SANDY, Utah – The San Jose Earthquakes scored two goals. Only one counted toward their own score, however, as a late Victor Bernardez own goal gifted Real Salt Lake a point in a strange, stop-and-start match that ended in a 1-1 draw Friday night at Rio Tinto Stadium.
Chris Wondolowski provided the opener, a bizarre goal in its own right that RSL felt should have been waived off for offside.
The result provided the struggling Western Conference sides a much-needed point apiece as they now each sit on 10 from eight matches.
On a choppy night that eventually saw 37 fouls and RSL dominate possession (62%-38%), the Quakes took the lead in the 19th minute. San Jose winger Shea Salinas tried a shot from just outside the box. The shot was deflected by several RSL players, and the ball slipped through to Wondolowski in the area, and the US international immediately blasted his shot past RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando.
At first glance, Wondolowski appeared to be offside by a wide margin. But it also appeared as if RSL’s Kyle Beckerman intentionally moved to play the ball on Salinas's shot. That intent would, in theory, negate Wondolowski's offside status on the initial shot. Regardless, neither head referee Sorin Stoica nor the assistant referee called offside, putting San Jose up 1-0.
The unfortunate luck continued for RSL – who came into the match on a two-game losing streak – when they were forced to make an early substitution after midfielder Javier Morales was subbed out with an apparent head injury in the 41st minute.
Neither team made much headway the remainder of the half in the physical match – marked by 37 combined fouls. That trend continued in the second half with neither team establishing a rhythm.
The player who eventually gave RSL their breakthrough opportunity, however, was wearing a San Jose shirt.
In the 71st minute, RSL sent a searching long ball forward where forward Devon Sandoval was able to head it onward. Alvaro Saborio applied pressure to Bernardez who flipped the ball back toward his net. Unfortunately for San Jose, who were looking to get back in the win column following a loss two weeks ago to the New York Red Bulls and a bye last weekend, goalkeeperDavid Bingham was charging forward and Bernardez’s touch floated into the back of the net to even the score.
Both teams continued to press for the game winner but neither was able to conjure anything substantial. The Earthquakes accounted for the only two shots on goal all night, as RSL weren’t able to put anything on frame.
RSL return to action again at home Wednesday against the LA Galaxy. San Jose next play again under Friday night lights at the Colorado Rapids.
A bit of luck – both good and bad – ultimately leaves San Jose Earthquakes disappointed after draw
They say you make your own luck. The San Jose Earthquakes went about proving that adage to be true – both to their benefit and against it – Friday night at Rio Tinto Stadium.
Chris Wondolowski grabbed an opportunistic first-half goal to put the Quakes in front, but an attempted clearance went horribly awry in the second half to give Real Salt Lake their first goal in nearly 400 minutes of action as the sides tied, 1-1.
It was the first time in 2015 that San Jose failed to close out a game after taking a lead, and the timing magnified the failure, since it opened a stretch of three road games in eight days for the Quakes.
“No, not losing a lead,” Wondolowski said on the postgame broadcast when asked if this was the result he had wanted. “Anytime you have a lead, especially on the road, you’ve got to be smart and you’ve got to keep it. To get a point on the road, we’ll take it, but we don’t like losing leads.”
Wondolowski took advantage when Shea Salinas’ shot pinged off RSL defender Jamison Olaveand came free inside the home side’s penalty area. Kyle Beckerman appeared to possibly play the ball off Olave’s deflection, and Wondolowski leapt at the chance, delivering a thumping left-footed strike from 13 yards to beat fellow US national team World Cup veteran Nick Rimando.
Assistant referee Anthony Vasoli kept his flag down, and Wondolowski had his team-leading fourth goal of the season.
“From what I saw, it looked like he was offside,” Quakes coach Dominic Kinnear said. “I know there’s these new offside rules that are confusing to a lot of people. We were the [beneficiaries] of that rule tonight. From what I saw up on the scoreboard, I thought he was in front of everybody. That’s what I saw.”
But San Jose ultimately couldn’t hang on, eventually bowing under the pressure of RSL’s dominance in possession (61.9 percent to the Quakes’ 38.1) in painful fashion.
Just seconds after Rimando turned away Adam Jahn’s drive at the top of RSL’s box – a play set in motion by Wondolowski’s pressure on Olave – the hosts countered. A flick header fromDevon Sandoval drew San Jose goalkeeper David Bingham off his line, but with RSL forwardAlvaro Saborio lurking, Quakes center back Victor Bernardez tried to launch the ball out of danger – only to deliver a mishit kick that wound up being a perfect chip over Bingham and into the back of the net.
“We were getting a little bit leggy there at the end, but I thought we won the ball in some good areas, and with a little bit more sharpness, maybe we’re looking at 2-0 instead of 1-1,” Kinnear said. “[The own goal] is something that’s definitely correctable. If we were to do it again two minutes later, it would be a different outcome. But that’s just the way the ball bounced. It bounced wrong for us in that situation.”
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