against the San Jose Earthquakes goalie Jacob Jackson and Paul Marie at Pay Pal Park on Wednesday JUN 19, 2024. (Portland Timbers)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — The San Jose Earthquakes took on the Portland Timbers on Wednesday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose is winless in its past six matches/with the win/tie snapped its five-match winless streak. Portland extended its points streak to five matches/had its four-match point streak snapped.

Portland (6-7-6-24 points) drew first blood in the 22nd minute thanks to a big blunder by ‘Quakes goalkeeper Jacob Jackson, who made his first career MLS start. A back pass from to Tanner Beason to Jackson wasn’t controlled by the young goalkeeper. Evander came storming in and deflected the ball off of the former New England Revolution keeper before depositing it into an open net with a left footed volley for his co-leading eighth goal of the season.

San Jose’s (3-13-2-14 points) Vitor Costa was guilty of offsides twice that derailed two scoring chances first in the 13th minute that wiped out a potential goal and the other in the 30th minute where his shot attempt sailed high and wide over the net.

The Earthquakes didn’t generate a shot on goal in the opening 45. The closest the came to scoring the equalizer was in the 39th minute. A centering pass into the middle of the box from Cristian Espinoza was deflected away from Jeremy Ebobisse by Dario Zuparic who would have had an easy tap in into an open net.

San Jose opened up the second half with the equalizer goal five minutes in off of a set piece. Espinoza’s corner kick was deflected out of the box onto the foot of Paul Marie, who came in off the bench for the injured Carlos Akapo in the 18th minute, and the French fullback blasted a laser of a shot from 23 yards out into the upper corner of the net beyond the outstretched reach of Timber’s goalkeeper James Pantemis for his second goal of the season.

“It’s like this theme that continues to haunt us in terms of a good 60 or 70 minutes. Right there we could be winning, because of how we are imposing. We actually are defending well, we lose in a moment, we lose organization,” ‘Quakes head coach Luchi Gonzalez said.

The ‘Quakes has a glorious chance to gain its first lead of the match three minutes later. Hernan Lopez found Amahl Pellegrino all alone in the middle of the pitch. Pellegrino dribbled in one-on-one with Pantemis, made a move around the goalkeeper to the left side before missing wide left and over the net with his shot attempt.

Portland regained the lead in the 72nd minute. Evander chipped in a ball from just outside the box and Jonathan Rodriguez got behind Marie near the left post and headed the ball past Jackson for his seventh goal of the season.

“I don’t know maybe you and I share the same feelings,” said Marie when asked if the lack of communication has led to his team conceding goals late in the match. “I feel like we start to be over positive on one side and getting stretched out with nobody in the middle. I feel like that’s what happened in New York, last game and this game.”

Pantemis made one save on two shots on goal to earn the victory. Jackson made two shots on four shots on goal in the losing cause.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with eight corner kicks. Portland had two.

San Jose is 6-22-10 against Portland in the all-time series.

UP NEXT: San Jose travels down south in a battle of California as the take on LAFC on Saturday 6/22 at 7:30pm at BMO Stadium.

NYCFC’s Martinez gets a hat trick as Quakes routed 5-1 in New York

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

NYCFC’s Alonso Martinez (bottom center) is mobbed by his teammates after scoring a goal. Martinez scored a hat trick against the San Jose Earthquakes at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx on Fri May 31, 2024 (New York FC X photo)

By William Espy

The San Jose Earthquakes headed to New York City, specifically Yankee Stadium in the Bronx to take on New York City FC. San Jose has climbed out of the bottom spot in the Western Conference while NYC FC has been playing well, currently sitting in a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. San Jose was running shorthanded on the backline, as both Carlos Akapo and Vitor Costa were suspended due to yellow card accumulation.

NYCFC’s Alonso Martinez scored himself a hat trick in a 5-1 win over the Quakes at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

San Jose Starting XI: Yarbrough, Marie, Wilson, Rodrigues, Beason, Tsakiris, Yueill, Pellegrino, Lopez, Espinoza, Ebobisse

New York City Starting XI: Freese, Gray, Thiago, Risa, O’Toole, Sands, Parks, Fernandez, Santiago Rodriguez, Wolf, Milatovic

The first ten minutes featured some end-to-end action, but San Jose was giving up some dangerous set pieces near their box early on. In the 15th minute, New York had a strong scoring chance after a nice passing play found its way to Hannes Wolf.

