Quakes rally back to draw LAFC

Two teams desperate to keep pace in the race for a top four seed in the Western Conference met in Santa Clara on Saturday evening, and the two sides did not disappoint.

LAFC and the San Jose Earthquakes came into its match against each other needing a result to further boost their chances of finishing in the top four in the West. When 90 minutes were up at Levi’s Stadium, it was the Quakes that came out looking better. LAFC spotted San Jose a two-goal lead, but the Quakes, buoyed by having played a man up for the majority of the match, stayed in the match, and its persistence paid off, as they rallied back and eventually forced a split of the points courtesy of the 2-2 draw.

LAFC got goals from its dynamic duo of Son Heung-min and Denis Bouanga, but San Jose fought back, getting goals from Preston Judd and a goal at the death from Reid Roberts. The result had to feel like a huge letdown for LAFC (11-8-8, 41 points), as instead of a win that would have put them in an four-way tie for second place, LAFC now remains in sixth place, one point behind San Jose (12-8-6, 42 points). The one good news for LAFC is that they are only three points back of the Houston Dynamo. FC Dallas and St. Louis City SC.

LAFC jumped ahead in the 34th minute. Marky Delgado passed to Son, who then dribbled forward with very little resistance. Son dribbled about 10 yards, made a brief cut to his preferred left side, then fired a left-footed howler that bounced past keeper Angus Gunn, beating the Scottish keeper near post to stake LAFC to the advantage.

The tide however swung against LAFC just two minutes later. It started when San Jose’s Ousseni Bouda played a ball to Beau Leroux, who then sent a ball forward, Niko Tsakiris timed his run perfectly to get behind Aaron Long to the ball, Long grabbed and pulled Tsakiris at his left arm just outside the penalty area, and because no other player was in front of the two, referee Drew Fischer made the decision to give Long a straight red card on the grounds of denying Tsakiris a clear goal-scoring opportunity, meaning that LAFC would have to play the rest of the match a man down.

Nevertheless, LAFC took the lead into the halftime break, the actually doubled the advantage in the 53rd minute. Delgado played a ball to Son, igniting an LAFC counterattack. Son dribbled into the penalty area, saw Bouanga open at the back post, played a perfect ball to Bouanga, who slotted a right-footed shot past Gunn near post to give LAFC a two-goal advantage.

The Quakes though struck back in the 70th minute. Ronaldo Vieira dispossessed Delgado, Timo Werner scooped up the loose ball, which started a San Jose counter. Werner passed to Tsakiris, who then passed back to Werner on the break, Werner crossed into the penalty area and Judd sent a header past keeper Hugo Lloris near post to cut into the LAFC lead. LAFC was unfazed, and actually pushed across a third goal two minutes later, as a shot by Son deflected off Roberts into the back net. However, Fischer soon got the call from the VAR crew, what they saw what the LAFC right back Sergi Palencia committed a foul, as he stepped on the foot of Vitor Acosta during the attack, and while it was inadvertent, the infraction was enough to be whistled a foul, therefore wiping off the goal and keeping it a one-goal LAFC lead.

Yet despite all that, playing a man down and having a third goal taken away by VAR, LAFC still found themselves in a position to grab all three points as the match wound down, but San Jose got one last chance and cashed in. The Quakes slowly worked the ball around, Jack Skahan passed to Leroux, who then passed to Roberts, who saw a sightline, and with precious little time remaining decided to go for it, and it turned out to be the right decision, as he unleashed a left-footed laser from about 28 yard out, the ball got through the crowd of players and keeper Hugo Lloris into the back net at the far post for a stunning goal in the final minute of the eight-minute stoppage time that miraculously rescued the point for the Quakes.

LAFC now faces essentially a must-win match next Saturday when they travel to Frisco Tx. to face FC Dallas.