Match Data
SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 2 - San Jose Earthquakes 1
Sunday, October 28, 2018
Venue: Xbox Pitch at CenturyLink Field
Referee: Chico Grajeda
Assistants: Matthew Nelson, Eduardo Mariscal
Fourth Official: Ramy Touchan
VAR: Kevin Terry, Jr.
Attendance: 42,617
Weather: 56 degrees and partly cloudy
SCORING SUMMARY
SJ - Own Goal (Chad Marshall) 64’
SEA - Raúl Ruidíaz (Cristian Roldan, Víctor Rodríguez) 79’
SEA - Raúl Ruidíaz (Nicolás Lodeiro, Víctor Rodríguez) 90’+3’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
SJ - Eric Calvillo (caution) 53’
SEA - Raúl Ruidíaz (caution) 90’+4’
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC - Stefan Frei; Kelvin Leerdam (Handwalla Bwana 75’), Kim Kee-hee, Chad Marshall, Nouhou (Handwalla Bwana 84’); Gustav Svensson (Will Bruin 88’), Osvaldo Alonso - captain, Cristian Roldan, Nicolás Lodeiro, Víctor Rodríguez; Raúl Ruidíaz
Substitutes not used: Bryan Meredith, Harry Shipp, Jordy Delem, Román Torres
Total shots: 18 (Rodríguez, 5)
Shots on goal: 7 (Ruidíaz/ Rodríguez, 2)
Fouls: 9 (Alonso, 4)
Offside: 3 (Ruidíaz, 2)
Corner-kicks: 12 (Lodeiro, 12)
Saves: 3 (Frei, 3)
San Jose Earthquakes - JT Marcinkowski; Shea Salinas, Francois Affolter, Harold Cummings, Nick Lima; Jackson Yueill (Luis Felipe 87’), Anibal Godoy, Tommy Thompson (Yeferson Quintana 90’+2’), Eric Calvillo (Magnus Eriksson 73’); Danny Hoesen, Chris Wondolowski
Substitutes not used: Andrew Tarbell, Vako, Florian Jungwirth, Gilbert Fuentes
Total shots: 7 (Hoesen, 3)
Shots on goal: 3 (Hoesen, 2)
Fouls: 15 (Three players, 3)
Offside: 1 (Hoesen, 1)
Corner-kicks: 2 (Calvillo/Yueill, 1)
Saves: 5 (Marcinkowski, 5)
Post-Match Quotes
SOUNDERS FC HEAD COACH BRIAN SCHMETZER
Opening Statement:
“I’ll try and make this short and succinct, but maybe not. First of all, I want to publicly thank all of the fans who stuck with us in a tough, tough season. It didn’t start out nearly how we wanted it to. There’s an underlying narrative there that we are going to try and fix. The Seattle Sounders want to be competitive from day one. We want to compete for every trophy that we have. Those are important cornerstones of what I believe in, what the coaching staff believes in. And that narrative, we want to change a little bit. But, thank you to all of the fans that stuck with us. I want to thank the team and the players. They deserve all the credit here. Obviously, some of the players have had great years. Starting at the back, you’re talking about Stefan [Frei], Chad [Marshall]. You know, Ozzie [Alonso] has had a remarkable year, Nico [Lodeiro] setting records. Raúl [Ruidíaz], I think he had 10 goals in 14 games. So, it’s not easy at times to be a pro soccer player. I know pro athletes have a good job, and I remind them of that all the time. But for some of the senior players who don’t get playing time, some of the younger guys that want their chance, they fight, they do everything that we’ve asked of them at training. No one has ever quit. So, the players deserve all the credit for the season. This year, we’ve had a couple of players leave the team. Jordan [Morris], in some ways, left the team because he got injured in the first game, but he’s a tough kid and he’s going to make it back. That kid will make it back, I know. Magnus Eikrem was here, a very good player. Maybe not the right time, right place, but he helped us with a big game in Toronto, so I’d like to thank him publicly. Then we talk about Clint [Dempsey]. He is, arguably, the greatest goal-scorer this country has ever produced, and I want to thank him for his efforts and contributions to the team. You know, there’s another side of Clint that some of you guys might not know. He’s a pretty well-known guy. Even after a tough loss, in the airports people come up to him and recognize him, and he’s always been good about having people take his photo and saying hello. He’s a good individual. He’s a good person.”