Had Bruno Wilson not been positioned perfectly, the shot would have easily found its way into the net, but the defender was able to get in front of it. Moments later, Wilson blocked a second shot, this time from Julian Fernandez. Immediately afterward, Fernandez fouled Amahl Pellegrino and picked up the night’s first yellow card.

Minutes later, Strahinja Tanasijevic fouled an attacking Niko Tsakiris and picked up New York’s second booking of the night, giving the Quakes a dangerous set piece of their own. They were unable to convert though.

In the 21st minute, Cristian Espinoza had a giveaway in San Jose’s defensive half. It gave New York a quality opportunity, but Kevin O’Toole was unable to get a strong shot off and it trickled out of play. In the 23rd, Jackson Yueill unintentionally elbowed Santiago Rodriguez and got San Jose’s first card of the night. In the 33rd minute, NYC nearly took the lead when Rodriguez had a great run into the box, then fired a shot that went just over the crossbar.

During that play, Wilson picked up an injury and exited the game, weakening the Earthquakes defense even more significantly. Daniel Munie came into the game to take Wilson’s place.

In the 38th, New York had an injury of their own as O’Toole went down holding his hamstring. He would also be substituted out, with Mitja Ilenic entering the match. Paul Marie nearly gave the Quakes a lead late in stoppage time, but was denied by the goalkeeper. Stoppage time would expire, and it would head into the break 0-0.

Just a minute into the half, a shot by Hernan Lopez went just wide of the goal. Wolf broke the deadlock for New York City in the 50th minute, despite the Earthquakes having a strong start to the half. It wouldn’t take long for the Earthquakes to get an equalizer though, as just three minutes later Pellegrino received a perfect pass from Lopez and put away his fifth of the season to make it a 1-1 game.

In the 58th, New York made a pair of substitutions hoping to get a spark and restore their lead. In the 61st, Tsakiris almost gave the Quakes their first lead of the night, but his shot rang off of the crossbar. Had the shot been just a bit lower, it would’ve been 2-1 in favor of the visiting side.

Rodriguez gave his team the lead once again just moments into the 80th minute when San Jose got pinned into their own box and were struggling to clear it. Maxi Morales passed it to Alonso Martinez who put the game away in the 85th minute, making it 3-1 with very little time remaining however New York wasn’t done yet.

Martinez made it a brace, with his second of the night just seven minutes later in stoppage time. Once again, that wasn’t all. Martinez added a third and final goal to complete a hat trick and New York walked away with a 5-1 victory. It was a game that was even for most of the night, but when it mattered most, New York wanted the result more and that was clear.

Earthquakes squander chances salvage 1-1 draw against Austin FC

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Austin FC forward Sebastian Driussi looks to make a play while San Jose Earthquakes forward Amahl Pellegrino closes in pursuit during the teams’ 1-1 draw at Pay Pal Park on Saturday MAY 25, 2024.

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — The posts and crossbar were friends of Austin FC.

The San Jose Earthquakes hit two posts late in extra time as they settled for a 1-1 draw with Austin FC on Saturday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose snapped its two-match pointless streak. Austin FC has points in three consecutive matches.

San Jose (3-10-2) drew first blood in the 10th minute. Cristian Espinoza led a rush down the right wing. The Argentine forward crossed the ball over to the left side where Jeremy Ebobisse blasted a left footed shot top-shelf into an open net for his co-leading fourth goal of the season.

The Earthquakes had a chance to double its lead twice in a two-minute span less than halfway through the opening 45 minutes. First in the 21st minute, a turnover inside the center of the box by an Austin FC defender found its way to the foot of fullback Vitor Costa but Costa’s shot attempt gobbled up by Austin FC goalkeeper Brad Stuver, who made three saves in the first half.

