Official Updated San Jose Earthquakes News,Team/Player Talk and Rumors

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Quakes arrive in N.Y. riding wave

The New York Red Bulls are looking to regain their season-opening form while the San Jose Earthquakes are looking to keep theirs on track as the two clubs meet in an inter-conference clash Sunday at Giants Stadium. The Red Bulls have posted a loss and a tie since defeating Columbus to start their campaign. In the Earthquakes return after a two-year hiatus, they started with losses in their first two games before claiming the club's first win since late 2005, a 1-0 victory at Colorado last weekend.

REFEREE: Michael Kennedy. SAR (bench): Jose Corro; JAR (opposite): Paul Scott; 4th: Mark Geiger
MLS Career: 94 games; FC/gm: 32.4; Y/gm: 4.0; R: 18; pens: 36

INJURY REPORT: NEW YORK RED BULLS - OUT: MF David Roth (L knee surgery); DF Michael Palacio (L knee injury); FW Oscar Echeverry (R knee LCL sprain); DOUBTFUL: DF Hunter Freeman (R ankle sprain); MF Dane Richards (R MCL tear); FW Juan Pablo Angel (L hamstring strain) ... SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES - NONE REPORTED
none

INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED:

HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (24 meetings): Red Bulls 6 wins (0 shootout), 32 goals ... Earthquakes 13 wins (2 shootout), 40 goals ... Ties 5
AT NEW YORK (12 meetings): Red Bulls 4 wins (0 shootout), 19 goals ... Earthquakes 4 wins (0 shootout), 14 goals ... Ties 4
• This is the first of two meetings between the clubs this season, the only one set for the Meadowlands. The Red Bulls will make their lone visit to the Bay Area on July 27 to take on the Earthquakes.
LAST YEAR (MLS):
Did not meet
• This is a resumption of one of the wildest rivalries in league annals. The Earthquakes come in having won three of the last four meetings in the all-time series, including both encounters in 2005.
• The teams have played the teams have played two of the highest-scoring games in MLS annals: a 4-4 draw on July 2, 2003 in East Rutherford, and a 5-5 draw on May 8, 2004 in San Jose, the 10 total goals tied for the second-most in a single game in league history.
• Coaches record: Juan Carlos Osorio v SJ: first game ... Frank Yallop vs. NY: P10 W3 L3 D4

