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Strong Second Half Gives New England Another Win
The Revolution put a poor first half behind them and ended up running out 2-1 winners over San Jose.
Aug 30, 2009 12:08:51 AM
FOXBORO, Mass.--A rain soaked pitch at Gillette Stadium as a result of tropical storm Danny made for a very sloppy match between the New England Revolution and the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday night. Coming in off of back to back wins, the Revolution were streaking and hoping to claim another three points and climb into a playoff spot.
San Jose's well documented road woes this season didn't bode well for the visitors, nor did a continued list of injuries. But San Jose came in with high hopes of ending New England's hot streak and dominated the opening stanza. Yet in the end the first half dominance led only to more heartbreak for the Earthquakes who were thoroughly outclassed in the second half.
Goals from Steve Ralston and Wells Thompson put the match out of reach and, though the visitors pulled back a consolation goal, the match would end with New England 2-1 winners.
First Half
The Revs started out brightly enough with Thompson streaking down the right flank and outracing San Jose defender Ramiro Corrales to a ball that left the defender with little choice but to bring down the winger. The play resulted in a card for Corrales four minutes in and a set piece from just right of the area for New England. But San Jose managed to clear the danger and from that moment forward the first half belonged to San Jose and star forward Arturo Alvarez.
The Salvadorian striker was a threat every time he touched the ball in the opening frame and nearly opened the scoring for the visitors in the 12th minute. A nice bit of skill saw Alvarez skip past three Revolution defenders and drive to the penalty spot where his attempt on goal was blocked by a sliding Jay Heaps. The resulting loose ball fell in front of Revolution 'keeper Matt Reis who had to react quickly to fend off a Chris Wondolowski challenge.
San Jose, led by Alvarez, continued to press the pace and forced New England into a number of bad giveaways, but the visitors didn't get another good chance on goal until the 28th minute when Wondolowski was played into a good position by Simon Elliot at the top of the box. The former Dynamo striker turned well and looked to be in clear on goal but wasted his shot well high of the mark.
In the 35th minute Alvarez benefited from a great build up down the right flank and unleashed a shot from just outside the box that had plenty of pace but was hit straight at Reis and easily saved.
Three minutes later San Jose was back on the attack. Alvarez did well to beat Kevin Alston to the end-line and floated a cross to Wondolowski, who couldn't direct his header into the net.
Despite the dominance, Wondolowski's missed opportunity was one of the last and the match went into the break still scoreless.
Second Half
The second half proved to be an entirely different story from the first. Alvarez struggled to find the ball and the Revs slowly took control proceedings.
Long spells of possession were finally going New England's way and the chances began to follow. In the 54th minute Jeff Larentowicz had the Revolution's first good crack on goal after Shalrie Joseph set him up just outside the box. San Jose 'keeper Joe Cannon got down well and made the save, but the pressure would continue coming his way.
In the 60th minute Ralston found enough space in the box to flip a cross to Heaps at the back post, but the defender couldn't quite turn his header into the net. Three minutes later it was Larentowicz with another shot from distance that tested Cannon and had to be knocked out for a corner.
The breakthrough finally came in the 68th when Joseph, who had just been moved to forward after starting the game in the midfield, flicked a ball into the path of Ralston. The veteran playmaker needed a deft touch to pop the ball over Cannon but executed the play with style and gave the home side a 1-0 lead.
The Revolution continued to push and Larentowicz again went close in the 71st minute with a left footed effort, but again the midfielder couldn't find the mark.
The dagger came in the 74th minute, through the most unlikely of players. Wells Thompson was played down the right flank by Ralston and rather than rushing to the endline, the winger cut inside and struck a lovely left footed curler over Cannon and into the side netting for the Revolution's second.
The wheels had come off for San Jose, which struggled to find anything going forward until just moments from time when Ramon Sanchez struck a consolation goal. Quincy Amarikwa, who was a bright spot for the Earthquakes after entering the match late on, did all the hard work in the left-hand corner, eventually laying off a pass Corrales, who in turn found Sanchez with a cross.