Then two minutes later, Ebobisse found Hernán López along the right wing but López’s right footed attempt hit the right side of the net as San Jose had Austin reeling inside its own zone.

Austin (6-4-5) slowly started gaining momentum late in the first half as San Jose were issued for two yellow cards with Bruno Wilson and Espinoza being carded for fouls a minute apart in the 41st and 42nd minute.

Austin took advantage of a questionable foul by Carlos Gruezo just outside the box to the right side. Owen Wolff’s free kick was headed into the back of the net past ‘Quakes goalkeeper William Yarbrough by Brendan Hines-Ike in the 45th minute for his first goal of the season giving Austin the equalizer just before halftime.

“100 percent!” said Yarbrough when asked if the team was more angry than disappointed in not earning the extra two points at the end of the match. “I want to win every game. When you’re at home with your fans, I know it’s not cheap for families of four or five that come to watch us play. And playing the way we did tonight and not being able to give them three points, which I feel like they deserved, and we deserved, it’s a frustrating feeling.”

San Jose controlled the play in the second half generating chances as they had the pitch tilted on Austin’s side for the rest of the game. In the 61st minute, López had a scoring chance inside the box but his shot went way wide left of the net. Then in 72nd minute Espinoza dribbled inside to the center of the box before firing wide right with his shot attempt.

The Earthquakes came within inches of scoring the game winning goal in the first minute of stoppage time. The ball fell to Espinoza near the edge of the goal, but his shot hit off the right post. On the ensuing rebound, López’s attempt from hit off the crossbar.

“When we play with this urgency, and this desire to push the game and attack, I know we’ll earn points and win more games over the course of time,” ‘Quakes head coach Luchi Gonzalez said.

Yarbrough had one save on two shots on target to earn his second draw of the season. Stuver made six saves on seven shots on target.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished the match with eight corner kicks. Austin FC had one.

San Jose is 2-1-6 against Austin FC in the all-time series.

UP NEXT: San Jose travels out the Big Apple to take on New York City FC on Friday at 4:30pm at Yankee Stadium.

Republic storms back in extra time to upset Earthquakes 4-3 in U.S. Open Cup

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Sacramento Republic FC forward Luis Felipe was the catalyst in his team’s 4-3 comeback win over the San Jose Earthquakes at Heart Health Park on Tuesday MAY 21, 2024.

by Marko Ukalovic

Never count out the Sacramento Republic.

Luis Felipe and Jean Sebastian Herrera scores a minute apart in the second half of extra to give their team a 4-3 come from behind upset victory over the San Jose Earthquakes in the Round of 16 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday evening at Heart Health Park.

This will go down as one of the worse defeats in U.S. Open Cup history for San Jose as they had a 3-2 lead at the end of the first half of extra time when Hernan Lopez scores in the 100th minute to give the Earthquakes a late lead in the match.

Sacramento advances to the quarterfinals for the second time in three years as they took down San Jose in similar fashion two years ago, also in the Round of 16.

San Jose drew first blood in 11th minute when Benji Kikanovic raced down the left sideline from midfield before crossing the ball of the Preston Judd who one-timed the ball pass Republic goalkeeper Daniel Vitiello.

The Republic struck back six minutes later when Luis Felipe Rodrigues crossed the ball into the middle of the box and Keiran Phillips header beat ‘Quakes goalkeeper Jacob Jackson for Phillips’s first goal of the goal in the 17th minute.

Phillips completed his brace 21 minutes later in when Jack Gurr centered a ball into the middle of the box. Phillips right footed strike beat Jackson to the bottom right corner of the goal to give Sacramento a 2-1 lead in the 38th minute.

Earthquakes head coach Luchi Gonzalez made three changes to his lineup to start the second half as he brought in Cristian Espinoza. Bruno Wilson and Jackson Yueill to jumpstart the offense that lagged off toward the end of the first half.

Niko Tsakiris won a free kick from 25 yards out to the right hash. Espinoza took full advantage when he lasered in the free kick inside the right post for the equalizer in the 80th minute, his first goal of the contest.

