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San Jose Break Out Of Slump With 2-1 Victory Over RSL
Goals by Cornell Glen and Arturo Alvarez along with stellar play of Bobby Convey and Ryan Johnson key to the victory.
May 31, 2009 2:41:24 AM
The San Jose Earthquakes were able to get a rare win after their troubled start to the season as they beat Real Salt Lake by a score of 2-1 at home in Buckshaw Stadium for just their second win on the season. The victory came off of goals in the second half by recent addition Cornell Glen and midfielder Arturo Alvarez.
First Half
Real Salt Lake opened the game with a new look lineup, as the recently ineffective strike duo of Robbie Findley and Yura Movsisyan were replaced by Argentine strikers Luis Escalada and Fabian Espindola. Meanwhile San Jose inserted Cornell Glen into the mix for his first start.
It appeared that Real Salt Lake was going to have the better of play in this match as they created some early opportunities and appeared to be the aggressor. For the first 10 minutes of the game, San Jose rarely moved the ball into their opponents half of the field.
In the sixth minute, RSL nearly opened the scoring. Midfielder Kyle Beckerman stole the ball off of midfielder Ramiro Corrales just outside of the area and tapped the ball gently forward to Escalada, who was alone inside the box, but the pass was just slightly undercooked and Escalada’s shot was weak and right at 'keeper Joe Cannon.
In the 10th minute, San Jose saw their first real opportunity as they earned a corner kick. The ensuing delivery by midfielder Simon Elliot reached Corrales on the far post after his maker found himself hitting the turf. However, Corrales could not put the shot into the net from eight yards out.
After 15th minutes, San Jose started to assert themselves, with forward Ryan Johnson matching the usually dominating Jamison Olave physically. From that point on, the Earthquakes peppered RSL goalie Nick Rimando, who came up big and kept Real Salt Lake in the game in the first half.
Second half
San Jose came out aggressively again in the second half and nearly opened the scoring early on, as Ryan Johnson received a ball at the six yard spot but his point-blank shot went right into the torso of a well-positioned Rimando.
The 'Quakes continued to dominate the play for most of the second half as Johnson, Alvarez and midfielder Bobby Convey continued to create pressure and cause Real Salt Lake to lose defensive shape. However, it was Glen who opened the scoring in the 52nd minute after defender Nat Borchers failed to mark him off of a quick throw-in and a cross by defender Michael Zaher. Glen easily headed the ball past Rimando for his first goal with San Jose.
Just a minute later they nearly doubled their lead as Ryan Johnson was a step past the RSL defense for a diagonal pass just in front of the goal mouth. However, a sprawling Rimando was able to get his body in front of the ball.
In the 63rd minute, Alvarez did manage to get that second goal with a great individual effort after receiving a switched ball from Convey. From the left flank he took a couple of lateral steps and drove the ball high and hard from just outside of the goal area. His blast beat Rimando and caught the top part of the net.
After inserting Movsisyan and Findley, Real Salt Lake managed to create more chances for themselves and in the 80th minute they finally scored their first road goal of the season off of Robbie Findley’s sixth strike of the season. The goal came from a nice chip into the box from Mathis who caught Findley racing forward into open space in the goal area. Findley easily finished it to Cannon’s left.
Real Salt Lake had a final flurry at the end of time, and nearly equalized in stoppage time as Movsisyan received a laid off pass from Mathis and only a last minute stab of the right hand by Cannon was able to keep the ball out of the top of the net.
According to Rimando, who appeared on Real Salt Lake radio partner, KALL 700, directly after the game, the problem in this match for his club was their failure to mark their opponents. “We had a game plan set, but it went away after the first 10 minutes. We fell asleep on two goals, and that cost us the match.”
The win took San Jose to eight points on the season with a record of two wins, seven losses, and two ties. They will face Dallas on the road next week, but will miss Corrales, who picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.