NEW YORK RED BULLS
The New York Red Bulls saw a 10-man New England Revolution score the equalizer after going shorthanded, the teams eventually settling for a 1-1 draw Saturday night at Giants Stadium. The Red Bulls now have four points from their three matches, in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, a point ahead of D.C. United and two behind Toronto FC.
LAST MATCH
• The Red Bulls were back home after losing their match of the season, at FC Dallas, while the Revolution were also coming off a loss, a 1-0 defeat by Colorado at Gillette Stadium.
• Jozy Altidore, who was able to start in tandem with Juan Pablo Angel for the first time on the campaign, scored a stunning goal to put New York ahead after 30 minutes. Taking the ball in the midfield circle, the 18-year-old thundered downfield through a pair of Revs defenders and then rifled a shot under the crossbar from just inside the area for his first goal of the year.
• The game changed just after the second-half restart. Red Bulls defender Kevin Goldthwaite knocked New England midfielder Mauricio Castro to the ground and was booked. But while on the turf, Castro aimed a kick at Goldthwaite's groin, and was sent off by referee Ricardo Salazar.
• Still, the Revolution found the equalizer. After Adam Cristman went down in the restraining arc, Jeff Larentowicz ripped the resulting free kick outside the right edge of the Red Bulls wall where a hole had just opened, and the ball sailed inside of Jon Conway for the eventual equalizer.
• Red Bulls head coach Juan Carlos Osorio made three changes to the team that lost 2-0 to FC Dallas at Pizza Hut Park the previous Saturday. Jeff Parke came back from suspension while Carlos Mendes made his first appearance of the year, both in the back three. Juan Pablo Angel returned from injury to give Osorio his first-choice strike partnership for the first time in 2008. Luke Sassano, Danleigh Borman and Oscar Echeverry all returned to the substitutes' bench.
• Here's Osorio's team (3-4-1-2): Jon Conway - Carlos Mendes, Jeff Parke, Kevin Goldthwaite - Chris Leitch, Seth Stammler, Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Danleigh Borman 61), Dave van den Bergh - Claudio Reyna (Mike Magee 77) - Jozy Altidore, Juan Pablo Angel (John Wolyniec 46). Substitutes Not Used: Oscar Echeverry, Chris Megaloudis, Luke Sassano, Zach Thornton
• "I think that we limited a very good team to one chance. They scored on a free kick. If I'm honest, as I was in the locker room, I could probably live with the foul, but I cannot live with anybody on the end of the wall turning their back on the ball on an inside shot. I am very disappointed with that," Osorio said. "I think that we did what we needed to do; we created enough chances to win this game. John (Wolyniec) had a perfect opportunity on Danleigh's (Borman) cross, then on another chance on Dave van den Bergh's cross, so I think we did enough, but that's football. You don't finish your chances, and you allow that to happen, that's what is going to happen."
TEAM NEWS
• After opening the season with a 2-0 victory spurred by a first-minute goal, the Red Bulls have been held scoreless by FC Dallas then held to one goal by a 10-man New England Revolution - something that is frustrating Osorio.
• "Very, but it's only the third game. I think we showed today some good playing at times, we kept the ball for periods of time very well and the team looked quite well," Osorio said. "Again, I think that New England is a very good team, when I look at the sideline and the chances that we had, I have to be disappointed, yes, because we let two points go. In general, I have to be optimistic and think that we are improving."
• With Reyna pulling the strings in the attacking midfield role, the Red Bulls were creating chances, but Osorio said they started to dwindle over the second 45 minutes.
• "I also think that Claudio (Reyna) got hurt and I think we started losing the creativity that we had in the first half," Osorio said. "You always expect that a team comes back and tries, especially when they're down by one and [the other team] has a goal. You look at the chances, and I only recall one chance, that was it. The first half there were two shots, one from (Amaechi) Igwe from long distance and that was it."
• In addition, Osorio said Altidore was less effective in the second half, a by-product of a hectic national team schedule.
• "He played well, but if I'm being honest, I think he has played too much football in the last three months and I think we are paying for that. When he is rested up and taking people on, he is very good, but when he starts dropping in between the lines and he is not rested, he is not as strong as he normally is, and that's why he loses the ball," Osorio said.
• Said Altidore: "You know, when you play New England when they have three in the back, there are always holes on the flanks and back, and we try to exploit it as best as we can. We just missed getting over the hump in those last 20 minutes. I could have been more effective than I was tonight, a lot more effective actually."
• The last Red Bulls win against the Revolution came Sept. 17, 2005. "It was definitely a big game for me personally and the team as well. I haven't beaten this team yet and we haven't beaten them in a long time so the guys are in the same situation as me," Altidore said. "We wanted to win this game tonight but we were unfortunate again and we have to write ourselves a different story next time."

