SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES vs. SPORTING KANSAS CITY
AVAYA STADIUM, San Jose, Calif.
October 16, 2015 (WEEK 33, MLS Game #323)
11 p.m. ET (UniMás)​
A critical match in the Western Conference playoff picture is ahead on Viernes de Fútbol as the San Jose Earthquakes entertain Sporting Kansas City at Avaya Stadium. The Quakes enter the game sitting right on the red line, tied for sixth in the conference after their 1-1 home draw with Vancouver in their last match. Sporting are four points further ahead, in position to seal their place in the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs with a victory, coming off of a 1-0 win at the Portland Timbers in their last match.
REFEREE: Kevin Stott.
MLS Career: 274 games; FC/gm: 25.5; Y/gm: 3.3; R: 69; pens: 71
AR1 (bench): Chris Strickland; AR2 (opposite): Kyle Atkins; 4th: Alex Chilowicz
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SUSPENDED: SJ: Marc Pelosi (caution accumulation; through Oct. 18); Victor Bernardez (caution accumulation; through Oct. 18)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: SJ: Fatai Alashe, Anibal Godoy ... KC: Soni Mustivar
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: SJ: David Bingham, Clarence Goodson, Shaun Francis, Sanna Nyassi, Jordan Stewart, Chris Wondolowski … KC: Roger Espinoza, Kevin Ellis, Dom Dwyer, Benny Feilhaber, Seth Sinovic, Tim Melia
DISABLED LIST: SJ: Steven Lenhart
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME MLS REGULAR SEASON (50 meetings): Earthquakes 22 wins (3 shootout), 63 goals…Sporting 21 wins (4 shootout), 59 goals… Ties 7
AT SAN JOSE (24 meetings): Earthquakes 14 wins (1 shootout), 35 goals … Sporting 4 wins (2 shootout), 19 goals … Ties 6
- The teams are meeting for the second time this season. Cordell Cato and Chris Wondolowski each scored a pair of goals as the Quakes took a stunning 5-0 victory Aug. 19 at Sporting Park.
- The first meeting victory for San Jose was the first win for the road team in the series since 2004, when San Jose won at Arrowhead Stadium.
- The Quakes victory also snapped an eight-game home winning streak for Sporting vs. the Quakes. Kansas City have not won in San Jose since Aug. 16, 2000. The Quakes have won nine of the 14 meetings since in northern California, with five draws.
- Coaches' records:
Dominic Kinnear vs. KC: P27 W10 L7 D10
Peter Vermes vs. SJ: P9 W4 L4 D1
LAST MEETING (MLS)
8/19: KC 0, SJ 5 (Cato 3, 58; Wondolowski 17, 61; Godoy 27)
- The Quakes took the lead less than three minutes into the match when Shea Salinas drove into the penalty area to the left of the goal, then cut the ball back to Cordell Cato for an easy finish past SKC goalkeeper Tim Melia from the center of the box.
- The lead was doubled in the 16th minute when a push from KC fullback Chance Myers sent Quincy Amarikwa to the pitch in the middle of the area, and referee Jair Marrufo pointed straight to the spot. Chris Wondolowski put the resulting penalty coolly inside the right post.
- Then it was 3-0 in the 27th when Anibal Godoy took a pretty backheel up the middle from Amarikwa, raced into the area, cut back to his left to shed a defender and buried his shot from just right of the penalty spot.
- The Quakes' fourth goal, in the 58th minute, was a near-repeat of the first: a deep drive from Salinas, the cross to the middle, the ball driven home from just a few yards out by Cato.
- Three minutes later, the score was 5-0. Fatai Alashe sent in a diagonal ball from the right side, and Wondolowski dove in front of a defender to spear a long header just past an outstretched foot and into the goal.
- Sporting finished the game a man down when midfielder Benny Feilhaber was shown a straight red card in the 75th minute after pulling down Quincy Amarikwa as the last man outside the penalty area.
- SPORTING KANSAS CITY (4-1-2-3): Tim Melia - Chance Myers, Kevin Ellis, Matt Besler, Amadou Dia (Marcel de Jong 46) - Amobi Okugo (Mikey Lopez 46) - Paulo Nagamura (Graham Zusi 68), Benny Feilhaber (ejected 71) - Jacob Peterson, Dom Dwyer, Krisztian Nemeth.
- SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES (4-1-3-2): David Bingham - Marvell Wynne, Victor Bernardez, Clarence Goodson, Shaun Francis - Anibal Godoy - Cordell Cato, Fatai Alashe (Marc Pelosi 82), Shea Salinas (Sanna Nyassi 88) - Chris Wondolowski, Quincy Amarikwa (Adam Jahn 73).
Related Content:
San Jose's Koval ready for Quakes' moment of need - 10/14
Watch Krisztian Nemeth's international goals for Hungary - 10/14
CHECK OUT THE INJURY REPORT HEADING INTO THE MATCH
CHECK OUT THE DISCIPLINARY REPORT HEADING INTO THE MATCH