Lopez regained the lead for San Jose 10 minutes into the first half of stoppage time thanks to a pretty give and go with Judd who feathered a pass back to Lopez who beat his man off the dribble and beat Vitiello with a sliding shot that went into the far corner of the net.

Sacramento regained its composure immediately as the second half of stoppage time began as the possessed the ball and put pressure on the ‘Quakes back line. Rafael Jauregui centered the ball from the right over to Luis Felipe who beat Jackson with a right footed shot to tie the game at 3-3 in the 105th minute.

Then a minute later the Republic gained possession inside the ‘Quakes zone. Luis Felipe fed a pass over to Cristian Parano who was camped out on the right wing. Parano centered the ball into the middle of the box where Herrera one-timed the ball past Jackson for the game winning goal.

San Jose failed to get the equalizer to send the match to penalty kicks in the final 13 minutes as Sacramento held their ground in their defensive zone to come away with the victory.

UP NEXT: San Jose returns to MLS action on Saturday 5/25 at they host Austin FC at 7:30pm at Pay Pal Park.

Lynn’s late goal propels Orlando City in 1-0 shutout win over Earthquakes

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Orlando City FC forward Jack Lynn dribbles down the pitch against the San Jose Earthquakes during his team’s 1-0 win at Pay Pal Park on Saturday MAY 18, 2024. (Orlando City FC)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — If the San Jose Earthquakes didn’t have bad luck, they wouldn’t have any luck at all.

Jack Lynn scored the match’s only goal in the 89th minute to give Orlando City FC a 1-0 shutout victory over San Jose on Saturday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose has lost its past two MLS matches. Orlando City has points in its last three matches.

Orlando City used a counterattack off of a set piece by San Jose. Iván Angulo stripped the ball off of Niko Tsakiris and raced down the left wing before crossing the ball over to Martin Ojeda. Ojeda’s shot attempt took a fluky bounce over to a wide-open Lynn who tapped in the ball into an open net with a right footed shot for third goal of the season.

“We weren’t able to send the ball back to the 18 (inside the box) and at the end of the day, this is football. The team that scores is the team that’s going to win. Today we didn’t have that consistency to score, to take advantage of our opportunities and they did on their last one,” ‘Quakes forward Cristian Espinoza said.

Both teams spent the first 15 minutes of the first half feeling each other out. Neither generated many scoring chances in the beginning of the match.

Orlando City (4-5-4) suffered a big loss to their offensive attack in the 16th minute. Leading goal scorer Duncan McGuire went up for a headed near midfield and landed awkwardly on his arm that looked scary. He laid on the ground for five minutes before walking off the field under his own power. OC head coached Oscar Pareja replaced McGuire with Lynn.

San Jose (3-10-1) controlled the possession for the majority of the first half and dominated play in the last 15 minutes of the opening half. Espinoza crossed the ball from right to left inside the box over to Rodrigues whose point-blank shot was knocked away by Orlando City goalkeeper Pedro Gallese in the 30th minute.

Then seven minutes later Rodrigues had another attempt to put the Quakes on the board when he received a cross off the foot of Hernán López, but he shot sailed just to the right of the net.

López was a force for San Jose whenever he touched the ball as he led attacks inside Orlando City’s zone as he played mainly on the right side of the pitch alongside Espinoza. Orlando City did their best to contain the Argentine striker using more than one player to mark him throughout the half.

‘Quakes goalkeeper William Yarbrough only had to deal with one shot on target in the first 45 minutes. Orlando City had two quality scoring attempts shoot just wide of the net. Dagur Thorhallsson’s right footed shot just missed to the right of the net in the 35th minute and then Nicolás Lodeiro’s left footed shot from the middle of the box went wide left in the 42nd minute.

“Orlando is a very good team,” said head coach Luchi Gonzalez regarding another tough luck finish for his team. “They have a good away record. Oscar (Parejas) does a great job with this team, and they are savvy. They punched us today in transition (after our) set piece. It was a disappointing goal to give away.”

San Jose had two chances, one in the 86th and the other in the 88th minute to score the winning goal. Espinoza glided in from the right wing, but his shot attempt sailed high over the net. Then two minutes later, Jack Skahan’s, who came into the match as a sub in the 83rd minute for Vito Costa, right footed attempt from the middle of the box was saved by Gallese.

