It was a game of highs and lows for the San Jose Earthquakes Tuesday night at PayPal Park.
The highs included an early goal to stake them a lead and the 400th league appearance for Quakes forward Chris Wondolowski.
The lows included a reckless red card from center-back Nathan that forced San Jose to play seventy minutes of the game down a man.
But in the end, the Earthquakes earned a valuable point that saw their unbeaten streak increase to nine games in a row and into a virtual tie for 7th place in the Western Conference.
“It was a valuable point with how the match turned out in the end and the fact that we were playing for a long time with one less player,” said Quakes defender Luciano Abecasis after the game.
FIRST HALF
The game started brightly for San Jose. In the 12th minute, they jumped to the 1-0 lead when a Cristian Espinoza cross was inadvertently kicked backward by Minnesota defender Bakaye Dibassy into his own net.
Eight minutes later, Dibassy was involved in another player that changed the game. San Jose center back Nathan went to chase down a loose ball at midfield and went studs up into Dibassy. Luckily the Minnesota defender was off the ground when Nathan made contact, but the reckless foul earned him a straight red card.
It only took two minutes for the visitors to tie the game on a well-placed finish from Will Trapp.
SAN JOSE WEATHER THE STORM
But from there San Jose was able to weather the storm and even have a few chances on target to steal three points.
Espinoza had a rocket pared away by the Minnesota keeper just before the half.
“When I make substitutions, I am sending a message,” explained Quakes coach Matias Almeyda. “The message is that I want to win. It’s simple.”
His substitutes included Cade Cowell in the 55th minute and Chris Wondolowski in the 86th.
It was a special appearance for Wondolowski, his 400th time entering the pitch for the San Jose Earthquakes.
Abecasis was positive about the point after the game.
“I think that the draw was fair given we were one man down. They had their chances, and we had ours,” he said. “We spoke in the locker room about staying focused, that we needed everyone’s maximum effort. That’s what we did, and I think we left a really good image with one less player.”
San Jose will look to continue their unbeaten streak versus rivals LA Galaxy in Southern California on Friday night.
