MLS San Jose Earthquakes

Earthquakes Weekly Update: September 27, 2021

Published on September 27, 2021 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
San Jose Earthquakes News Release


The San Jose Earthquakes defeated LAFC 2-0 on Saturday night at PayPal Park. The Quakes are now 5-2-4 in their last 11 matches and are just three points below the playoff line in the Western Conference. Chofis tallied one goal and one assist, while 21-year-old rookie forward Benji Kikanovic scored his second MLS goal.

The Earthquakes are now preparing for two matches this week, first hosting Seattle Sounders FC on Wednesday, Sept. 29, presented by Intermedia, before traveling to Canada to face Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday, Oct. 2.

Wednesday's match from PayPal Park will kick off at 7:30 p.m. PT and will be broadcast on NBC Sports Bay Area Plus, KNBR 1050 and 1370 KZSF. Saturday's match from BC Place will begin at 7:00 p.m. PT and will air on NBC Sports California Plus, KNBR 1050 and 1370 KZSF.

OPPONENT INFORMATION

Earthquakes vs. Seattle Sounders FC All-Time

MLS Regular Season: 11-14-8

Home: 5-4-5 (14 GF, 10 GA)

Away: 6-10-2 (18 GF, 35 GA)

All-Time Scoring: San Jose - 32, Seattle - 45

Last Game vs. Seattle

Seattle Sounders FC 0 - 1 San Jose Earthquakes; July 31, 2021; Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash.

Earthquakes vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC All-Time

MLS Regular Season : 8-9-10

Home: 5-1-7 (19 GF, 11 GA)

Away : 2-8-3 (16 GF, 24 GA)

All-Time Scoring: San Jose - 35, Vancouver - 35

Last Game vs. Vancouver

San Jose Earthquakes 0 - 0 Vancouver Whitecaps FC; Aug. 13, 2021; PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif.

EARTHQUAKES NOTES

LAST GAME VS. LOS ANGELES FOOTBALL CLUB (9/25)

Playoff Possibilities

The Earthquakes currently hold an 8-9-9 record (33 pts.) during the 2021 MLS regular season and are currently in 10th place in the Western Conference, just three points below the playoff line.

Beat LA

The Quakes extended their winning streak against LAFC to four. San Jose is now 4-5-0 all-time vs. LAFC, including a 3-2-0 record at home.

Comfortable Win

San Jose earned their second shutout victory of the season and first since July 31 (1-0 vs. Seattle). Saturday's win was also the first at PayPal Park since Aug. 8 against LAFC (W 2-1). It marked the Quakes' first shutout victory by multiple goals since Oct. 28, 2020 vs. Real Salt Lake (2-0).

Can't Be Stopped

Midfielder Chofis scored his team-leading 11th goal of the season. He has now scored six goals in the last three matches and is the league's leading scorer during the month of September (6). He has also scored in consecutive matches vs. LAFC and became the first Earthquakes player to score in three straight matches since Vako in July 2019. Additionally, Chofis tallied an assist on Kikanovic's goal, marking his third assist of the season and first game-winning assist.

Goal-Scoring Machine

Chofis' 11 goals so far this season are tied for the second most by any Mexican player in their first year in MLS.

MOST GOALS BY A MEXICAN PLAYER IN THEIR FIRST YEAR IN MLS

PLAYER YEAR TEAM GOALS

Carlos Vela 2018 LAFC 14

Chofis 2021 SJ 11*

Damian 1997 DAL 11

Missael Espinoza 1996 SJ 10

*8 regular season matches remaining

San Jose's Own

Rookie forward Benji Kikanovic scored his second goal of the season. He has now tallied one goal and one assist in the last two matches.

Clean Sheet

Goalkeeper JT Marcinkowski secured his fourth shutout of the season and ninth of his MLS career.

Welcome Back

Midfielder Shea Salinas entered the match as a substitute in the 82nd minute, marking his first appearance since Sept. 4 against the Colorado Rapids.

NEXT GAME VS. SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC (9/29)

Hosting the Sounders

The Quakes hold a 11-14-8 record in 33 regular season fixtures against Seattle Sounders FC, including a 5-4-5 record at PayPal Park.

Closing the Series

Wednesday's match will be the third and final regular season matchup between the Quakes and Sounders FC this season. San Jose fell 1-0 against Seattle at PayPal Park on May 12, before defeating them 1-0 at Lumen Field on July 31.

Snapping the Streak

San Jose's 1-0 victory over Seattle on July 31 ended a 14-match winless streak against the current Western Conference leaders that dated back to June 2015.

Solid Seattle

Since falling to San Jose in July, Seattle has yielded a 5-2-1 record in their last eight matches, most recently defeating Sporting Kansas City 2-1 at Children's Mercy Park on Sunday.

Goleadores Hispanos

Mexican midfielder Chofis leads the Earthquakes with 11 goals, while Peruvian forward Raul Ruidiaz paces the Sounders with 14 goals. Ruidiaz has the most goals in the Western Conference, while Chofis has scored six goals in the last three matches.

Duelo Peruano

Peru National team players Marcos Lopez (San Jose) and Raul Ruidiaz (Seattle) will face off on Saturday.

Absent Player

Midfielder Cristian Espinoza will serve a one-match suspension on Wednesday due to yellow card accumulation after receiving a yellow card on Saturday vs. LAFC.

NEXT GAME VS. VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC (10/2)

Against Vancouver

The Quakes hold an 8-9-10 record in 27 total meetings against Vancouver Whitecaps FC, including a 3-8-3 record at Vancouver.

'O Canada'

San Jose will play their first match outside of the United States since July 20, 2019, in which the Quakes defeated the Whitecaps 3-1 at BC Place with goals from Magnus Eriksson, Vako, and Chris Wondolowski.

Road Warriors

The Quakes are currently unbeaten in eight consecutive road matches, the longest such run in club history (2003).

Round Two

San Jose will meet Vancouver in the second of three meetings between the two clubs in 2021. San Jose played to a scoreless draw against Vancouver on Aug. 13 at PayPal Park.

Last Six

San Jose have fallen just once in their last six encounters with Vancouver (4-1-1).

Familiar Face

Saturday's match will see the Quakes face former player Florian Jungwirth for the second time this year. Jungwirth was traded from San Jose to Vancouver on Aug. 6.

Check out the San Jose Earthquakes Statistics

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