Gallese finished the match with four saves to earn his third clean sheet of the season, including in back-to-back games. Yarbrough made three saves on four shots on target in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with six corner kicks. Orlando City had five.

San Jose has lost back-to-back matches against Orlando City and are now 1-3-3 in the all-time series.

The announced attendance of the match was 14,127.

UP NEXT: San Jose continues its quest for its first U.S. Open Cup championship when they take on the Sacramento Republic in the Round of 16 on Tuesday 5/21 at 7:00pm at Heart Health Park.

Portland’s quick start puts down San Jose 4-2 at Providence Park

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

The Portland Timbers get a two goal defeat over the San Jose Earthquakes at Providence Park in Portland on Wed May 15, 2024 (San Jose Earthquakes image)

By William Espy

The San Jose Earthquakes concluded their short two-game road trip on Wednesday night against the Portland Timbers at Providence Park. The Quakes pulled off a comeback in their last outing against the Colorado Rapids and hoped for a much better start in this affair. The Quakes couldn’t repeat the same performance taking loss to the Timbers 4-2.

San Jose Starting XI: Yarbrough, Costa, Wilson, Rodrigues, Akapo, Tsakiris, Gruezo, Pellegrino, Lopez, Espinoza, Ebobisse

Portland Starting XI: Crepeau, Zuparic, Mabiala, Miller, Mosquera, Chara, Evander, Asprilla, Antony, Mora, Moreno

Portland got off to a quick start, getting the first scoring attempt of the night in the second minute on a Dairon Asprilla shot that was saved by William Yarbrough. They continued bringing pressure as well, however, the Earthquake’s backline was holding strong as a shot from Antony from inside of the box a minute later was blocked by Carlos Akapo.

The following corner didn’t yield any results for the Timbers, but another scoring opportunity from Juan Mosquera sailed over the crossbar in the fourth minute. From there, things turned the corner a bit. The Earthquakes attack woke up and started creating some offensive opportunities of their own. Hernan Lopez and Cristian Espinoza both had shots blocked by Kamal Miller before Carlos Gruezo’s shot sailed wide left.

Things evened out a bit from there, with opportunities being far in between for roughly the next 20 minutes. Maxime Crepeau had to make his first real save of the night in the 31st minute when he got in front of a Jeremy Ebobisse header, however, it immediately led to Amahl Pellegrino getting it past him to make it 1-0 for the Quakes.

Just three minutes later, Hernan Lopez continued his dominant performance since joining the MLS by adding one of his own to make it 2-0 in favor of the visiting team. It quickly went from a tied game to the Timbers finding themselves in a very tough situation.

They desperately tried to get themselves on the board before halftime but were ultimately unsuccessful and heading into the break, the Earthquakes maintained their lead.

The TImbers made a couple of substitutions in the second half, bringing on Eric Miller and Jonathan Rodriguez to start the second half. The Earthquakes continuing their strong attack to start the second half, with Ebobisse having another shot blocked just a couple of minutes in.

In the 51st minute, Lopez nearly scored a second of the night but hit the crossbar. From there, Portland’s attack came alive with scoring chances from Antony and Rodriguez in short succession. Over the next 20 minutes, there was a lot of back and forth between the two teams, however, everything changed in the 71st minute when Bruno Wilson was shown a red card and the Earthquakes went down to ten men.

Just three minutes later, the Timbers would get themselves on the board when Evander scored on a penalty resulting from Wilson’s foul. The Quakes made a few moves at this point, bringing on Preston Judd and Tanner Beason. It wouldn’t take Portland long to tie things up, scoring a second goal in the 80th minute when Rodriguez was able to find the back of the net.

In the 90th minute, the Timbers would end up getting a second penalty and scored on that attempt as well to give them a 3-2 lead heading into stoppage time. They controlled the attack for the entirety of stoppage time, and eventually, Rodriguez scored his second of the night in the 100th minute making it 4-2 and that’s how the game would end.

