After San Jose’s convincing 4-1 win over Los Angeles FC, head coach Bruce Arena was asked whether the Quakes’ victory was a statement to the rest of MLS that they are a legitimate title contender not to be taken lightly.
“I don’t think we’re looking to send any messages to the league,” responded Arena. “All we’re trying to do is be a better team week in, week out. And that’s not easy to do.”
It’s clear that this year’s Earthquakes are much better than the club’s most recent versions. After eight games, San Jose has won seven, defeating heavyweight division rivals like the Vancouver Whitecaps, San Diego FC, and now, LAFC. It’s a dramatic turnaround for the club, better known for its futility on the pitch over the past decade.
With that in mind, it wouldn’t be hard to feel that Sunday’s victory was a statement to the rest of the league that San Jose is one of the best teams this year.
“I think it’s always good to win games, especially when you are away, and you play one of the best teams in the league and win the way we won today. I think that’s a statement,” said Quakes designated player Timo Werner. “That’s what we can build on.”
LAFC came into the game off the midweek high of advancing past Mexico’s Cruz Azul into the Concacaf Champions Cup semifinals. In MLS play, Los Angeles has been impressive, scoring 15 goals while conceding only 2.
But the Quakes came into their game against Los Angeles with an equally stellar record, including matching LAFC’s goals-against total. They were also more rested, having mostly played backup players in their 2-0 US Open Cup victory over Phoenix Rising last Wednesday.
“Maybe you can argue that [LAFC have] been through a lot this past week, and the travel to Mexico, the big win for them,” noted Arena. “It’s difficult to rebound from that stuff, so maybe we caught them on a good day as well, or on a bad day, I should say.”
With each team’s defensive quality, it wasn’t surprising that despite a handful of chances from each side, the scoreline was 0-0 at halftime.
Both teams came out on the front foot in the second half, looking to claim the victory. Los Angeles started out brightly in the 48th minute when Son Heung-Min rocketed a shot from the top of the penalty box that forced a diving save from Quakes goalkeeper Daniel. Three minutes later, LAFC’s Ryan Porteous got on the end of a cross, but he was unable to direct his header on target.
And then San Jose took over the game, scoring three goals within six minutes, thanks in large part to Werner.
First, Werner got loose at midfield and stormed towards the goal unimpeded. He delivered a perfectly weighted cross on the ground across the box to Ousseni Bouda, who slammed the ball past LA goalkeeper Hugo Lloris for the 1-0 lead.
Before LA could come to grips with giving up only their third goal of the MLS season, Werner once again found himself in possession of the ball off a turnover at midfield and ran in on goal. He worked through LA’s defense and slotted his shot past Lloris to double San Jose’s lead.
With the traveling Quakes fans in delirium, San Jose took a commanding 3-0 lead two minutes later. Midfielder Beau Leroux’s shot from the top of the box hit the corner of the goalpost. The ball bounced back to Bouda, who crossed the ball over to the far post. His teammate Jamar Ricketts chased down the ball and slotted it back across the goalmouth, forcing LA centerback Ryan Porteous to stretch for it and inadvertently direct it into the net for an own goal.
Los Angeles attempted to get back into the game and forced Quakes centerback Reid Roberts into an own goal in the 74th minute to give the home side a chance. However, a nifty buildup orchestrated by San Jose’s midfield maestro Niko Tsakiris in the 80th minute found Bouda in the box. Bouda caught Lloris wrong-footed and placed his second goal of the game just inside the near post to give the Quakes a three-goal cushion they did not relinquish.
With the victory, San Jose now sits tied in first place on points with the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Western Conference. But despite the quality victory, Bouda noted that the team knows they are just at the start of the long MLS season, which doesn’t end until the MLS Cup is raised in early December.
“It’s only about eight games in right now, so there are a lot of games left,” said Bouda. “We want to stay consistent and continue to get better throughout the season as well.”
There is little time for San Jose to rest on its laurels with a short rest before their next game on Wednesday against thirteenth-place Austin FC at PayPal Park.
“It’s going to be a difficult game. We know that we got to try to recover and figure out what makes sense for our team in the game on Wednesday,” said Arena. “Hopefully, we recover properly on the physical side and mentally, we get these guys ready to go.”
