Chris Wondolowski didn’t just break the record. He obliterated it.
The thirty-six-year-old scored four goals against the Chicago Fire to become the all-time top scorer in Major League Soccer, surpassing Landon Donovan’s tally of 145 in some style.
“I love visualization, I love going through different things,” Wondo told reporters. And yet, he added: “I definitely didn’t picture a day like this.”
But San Jose Earthquakes coach Matias Almeyda did. The Argentine coach decided to start Wondolowski after a last-minute injury to starting forward Danny Hoesen, and he turned to his assistants with an incredible prediction. “It’s going to seem odd,” he said. “But I was speaking to the coaching staff and I said: ‘maybe he’ll score four goals today.’”
Almeyda had previously expressed no doubt that Wondo would break the record this year but after eleven scoreless games this season it was impossible not to wonder whether Wondo still had it.
That “it” factor is neither his pace nor his strength, nor even his shot. It is his intuition and movement, his instinct — almost a premonition — for being in the right place at the right time.
And that’s exactly how he scored the goal to tie the record. Cristian Espinoza launched a long ball down the left to Shea Salinas, who kept it inbounds and drove at his defender. Salinas cut inside, then whipped a low ball toward the far post. Wondo, having ghosted in-between the defenders, was in the perfect spot to deflect it into the back of the net.
It was only fitting that Salinas, Wondo’s teammate of nine years, recorded the assist. At times, Wondolowski’s movement can be so elusive that he even outsmarts his own teammates. Yet Salinas has figured out exactly where to play the ball for Wondo, assisting fourteen of the forward’s record-breaking goals. It’s little wonder Wondo scored four the first time they started together up-front this season.
“We’ve played together for a very long time,” said Salinas. “In practice, when we’re scrimmaging or playing small-sided games, we’re usually on the same team. I know that he likes to pull off that defender’s back shoulder so looking for him is usually a good way to get an assist.
“It’s just an honor to be a part of what he’s done.”
Wondo’s other teammates clearly wanted a claim to the record as well, looking for a pass to the forward whenever possible. But the record-breaking assist went to Chicago goalkeeper David Ousted, who dropped a cross right into Wondo’s path early in the second half.
Of course, there was really no worry — there were more than enough goals to go around. In the seventy-fourth minute, Wondolowski added his third from Cristian Espinoza’s pass and netted a fourth from Jackson Yeuill’s cut-back just two minutes later.
Amidst the celebrations, Aleksandar Katai’s late strike for Chicago didn’t even register. It was almost an afterthought that San Jose won 4-1, their fourth consecutive home victory, for the rest of the season pales in comparison to Wondo’s record-breaking moment. Quite simply, there’s no topping this.
