Quakes draw in first tourney game
San Jose goes scoreless with defending champ Seattle
The San Jose Earthquakes opened the 2020 season coughing up seven goals in two home games.
But in the heat and humidity of Central Florida, the Quakes escaped Friday night with a scoreless draw against MLS Cup defending champion Seattle Sounders FC.
San Jose looked impressive in its debut in the MLS Is Back tournament at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World Resort. They earned a big point in the Group B opener, giving the Quakes a real chance to advance to the knockout stage.
The Earthquakes had only one shutout in its last 17 games dating to last season but locked down one of the tournament favorites for a satisfying night that included seven minutes of secondhalf extra time.
Goalkeeper Daniel Vega made a big kick save in the 84th minute to prevent Seattle’s Raul Ruidiaz from scoring from close range after breaking free from defenders.
The Quakes had not played a competitive game in 125 days but looked in midseason form with an aggressive and organized attack.
It was nothing short of surprising how much San Jose dominated the ball against an opponent featuring seven starters from the 2019 MLS Cup championship game.
In the first half, the Earthquakes held the ball 63.5 percent of the time while having four shots on goal to the Sounders’ three.
They found success by pushing their fullbacks forward to connect with their wingers.
San Jose’s man-marking defense kept Seattle’s talented Jordan Morris and Nicolas Lodeiro off balance for much of the time.
The Quakes survived a scary moment when Seattle’s Cristian Roldan broke free inside the penalty area, forcing San Jose’s goalkeeper into a solid save.
Eleven minutes later San Jose countered with its serious threat. Argentine striker Andy Ríos took a Christian Espinoza service in front of the goal and drove it just left of the net.
Coach Matias Almeyda took advantage of all five substitutions allowed in the tournament. His first changes came in the 64th minute with two defenders: Shea Salinas for Tommy Thompson and center back Florian Jungwirth for newcomer Oswaldo Alanis.
Nine minutes later, alltime leading MLS scorer Chris Wondoloswski, 37, entered the game with Mexican midfielder Carlos Fierro.
The final substitution was Cade Cowell, a 16-year-old homegrown player from Ceres.
SHE SNORES MORE THAN I DO, BUT I STILL LOVE MY HUMAN. — BANDIT adopted 11-26-09