The late goal wasn't enough, though, and referee Alex Prus blew the final whistle just seconds after the restart, leaving the home fans to celebrate a third straight win.
Allen Ramsey, Goal.com
For more news on Major League Soccer visit Goal.com's MLS page
San Jose's well documented road woes this season didn't bode well for the visitors, nor did a continued list of injuries. But San Jose came in with high hopes of ending New England's hot streak and dominated the opening stanza. Yet in the end the first half dominance led only to more heartbreak for the Earthquakes who were thoroughly outclassed in the second half.
Goals from Steve Ralston and Wells Thompson put the match out of reach and, though the visitors pulled back a consolation goal, the match would end with New England 2-1 winners.
First Half
The Revs started out brightly enough with Thompson streaking down the right flank and outracing San Jose defender Ramiro Corrales to a ball that left the defender with little choice but to bring down the winger. The play resulted in a card for Corrales four minutes in and a set piece from just right of the area for New England. But San Jose managed to clear the danger and from that moment forward the first half belonged to San Jose and star forward Arturo Alvarez.
The Salvadorian striker was a threat every time he touched the ball in the opening frame and nearly opened the scoring for the visitors in the 12th minute. A nice bit of skill saw Alvarez skip past three Revolution defenders and drive to the penalty spot where his attempt on goal was blocked by a sliding Jay Heaps. The resulting loose ball fell in front of Revolution 'keeper Matt Reis who had to react quickly to fend off a Chris Wondolowski challenge.
San Jose, led by Alvarez, continued to press the pace and forced New England into a number of bad giveaways, but the visitors didn't get another good chance on goal until the 28th minute when Wondolowski was played into a good position by Simon Elliot at the top of the box. The former Dynamo striker turned well and looked to be in clear on goal but wasted his shot well high of the mark.
In the 35th minute Alvarez benefited from a great build up down the right flank and unleashed a shot from just outside the box that had plenty of pace but was hit straight at Reis and easily saved.
Three minutes later San Jose was back on the attack. Alvarez did well to beat Kevin Alston to the end-line and floated a cross to Wondolowski, who couldn't direct his header into the net.
Despite the dominance, Wondolowski's missed opportunity was one of the last and the match went into the break still scoreless.
Second Half
The second half proved to be an entirely different story from the first. Alvarez struggled to find the ball and the Revs slowly took control proceedings.
Long spells of possession were finally going New England's way and the chances began to follow. In the 54th minute Jeff Larentowicz had the Revolution's first good crack on goal after Shalrie Joseph set him up just outside the box. San Jose 'keeper Joe Cannon got down well and made the save, but the pressure would continue coming his way.
In the 60th minute Ralston found enough space in the box to flip a cross to Heaps at the back post, but the defender couldn't quite turn his header into the net. Three minutes later it was Larentowicz with another shot from distance that tested Cannon and had to be knocked out for a corner.
The breakthrough finally came in the 68th when Joseph, who had just been moved to forward after starting the game in the midfield, flicked a ball into the path of Ralston. The veteran playmaker needed a deft touch to pop the ball over Cannon but executed the play with style and gave the home side a 1-0 lead.
The Revolution continued to push and Larentowicz again went close in the 71st minute with a left footed effort, but again the midfielder couldn't find the mark.
The dagger came in the 74th minute, through the most unlikely of players. Wells Thompson was played down the right flank by Ralston and rather than rushing to the endline, the winger cut inside and struck a lovely left footed curler over Cannon and into the side netting for the Revolution's second.
The wheels had come off for San Jose, which struggled to find anything going forward until just moments from time when Ramon Sanchez struck a consolation goal. Quincy Amarikwa, who was a bright spot for the Earthquakes after entering the match late on, did all the hard work in the left-hand corner, eventually laying off a pass Corrales, who in turn found Sanchez with a cross.
The late goal wasn't enough, though, and referee Alex Prus blew the final whistle just seconds after the restart, leaving the home fans to celebrate a third straight win.
Allen Ramsey, Goal.com
For more news on Major League Soccer visit Goal.com's MLS page
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