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
The San Jose Earthquakes scored their first goals - then won their first game - since returning to MLS, claiming a 2-0 victory against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday evening at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The Earthquakes have three points from three matches, sitting tied for sixth place in the Western Conference with the Houston Dynamo, five points off the pace of FC Dallas.
LAST MATCH
• The Earthquakes were back on the road for back-to-back matches after restarting their history with no points -- and no goals -- from their first two matches. The Rapids were back home after finishing off a two-game road swing with an impressive victory at the New England Revolution.
• The Earthquakes owned the majority of the play and were rewarded two minutes before the halftime break. A pass from James Riley into space found Ronnie O'Brien outside the right corner of the box, and though Colorado goalkeeper Bouna Coundoul blocked his first shot, the Irishman was quickest to the rebound and potted it for San Jose's first goal since 2005.
• Just after the hour mark the Earthquakes sealed their first victory. Ned Grabavoy went on a surging run down the right before slipping an inside through ball for Kei Kamara. He cut inside of a Rapids defender before lashing a low shot that bounced off the inside of the left-hand post and into the goal.
• For the second consecutive week, Earthquakes head coach Frank Yallop kept the same starting 11.
• Here's Yallop's team (4-4-2): Joe Cannon - Jason Hernandez, Ryan Cochrane, Nick Garcia, James Riley - Ronnie O'Brien (Shea Salinas 62), Ned Grabavoy, Ramiro Corrales (Ryan Johnson 84), Ivan Guerrero - Gavin Glinton (Joe Vide 56), Kei Kamara. Substitutes Not Used: Preston Burpo, John Cunliffe, Eric Denton, Adam Smarte
• "I think we kept them off balance with our play," said Yallop. "We talk about things we can do tactically to break them down before the match. It doesn't always work and you think the guys aren't listening, but tonight I think the guys took the game plan to heart and pushed the ball well. I think Kei Kamara was dangerous all night and Gavin Glinton supported him well and overall all of the guys played well."
TEAM NEWS
• After becoming the third expansion team to start without goals in their first two games, the Earthquakes felt it was important to score - and win - soon. "It was our first win so that was really important," Yallop said. "Getting it in the third game was good; if you wait until the fourth, fifth or sixth game to get it, the season is slipping away. So it is something to build off of."
• Still, Yallop said, he felt San Jose did enough in their home opener to have broken their maiden. "I think we played well last weekend and didn't get anything out of the match and tonight we took our chances well," said Yallop. "I thought we created some good ones and Joe [Cannon] made some good saves at the right times."
• Added Ronnie O'Brien, who scored the inaugural goal for the reconstituted Earthquakes: "Last week we felt that we had made some strides forward in how we played but we couldn't score; this week we didn't play as well but got two goals and we did what we had to do to win. We got a lead and then the second half we came out, defended well, scored our second goal and won the game."
• The Earthquakes also felt a key was closing down Christian Gomez in the playmaking role for the Rapids. They will face a similar task with the Red Bulls' Claudio Reyna.
• "We can't let the good players play around us," said Yallop. "We don't want to kick them but we want to close them down. We want to play tight on the good players and make it difficult for them to play. We did a very good job on Christian Gomez tonight -- he's a very good player in this league."
• After losing in the season opener against a former club, goalkeeper Joe Cannon was happy to come away with a win in Colorado, where he played from 2003-06.
• "I already lost one against a former team earlier this year in Los Angeles so it feels good to come back here and win," Cannon said. "However, more importantly we needed these three points and I think that they will be important down the road."
• Kei Kamara added the second goal, from an attacking unit that has been questioned from the formation of the squad by Frank Yallop. "All the attacking players were feeling a bit of pressure because we were hearing that we couldn't score goals, but we were able to break through with two tonight. We showed tonight that we can find the net. More goals are going to come," Kamara said,
• For Kamara, the goal had added emotional value. Nine days earlier, his brother Yusiffu passed away at his home in Sierra Leone. Kamara plans to pay tribute to his brother - with whom he spent two months during the offseason - throughout the year.
• "Every single game this year, my first goal and every goal, everything I do this year is just going to be for him," Kamara said to the San Jose Mercury-News. "Every game this season is going to be dedicated to him. It's somebody that I love, somebody that raised me up. He's resting right now, and I know he's looking down on the whole team. He's going to follow us this year, I know that."
• On Thursday, the Earthquakes signed forward Peguero Jean Philippe on loan from Brondby IF of Denmark. Jean Philippe, who possesses a green card, spent three seasons in Major League Soccer, playing for the Colorado Rapids and the New York Red Bulls. He joined MLS in 2004 and played just more than two years with Colorado, where he appeared in 46 games and recorded 14 goals and 11 assists. In April 2006, he was traded to the New York Red Bulls, where he scored six goals in 12 games, while also adding two assists. In July of that year the Haitian forward was transferred to Danish Superliga club Brondby IF. Jean Philippe is also a Haitian international, appearing with the national team 10 times in his career.

[Benfica7]

Reports say that Earthquakes have signed Jean Philippe Peguero acquired from Brondby IF. He has also play for New York Red Bulls scoring 6 goals. And also Colorado Rapids scoring 14 goals. The 26 year old should be a good addition to the team.

[Benfica7]

Midfield growth key for young Quakes

When San Jose Earthquakes head coach Frank Yallop was constructing his team over the winter, much of the outside attention went to a defense that was expected to be solid, and a frontline that had some holes. Less mention was made of the midfield. Sure, the team acquired Ronnie O'Brien and Ramiro Corrales in the latter stages of preseason, but it's safe to say that the unit was flying a bit more under the radar than the other components of the team.

That is until the midfield's dire performance in the Quakes' 2-0 first-game defeat to the Los Angeles Galaxy. San Jose spent the first half struggling mightily to possess the ball, and it wasn't until the second half that the group achieved any kind of rhythm, by which point the match had basically been decided.