The Earthquakes started off strong, but a red card was ultimately the difference between them potentially walking out with another victory and another heartbreaking loss

Espinoza scores gamer and Yarbrough makes five saves in Quakes 3-2 win over Rapids

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

The San Jose Earthquakes celebrate victory over the Colorado Rapids at Dicks Sporting News Park in Commerce City Col on Sat May 11, 2024 (San Jose Earthquakes X photo)

By William Espy

The San Jose Earthquakes looked to continue their recent strong run of form against the Colorado Rapids at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado for some rainy night soccer. San Jose defeated LAFC in their most recent league game at Levi’s Park and drew the game before that against Nashville. The Quakes remain undefeated through three games with a 3-2 win over the Rapids on Saturday night.

Add in an additional victory against the Oakland Roots in the US Open Cup, and the Earthquakes have been playing much better recently than they did to start the season. Meanwhile, Colorado finds themselves fifth in the Western Conference entering the night.

If San Jose wanted to walk away with a point, or three, they were going to have to overcome a major obstacle. Hernan Lopez, great nephew of Diego Maradona, was making his first start in the MLS.

San Jose Starting XI:Yarbrough, Costa, Wilson, Rodrigues, Akapo, Tsakiris, Gruezo, Pellegrino, Lopez, Espinoza, Ebobisse

Colorado Starting XI: Steffen, Rosenberry, Bombito, Maxso, Vines, Bassett, Larraz, Fernandez, Mihailovic, Cabral, Navarro

Colorado got out to a very early lead, or so they thought in the seventh minute, but the play was called offside. In the 10th minute, Yarbrough was forced to make a goalline save as the Rapids once again nearly made it 1-0 but failed to convert following a cross.

Colorado could’ve easily had a 2-0 lead just ten minutes in, but the Quakes had been able to keep it 0-0 for the time being. The first yellow card of the night was handed out to Djordje Mihailovic who elbowed Vitor Costa while attempting a challenge for the ball.

In the 26th minute, once again Colorado seemingly took the lead when Omir Fernandez got the ball past William Yarbrough with a great finish. However, the goal would be overturned because Kevin Cabral was offside and interfered with Carlos Akapo, preventing him from making a defensive play on the ball.

As a result, Colorado had their second goal of the half overturned and the game remained in a deadlock. That wouldn’t remain the case for long though, as in the 33rd minute Rafael Navarro would score off of a deflection following a corner kick to give the Rapids a 1-0 lead. Fernandez did get his goal later in the half as well, in the 42nd minute a shot outside of the box slid past Yarbrough and made it 2-0 for the home team.

A few minutes later, Amahl Pellegrino scored after a scramble in front of the net. Steffen made a save for the Rapids, Jeremy Ebobisse’s shot off of the rebound was deflected by a defender in front directly to Pellegrino who put it away to make it 2-1.

It’s worth noting, the play was started by a fantastic pass by Lopez who was playing very well in his first MLS start. Colorado had a third goal called off due to offsides during the 49th minute when a header found the back of the netting.

Lopez tied it up with his first career MLS goal off of a corner when the ball was deflected and he volleyed it past Zach Steffen to make it 2-2 before halftime. It was a wild first half, with quite a bit of offense and certainly, there will be some controversy about the amount of overturned calls but after the first 45 minutes, it was a brand new game.

In the 56th minute, Yarbrough had a collision with his teammate, Carlos Gruezo that brought some concern from the official and medical staff but he remained in the game. Cristian Espinoza would break the tie in the 66th minute after a nice passing play which left him with only the keeper to beat and it was three unanswered goals for the Earthquakes, who now led 3-2 with less than a half-hour remaining.

At one point, it seemed as if Colorado was going to easily walk away with the win but in less than 30 minutes of game time, San Jose went from down 2-0 to up 3-2, shocking the home crowd. Shortly after the goal, the Quakes got two quick yellow cards. As a result, they needed to be very careful and ensure that they didn’t have a defender get booked for a second time.

Despite quite a few opportunities for Colorado to tie it up, they would be unable to and the Earthquakes would walk away with a win moving them out of last place in the Western Conference, passing both the Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers who will play one another tomorrow afternoon.

