San Jose – For the first time in a month, the San Jose Earthquakes walked off the pitch at PayPal Park as winners—and the timing couldn’t have been better. Their 4-1 victory over Western Conference rival Portland Timbers snapped a three-game losing streak and provided a much-needed boost to start a packed May schedule, which includes eight, possibly nine, matches, depending on the outcome of Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup match against Sacramento Republic FC of the USL Championship.
“It’s a good win against a very good team,” Earthquakes head coach Bruce Arena said. “They’re a very good team, so we’re pleased with the win.”
San Jose came out aggressively, generating several strong chances within the first 10 minutes. The breakthrough arrived in the 16th minute, when Chicho Arango connected with newly acquired DeJuan Jones, making his first home start since being traded from the Columbus Crew, out wide. On his first touch, Jones sent a ball into the box to Cristian Espinoza, who finished at the far post to open the scoring. The Earthquakes doubled their lead just eight minutes later, in the 24th minute, as Espinoza and Ousseni Bouda linked up on a quick one-two, with Espinoza slotting home his second to make it 2-0.
“It was really important to start the game that way,” said Espinoza of the early goals. “We knew that we needed this victory, we needed the three points tonight.”
San Jose capped off a three-goal blitz in a 10-minute span with a strike in the 27th minute. This time, Chicho Arango and DeJuan Jones connected on a counterattack, Arango played the ball out wide to Jones, who quickly returned it into space. Arango ran onto it and buried the shot, extending the Earthquakes’ lead to 3-0.
“Whenever you can get to a new club and make an impact with the scoring right away, that’s helpful,” Jones said. “I’m building chemistry quickly with my teammates. They make it really easy, and it’s fun playing with them. So, to get the 4-1 win is good.”
“The three goals in the first half are huge,” said Arena. “I thought Portland was dangerous throughout the game. Our guys responded.”
When asked about Jones’ performance, Arena, who previously coached Jones in New England, added, “I’ve known him a long time, so I’m not surprised by what I saw.”
Portland pulled one back in the 41st minute to cut the deficit to 3-1 before halftime, the lone blemish on an otherwise dominant night for the Earthquakes.
San Jose came close to extending their lead in the second half, but two potential goals were overturned following video assistant referee (VAR) reviews. The first, at the hour mark, came on a would-be goal by Arango during another quick counterattack. However, VAR ruled him offside, and the goal was disallowed. The second reversal came in the 69th minute, after San Jose was awarded a penalty for a tackle on midfielder Beau Leroux in the box. Upon review, VAR determined the challenge was clean, and the penalty was rescinded.
“I haven’t seen it on film, but everyone tells me that (Leroux) was fouled, so I have no idea what VAR is,” Arena said.
The Earthquakes capped the night with a late goal from Ousseni Bouda in the 88th minute, finishing off a well-worked sequence involving Arango and Espinoza. Bouda tapped in Arango’s cross at the far post on his first touch to seal the 4-1 win.
Now, San Jose heads into a grueling stretch of games. They host Sacramento Republic FC on Wednesday night (7:30 p.m., CBS Sports/Paramount+), then travel to Colorado for a league match against the Rapids on Saturday (6:30 p.m., Apple TV/MLS Season Pass). After that, they return home for a quick turnaround to face Lionel Messi and Inter Miami on Wednesday, May 14—a marquee matchup and San Jose’s most anticipated game of the season.
But first comes Sacramento, one of the top clubs in the USL and a team that once came close to joining Major League Soccer.
“(The Open Cup match) means a lot,” Espinoza said. “Every time we play in the U.S. Open Cup, we try to put ourselves in position to fight for the title.”
Photo by SJE/X