On the closing minutes of Decision Day:
“That was intense. We were aware of what was happening, but how do you get that information to the players? It was Ozzie at one point, saying, ‘Okay let’s get forward,’ and then at another point saying, ‘Okay, let’s stay back. Let’s not take a goal.’ There was so much going on. That’s one of the dramas. Whoever thought of this Decision Day, it’s great. It’s great for all the fans. It gives us a little bit of a faster heartbeat. But that’s what we want to do. We want to try and entertain soccer fans all across this country. So, we knew. We tried to get all the information there. But to bring it back to the team, this team didn’t want to draw – obviously, they didn’t want to close – but they didn’t want to draw the last game of the year in front of the fans that they were trying to impress. They wanted to end this season on a positive note for their mentality, for their ‘never say die’ mentality. That’s why this team is capable of a championship.”
On Víctor Rodríguez:
“He has been great. Ever since that injury has gone by the wayside. Everything that Chris [Henderson] saw when he went to visit him, when he went to scout him, has been as advertised. He’s goal-dangerous, very good technically, he’s a good team guy, good in the locker room. He’s what we want as far as players are concerned at the Sounders.”
On Raúl Ruidíaz:
“Well, Raúl gets paid to score goals, and I think you saw that tonight. It was someone that the coaching staff identified and wanted. The front office took note and gave us what we needed. It was a team effort as far as getting him here to the Seattle Sounders. So, that is a big bonus for us.”
SOUNDERS FC MIDFIELDER OSVALDO ALONSO
On the overall feeling of the win:
“We didn’t feel like losing 1-0. We fight until the end and we win and find a way to get three points. Then they told us that Colorado was winning, 2-1, and that’s why we decided to bring the second [striker on].”
On the importance of Ruidíaz, Lodeiro, and Rodríguez:
“They’ve been so great. They showed great play today and in the past, and we are happy for the performance today and hopefully they can get ready for the playoffs.”
On the slow start to the season:
“I can’t believe [that we are here now]. We just started to score and now we are second place in the West. It’s crazy, it’s part of the game, now we have one week rest.”
SOUNDERS FC MIDFIELDER NICOLÁS LODEIRO
On the overall feeling of the win:
“I feel happy. Happy. Because we won the game and the other result helped a lot, we feel very happy.”
On Raúl’s performance:
“I’m very happy [for him]. Because he worked every day for this. When he came he helped a lot and was really good and we are happy for Raúl and for the team, too.”
On the awareness of the other scores around the league:
“Nothing. I was focused on just our game because the most important is the final, the three points for us. When we finished I asked about the other games, and it was very good news for us.”
SOUNDERS FC FORWARD RAÚL RUIDÍAZ [THROUGH TRANSLATOR]
On overall feeling of the win:
“Super, super happy. Very, very happy. In fact, coming back here into the locker room it was all crazy and just to now savor it… it was very good.”
On the two goals he scored:
“The first goal was a very, very quick play. Cristian [Roldan] had the ball and he sent it over and it came a little low and I was able to put it in. The second one I was able to read Nico’s pass well. I’m always looking for those because he is always trying those types of things, and I was trying to put it in.”
On the winning streak and overall feeling since coming to the club:
“When I came, the team was in a bad moment, but we all knew that it was all up to us, that we had to change the situation that we were in. We have an excellent team, really a family, so we knew that it was all up to us. So, we were able to achieve that and I am super happy about that.”
—
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH STEVE RALSTON
On the match:
“It wouldn’t have been an Earthquakes 2018 game if it didn’t end that way, right? That’s just the way that things have gone for us. I thought we actually played pretty well. We got a little bit lucky the way we scored our first goal. I maybe thought that luck was on our side, but at the end of the day, mentally we made a few mistakes and it cost us.”
On the season overall:
“It’s disappointing, to say the least. Obviously we had much higher expectations coming into the season. There’s a lot to improve on for sure. For me, it’s been an interesting few weeks, but a great experience. I’m thankful that the guys gave me everything they had.”
On the talent they have moving forward into next year:
“I think we’re still a few pieces away. We definitely have talent within the team, especially some of the young guys who stepped up in the last month. They proved that they can definitely play at this level.”
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES GOALKEEPER JT MARCINKOWSKI
On the match:
“I was just trying to help out with the team when I’m called upon. Obviously it was kind of a kick in the stomach at the end. Overall, I thought it was a decent game. I thought we played pretty well, especially in the first half. Second half we kind of held our own for a little bit there, pressing and attacking. For the most part, I think there were a lot of positives to take away. Time for the offseason.”
On the season overall:
“Definitely a lot of positives to take away. You kind of look at it, I’m going to recap probably in the next couple weeks and look back. There were a lot of great things that happened. Obviously, as with the first team, it is not good enough results. I am really happy with my time with Reno. I though it helped me a lot. Kind of unfortunate for them last night. At the end, just to make a few starts and help out the team, I thought it was great.”