Bouda’s late goal propels in Earthquakes 1-0 shutout win over Roots in U.S. Open Cup

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Jose Earthquakes forwards Ousseni Bouda (#17) and Benji Kinkanovic (#28) celebrate Bouda’s game winning goal over the Oakland Roots during the U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 match at Pay Pal Park on Tuesday MAY 7, 2024. (San Jose Earthquakes)

SAN JOSE — Ousseni Bouda scored the game’s only goal as the San Jose Earthquakes defeated the Oakland Roots in 1-0 shutout win in the Round of 32 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose advanced to the Round of 16 and will play the Sacramento Republic FC, who beat Monterey Bay FC 2-0 later in the evening, on either May 21st or 22nd. Oakland bowed out of the tournament as they return to USL Championship play.

Niko Tsakaris found Bouda along the right wing inside the Roots zone. Bouda made a move inside and rifled a right footed shot that pinballed off the far post into the back of the net for the eventual game winning goal.

‘Quakes head coach Luchi Gonzalez starting XI consisted mainly of his bench players. 2024 Super Draft first round pick Jamar Ricketts earned his first start of the season at left back and played impressive throughout the opening 45 minutes. Hernan Lopez also made his first start in a ‘Quakes kit, in his second appearance for San Jose. Also, Emi Ochoa made his debut for the first team with his first start in goal.

San Jose played a sluggish first half as they didn’t manage many quality shots on target. Oakland played aggressive in the first half and made a surge late thanks to the Earthquakes lackadaisical play in their own end.

A give and go between Bryan Tamacas and Jeciel Cedeno resulted in a shot inside the right of the box that ‘Quakes goalkeeper Emi Ochoa had to make a save in the 41st minute. Then in the 44th minute Edwin Rodriguez’ shot attempt deflected off a ‘Quakes defender that went wide left barely missing the back of the net.

Ochoa came up with a huge save to start the second half. A header into the box went high up near the crossbar, Ochoa leaped high into the air with one hand and hit the ball off of the crossbar and cleared the ball out of danger.

Jack Skahan chance in the 63rd minute cruised across the middle of the box his shot was saved by Roots goalkeeper Paul Blanchette.

Ouesseni Bouda scored a goal with a rifle of a right footed shot pinballed off the far post into the back of the net for his first goal of the tournament in the 77th minute.

Rodriguez received a red card and automatic ejection from the match in the 82nd minute when he elbowed Bouda in the head while the ball was in the air and Bouda heading it down.

Ochoa finished the match with his first clean slate of his pro career and the first one for San Jose this season.

UP NEXT: San Jose returns to MLS action on Saturday 5/11 against the Colorado Rapids at 6:30pm at Dick’s Sporting Good Park.

Earthquakes snap winless streak with 3-1 beatdown of LAFC at Levi’s Stadium

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

The San Jose Earthquakes celebrate one of their three goals against LAFC at Levi’s Stadium on Saturday MAY 4, 2024. (San Jose Earthquakes)

by Marko Ukalovic

There’s something about playing at Levi’s Stadium.

The San Jose Earthquakes scored three unanswered goals en route to a 3-1 dominant victory over the Los Angeles Football Club on Saturday afternoon at Levi’s Stadium.

San Jose snapped a five-match winless streak and have points in back-to-back games for the first time this season. LAFC had its four-match unbeaten streak snapped and have lost back-to-back games at Levi’s Stadium against San Jose.

The match featured the Earthquakes debut of Argentine midfielder sensation Hernán López who came in as a substitute for Jack Skahan to start the second half. López, who is the nephew of Argentine legend Diego Maradona, was acquired last week from Argentine Primera Division side Godoy Cruz for a club-record transfer fee of $6 million to become the ‘Quakes new Designated Player.

“It felt really good being able to get on the field and being able to get situated with my teammates. I felt good. … I have a lot of mutual friends with Cristian. We didn’t know each other beforehand, but I got his [phone] number when I knew that playing for San Jose was an option. I spoke to him and just like Luchi was a reason that I came, just like [general manager] Chris Leitch was a reason that I came, so was Cristian and the way that he took me under his wing to bring me into this area,” López said.

