Not the way LAFC wanted to head into Decision Day.
For the second straight time, LAFC was unable to hold a lead against the San Jose Earthquakes. Unlike the last time, when San Jose stole three points with two goals inside the final ten minutes, this time was a little less dramatic, but no more or less painful for LAFC. Latiff Blessing gavel LAFC an early lead, but an LAFC own goal followed by goals from Chris Wondolowski and Cristian Espinoza powered the Quakes to an eventual 3-2 win and Avaya Stadium.
“This was not our best game, no doubt about that,” LAFC head coach Bob Bradley said. “The rhythm of the game when you play [San Jose] is always a little bit different. I thought we adjusted after the first half and had more control, but all in all it was still not as good as we liked.”
Things started out well for LAFC in the 23rd minute. Jesus David Murillo switched a ball deep to Diego Palacios, who was inside the penalty area. Palacios one-timed a ball to Diego Rossi, who sprinted in between two Quakes defenders into the six-yard box and looked for the goal, but could get only a touch on the ball as it bounced inside the six-yard box. Fortunately for LAFC, Blessing made the run towards the back post with San Jose Keeper James Marcinkowski drawn out by Rossi’s run, Blessing calmly touched the ball into the open net to give LAFC the early lead.
LAFC however caught a bad break of its own five minutes later. San Jose had a corner kick, Espinoza sent the corner towards the six-yard box, Espinoza’s teammate Carlos Fierro appeared to get a slight touch on the ball, but the touch that mattered the most in that play was the one by LAFC’s Eduard Atuesta, which was good news for the Quakes, as the ball continued forward and into the back net for and LAFC own goal that leveled the match.
The Quakes took control of the match from that point on. San Jose grabbed the lead in the 37th minute, as Fierro played a ball to Espinoza, who took the ball near the penalty area, saw Wondolowski open, crossed into the box and Wondolowski fired a ball that deflected off Vermeer and into the back net for his 162 career MLS goal and more importantly, a 2-1 lead. The Quakes nearly doubled its lead two minutes later when a volley just outside the penalty area by Espinoza hit off the crossbar, but Espinoza eventually found that third goal for San Jose in the 72nd minute, as he received a cross from Shea Salinas and despite being marked by Jordan Harvey, managed to fire a ball that beat Vermeer far post.
“On their first goal, the ball should never have come that easily to that first zone, so that allowed them right back into the game,” Bradley said. “The diagonal ball to [Chris Wondolowski], [Diego Palacios] gave him too much room.”
Decision day will pit LAFC against its rivals the Portland Timbers at Banc of California Stadium on Sunday.
