It didn't seem to help him either. Aside from a yellow card issued to one Quake, all of the theatrics and collapsing to the ground really seemed to distract Vancouver from the task at hand, i.e. playing the game. Glad that wasn't my team doing that.
Teams are going to be targeting Espinosa as they know he's the driving force behind our team, the filth did the same as Vancouver and fouled him at every opportunity. Unfortunately you'll be seeing this strategy often during the rest of the season.
Galaxy can celebrate tonight. They still hold the record. In other news, NRA is begging the Quakes to let them become their sponsor. pic.twitter.com/7GD26wRZXI— San Jose Ultras (@SanJoseUltras) July 21, 2019
. . . I drink beer and shots of Jameson Singing with the Ultras in the stands . . . -- (another self-referential) San Jose Ultras chant (Emphasis added).
In my family, Jameson’s is the traditional funerary beverage. I think Jaeger has a rather lighter connotation, at least to me!
From what I could tell Espinoza was getting called for the foul (even though he was just standing there) and he even go warned for a yellow early in the game. It settled down and Espinoza handed it like a champ but it was still weird. This was a unique approach to targeting a player.
Just love the way the guys are playing soccer right now! Sure hope that Mathias Almayda is in a steel, locked up contract! Don’t want to lose him to a team with more money!
Yeah, it looked like the ref fell for a little of that initially but then caught on. I was happy to see Espinoza keep his cool and just keep going at them.
Funny, but true. Almeyda has gotten me thinking lately about how many players may have had their whole career ruined by being trapped under the wrong coach. I would have liked to have seen Hyka in this system too. Not that they need him, I think they need that roster spot for something else, but I felt like he was better than we was able to show.
So many players have been wasted by bad coaching in San Jose. TT is the prime example of a save. What could have happened for JJ Koval or Mark Pelosi? How about Mike Facito? Just kidding on that one
Kip will always feel like the one who got away (and that's not including the guys like Beita, Justin, and Ike whose vast potential was not tapped here)
I always felt that way about Jacob Petersen clear back in ‘11. There was always something I liked in him but felt he never got a fair run out...but the poster boy for this would have to be Hyka. His ability to create in tight spaces would complement Vako so well in Almeyda’s system.
Seeing almost the same roster doing so much better under a new coach reminds me of the SF 49ers of the early 2010's. Even as the 49ers were mediocre-to-bad throughout the last 3/4 of the 2000's, they nonetheless accumulated enough high-round draft pick players (as well as some shrewd trades) during that time that by the time the end of the decade hit, they had a lot of individual talent (Frank Gore, Vernon Davis, Justin Smith, etc.), but still didn't have a coach that could put it all together. Then came Jim Harbaugh in January 2011, who subsequently brought in both his own coaching staff (particularly offensive coordinator Greg Roman and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio) and a few more players and took the Niners to three consecutive NFC Championships, including a Super Bowl appearance in the second year of that run. While his fourth and final year ended with a disappointing 8-8-0 record, word has it that much of that was due to a power struggle between him and then-GM Trent Baalke. Similarly, the Earthquakes had a lot of talented players last season who for whatever reason (mostly Mikael Stahre?) didn't coalesce as a team, who with a few more added players and the right coaching staff a year later finally did. In any case, hopefully Matías Almeyda stays here awhile and doesn't have a power struggle with anyone in the front office. GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
Finally watched the highlights on wifi on the MLS app. The team is doing great under Almeyda. After the great day I had for my birthday, the icing (Quakes win) tops the cake. Here’s a shot of what i was up to.