The Earthquakes (2-8-1) drew first blood early in the first half off of a set piece. Cristian Espinoza centered the ball into the middle of the box off of a corner kick. Rodrigues flew in from the right side and headed the ball into the near post past LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris for the fullback’s second goal of the season in the fifth minute sending the boisterous Levi’s crowd into a frenzy.

“This is a soccer-crazy region. We have three major cities and have all the supporting communities,” said Earthquakes head coach Luchi Gonzalez regarding the 43,774 announced attendance. “This is one of the top cities in the country for the game. To see them come out tonight in big number and support the team, on the 50th anniversary, Hernán’s [debut] game, it gave us a lot of momentum and it makes a difference and give us the extra energy to honor that and give it back to them.”

In the 23rd minute, San Jose looked to repeat what it did in the fifth minute, score off a corner kick. Once again Espinoza centered the ball into the middle, but Vítor Costa header was blocked by Ilie Sánchez and cleared out of danger for LAFC.

Two minutes later Maxime Chanot was issued a yellow card for a bad foul he committed against Jeremy Ebobisse resulting in a free kick. Ebobisse’s left footed attempt from just outside the box sailed wide left.

LAFC’s (4-4-3) best chances to get on the scoreboard came late in the opening 45 minutes. First int he 37th minute, Eduard Atuesta’s right footed shot from just outside the box in the middle was saved by ‘Quakes goalkeeper William Yarbrough. Then Yarbrough snatched up a shot from Mateusz Bogusz in the 44th minute.

San Jose doubled its lead in the 55th minute. A turnover by LAFC led to a quick counterattack. Espinoza curled in a long ball from just beyond midfield out to Amahl Pellegrino who received the ball just outside the D for a breakaway chance. Pellegrino made a move around Lloris before he buried a left footed shot into an empty net for his second goal in a ‘Quakes kit.

“I know Cristian (Espinoza) has one of the best right (feet) in the league. I like to go behind the defender to attack that space and when I saw he got the ball, I just hoped he would swing it to me, and he did it. It was a fantastic ball and made my job easy. To get the right touch and go past the goalkeeper. It went in and it was a good feeling. I hope we can keep doing what we’ve doing the last two games and build on this,” Pellegrino said.

The Earthquakes scored its third unanswered goal off of its second set piece in the 59th minute. Espinoza’s corner kick sailed into the middle and was deflected off the foot by Denis Bouanga and into the back of the net that was too hot to handle for Lloris for an own goal.

“I know he’s (Espinoza) a leading assister not only on the team, but in the league, and has been consistent over the seasons. He’s lethal and relentless, he trains like that and it is great to reward him and his teammates. I’m really happy to have two set pieces scored tonight and not concede and give up zero defensively,” Gonzalez said.

LAFC spoiled Yarbrough’s shutout bit in the 69th minute after a turnover inside the ‘Quakes zone. Christian Olivera intercepted a passing attempt by Costa. After a give and go with Kei Kamara, Olivera delivered a right footed shot into the back corner of the net for his second goal of the season.

Yarbrough finished the match with six saves, including three quality chances from LAFC in the final 10 minutes, on seven shots for his second victory of the season. Lloris made just one save on three shots on target in the losing effort.

“It was a great night for him (Yarbrough). I thought he was dominant in crosses and shot blocking. We’ve had our challenges in goal … It is why we brought in William for this type of experience,” Gonzalez noted.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished four corner kicks. LAFC had seven.

Espinoza’s second assist of the match on Pellegrino’s goal, tied a club record with Richard Mulrooney with his 14th game winning assist for the most in club history.

San Francisco 49ers All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner was flanked by Mexican National Team legend Oswaldo Sánchez and boxing world title contender Ruben Villa as he fired the siren before the match.

The Quakes are 7-8-1 against LAFC in MLS play overall with a 6-2-0 record at home, including six straight victories across PayPal Park and Levi’s Stadium.

UP NEXT: San Jose hosts the Oakland Roots of the USL Championship in the first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday 5/7 at 7:00pm at Pay Pal Park.