The San Jose Earthquakes pulled off an amazing 2-1 win over Toronto FC as they were able to come away with three point despite being down two men.
The San Jose Earthquakes were on a seven game winless streak and up against adversity as they faced Toronto FC. As they were down to nine men after two questionable red cards to midfielders Anibal Godoy and Alberto Quintero. At the time of the second red card, San Jose was tied 1-1 and they were looking for that go ahead goal.
After receiving the second red in the 57th minute, they were forced to sit back and defend for the rest of the match but one counter-attack led by Cordell Cato and Simon Dawkins was enough to help the Earthquakes get the go ahead goal and the win.
This was a game that saw many Earthquakes players step up and play well. Players like Fatai Alashe, Victor Bernardez, Cordell Cato, Simon Dawkins, and Quincy Amarikwa were the reason why San Jose were able to come out on top. These players can use their performances as momentum for the upcoming games as they showed a lot of heart in the win.
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Quincy Amarikwa had been struggling all season to score as he only had one goal all season. Against Toronto he was causing trouble for their defense as he had a header saved by the keeper early in the first half but was rewarded for his hard work with a goal in the 30th minute off an assist from midfielder Fatai Alashe. Amarikwa’s performance was a step in the right direction after struggling thus far.
Alashe’s performance in the midfield was very well composed the whole match after he was required to take on more responsibility after his other central midfielder and outside midfielder were sent off in the match. He assisted on the first goal of the game after winning the ball from a Toronto FC player and then taking it down the left side and crossing it into the middle of the box for Quincy Amarikwa to put into the net. Alashe is still young but he could turn into a cornerstone for this Earthquakes’ team in the midfield as he as averaged 82% of his passes to connect per game, he is successful on 75% of his dribbles, averages two interceptions per match, and one tackle per match.
Alashe is still young but he could turn into a cornerstone for this Earthquakes team in the midfield…
Bernardez, Cato, and Dawkins are veterans in this squad and they led by example against Toronto. Cato and Dawkins combined on a counter-attack in the 70th minute of the match to take the lead. The counter-attack between the two was special because of the fact that it was just them two against the Toronto FC defense. Cato was dribbling the ball down the middle of the field and sent the ball through down to Dawkins. As Dawkins then took it down the side then cut in and took a shot outside the 18 yard box that looked to fool the keeper.
Bernardez was everywhere for the Earthquakes. If he wasn’t clearing the ball out of the box, he was intercepting the ball, or blocking shots. He gave everything he had on the field and it showed. He had five clearances, three blocked shots, two interceptions, four tackles, and he also won five out of seven duels against Toronto FC players.
This win was much needed for this San Jose team. Of course a win is always nice but this type of win is one that can give a squad tons of momentum. To be down to nine men against the 5th placed team in the Eastern Conference with star striker in Giovinco up top, and still come out with a win is inspiring for this team. We’ll see if they can truly use the momentum to get going as they have a tough match coming up against Real Salt Lake on July 22nd.