For all the swagger and confidence with which the San Jose Earthquakes are playing, it’s easy to forget that they’re missing their head coach. Even though Matias Almeyda was serving the second match of his three-game suspension, his San Jose team breezed past Orlando City 3-0 on Saturday night.
Though the result itself was not spectacular, the ease by which it was achieved indicates San Jose’s remarkable strength. While they astounded Avaya Stadium last weekend by setting the Major League Soccer record for shots against the Vancouver Whitecaps, tonight’s performance was most impressive for its efficiency.
Said goalscorer Chris Wondolowski: “Last game, we created a lot of opportunities but didn’t have that killer instinct and weren’t clinical in front of goal. Today we were.”
The thirty-six-year-old netted a brace within the first half-hour and Magnus Eriksson also contributed to the goalscoring, but it was actually San Jose’s defense that was the highlight. The Quakes kept their first clean sheet in nine MLS games, limiting Orlando to a single shot on target by completely shutting down star forwards Nani and Dom Dwyer.
They made quick business of it all, as well. Eriksson propelled the home side to a lead after just three minutes, turning with the ball then propelling past Robin Jansson and tucking a neat finish past Orlando goalkeeper Brian Rowe.
Chris Wondolowski added a second shortly thereafter, extending his Major League Soccer goalscoring record for the second week in a row. Vako poked a through ball in behind for the captain, who looped a chipped shot over Rowe and into the back of the net.
With a certain clinic touch that has at times escaped them this season, the Quakes continued to punish Orlando. Wondolowski emphatically converted a third from Espinoza’s cut-back in the thirty-third minute, a knockout blow.
The three points take them to second place in the Western Conference, although they could be as low as fifth by the end of the weekend depending on Sunday’s results. The table is so tight, in fact, that it’s somewhat surprising that the Quakes didn’t try even harder to pad their goal differential by maintaining the pressure in the second half.
Wondolowski, for one, admitted that they could have taken more risks. “I thought we took our foot off the gas a little bit, played it a little too safe in the second half.”
Of course, if they continue to play at this level they’ll have nothing to worry about. Matias Almeyda might as well have been on vacation.