Real Salt Lake remains at 11 points with a record of three wins, six losses, and one tie. They will face rivals Colorado at home next week, but will be without the services of Beckerman and Morales who picked up suspension-earning yellow cards in this match.
Randy Davis covers Real Salt Lake for Goal.com
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com’s MLS page.
First Half
Real Salt Lake opened the game with a new look lineup, as the recently ineffective strike duo of Robbie Findley and Yura Movsisyan were replaced by Argentine strikers Luis Escalada and Fabian Espindola. Meanwhile San Jose inserted Cornell Glen into the mix for his first start.
It appeared that Real Salt Lake was going to have the better of play in this match as they created some early opportunities and appeared to be the aggressor. For the first 10 minutes of the game, San Jose rarely moved the ball into their opponents half of the field.
In the sixth minute, RSL nearly opened the scoring. Midfielder Kyle Beckerman stole the ball off of midfielder Ramiro Corrales just outside of the area and tapped the ball gently forward to Escalada, who was alone inside the box, but the pass was just slightly undercooked and Escalada’s shot was weak and right at 'keeper Joe Cannon.
In the 10th minute, San Jose saw their first real opportunity as they earned a corner kick. The ensuing delivery by midfielder Simon Elliot reached Corrales on the far post after his maker found himself hitting the turf. However, Corrales could not put the shot into the net from eight yards out.
After 15th minutes, San Jose started to assert themselves, with forward Ryan Johnson matching the usually dominating Jamison Olave physically. From that point on, the Earthquakes peppered RSL goalie Nick Rimando, who came up big and kept Real Salt Lake in the game in the first half.
Second half
San Jose came out aggressively again in the second half and nearly opened the scoring early on, as Ryan Johnson received a ball at the six yard spot but his point-blank shot went right into the torso of a well-positioned Rimando.
The 'Quakes continued to dominate the play for most of the second half as Johnson, Alvarez and midfielder Bobby Convey continued to create pressure and cause Real Salt Lake to lose defensive shape. However, it was Glen who opened the scoring in the 52nd minute after defender Nat Borchers failed to mark him off of a quick throw-in and a cross by defender Michael Zaher. Glen easily headed the ball past Rimando for his first goal with San Jose.
Just a minute later they nearly doubled their lead as Ryan Johnson was a step past the RSL defense for a diagonal pass just in front of the goal mouth. However, a sprawling Rimando was able to get his body in front of the ball.
In the 63rd minute, Alvarez did manage to get that second goal with a great individual effort after receiving a switched ball from Convey. From the left flank he took a couple of lateral steps and drove the ball high and hard from just outside of the goal area. His blast beat Rimando and caught the top part of the net.
After inserting Movsisyan and Findley, Real Salt Lake managed to create more chances for themselves and in the 80th minute they finally scored their first road goal of the season off of Robbie Findley’s sixth strike of the season. The goal came from a nice chip into the box from Mathis who caught Findley racing forward into open space in the goal area. Findley easily finished it to Cannon’s left.
Real Salt Lake had a final flurry at the end of time, and nearly equalized in stoppage time as Movsisyan received a laid off pass from Mathis and only a last minute stab of the right hand by Cannon was able to keep the ball out of the top of the net.
According to Rimando, who appeared on Real Salt Lake radio partner, KALL 700, directly after the game, the problem in this match for his club was their failure to mark their opponents. “We had a game plan set, but it went away after the first 10 minutes. We fell asleep on two goals, and that cost us the match.”
The win took San Jose to eight points on the season with a record of two wins, seven losses, and two ties. They will face Dallas on the road next week, but will miss Corrales, who picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.
Real Salt Lake remains at 11 points with a record of three wins, six losses, and one tie. They will face rivals Colorado at home next week, but will be without the services of Beckerman and Morales who picked up suspension-earning yellow cards in this match.
Randy Davis covers Real Salt Lake for Goal.com
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com’s MLS page.
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