"We're a good team on the ball," said O'Brien. "[Then again], you can say it, but you have to prove it."

Over the last two weeks, San Jose's midfield quartet of O'Brien, Corrales, Ned Grabavoy and Ivan Guerrero has done just that; no mean feat given the side's expansion nature. A solid performance against Chicago went for naught as the Quakes fell at home 1-0. But against Colorado, everything came together, with O'Brien notching a goal and an assist in a 2-0 victory.

And the Irishman didn't do it by himself either. On the opposite wing, Guerrero delivered several telling crosses that caused problems for the Colorado defense. In the middle, Grabavoy was just as dangerous, including an inch-perfect through ball that led to Kei Kamara's clinching goal in the second half. And his central partner, Corrales, hung back a bit more than in previous games, allowing him to clog the passing lanes as the Quakes closed out a valuable road victory.

According to Guerrero, the Quakes' improvement is simply an outgrowth of the players' greater familiarity with one another.

"We have more confidence in each other now, and our passing and movement are getting better every game," said Guerrero through a translator. "Against Colorado, we were much more compact and more together when we went into the attack."

The improved midfield play has also resulted from the flexibility provided by each player. Both Guerrero and O'Brien are capable of tucking into the middle, while Grabavoy and Corrales have seen extensive minutes out wide during their careers. This allows the Quakes attack to have plenty of variety, and was especially evident against Colorado.

"Whoever finds themselves in a spot to attack, they can do it from any position whether centrally or from out wide," said Grabavoy. "The good thing about our team also is that if Ronnie or Ivan come inside, we have two outside backs who like to join the attack and get up and down the flanks as well, which helps."

Of course, the trick now is to prove that last week's result was a harbinger of things to come, rather than a mirage. The increased time spent playing together would seem to point to the former assertion, although Grabavoy is taking nothing for granted.

"It's a situation of not being too satisfied," said Indiana University product. "Yeah, we're happy that we got a win, but now we're here training on a Tuesday, and we have a game on Sunday. We just need to look forward to the next game."

Given the team's improvement over the last couple of weeks, they'll do that with an increased level of confidence as well.

[Benfica7]

Sydney Olympic officials visited MLS club San Jose Earthquakes recently and have not ruled out a strategic alliance between the two clubs in the future.
Sydney Olympic director of football Manny Spanoudakis, who visited the US in recent weeks with the FFA's approval, says Australian football can learn much from US football and sees opportunities to develop links.

“Their game day experience is quite unbelievable. It's just so much more professional in that regard,” he said.

“And some of the stadiums over there, they are like shopping malls.”

Spanoudakis toured San Jose’s training facility and the club’s two grounds- the Buck Shaw and McAfee stadiums - and was very impressed with what he saw.

He also hinted that he may meet San Jose officials later in the year to discuss way in which the two clubs could reach an alliance of sorts.

“I spoke with Frank Yallop the coach and we spoke about his time coaching Beckham and there seems to be a greater recognition of Aussie football over there after the Galaxy matches here and the Pan Pacific tournament.”

Meanwhile Spanoudakis confirmed the club’s had inquiries regarding three Olympic players from at least three A-League clubs.

One target, attacking full-back Shannon Cole, is currently injured with an ankle ligament injury but is expected back in two weeks.

Olympic haven't ruled out dipping into the NSW Premier League transfer window which opens on May 5 should they lose any of their stars.

[Benfica7]

Weekly Update: Two-match week

This Week
The San Jose Earthquakes look to bounce back from a loss to the New York Red Bulls last Sunday with two matches this week. The Quakes first travel to Salt Lake City to play Real Salt Lake on Wednesday, Apr. 30 in a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup play-in game. The match kicks off at 6 p.m. PT at Rice Eccles Stadium. The team then returns home for the first game ever at the newly-renovated Buck Shaw Stadium. San Jose takes on FC Dallas on Saturday, May 3 at 7 p.m. PT in Santa Clara. The match also marks the first broadcast of the year on Comcast SportsNet.

Earthquakes vs. Real Salt Lake All-Time

MLS Regular Season: 2-0-2
Home: 1-0-1
Away: 1-0-1
Shootout (1996-99): 0-0
Overtime (2000-03): 0-0-0
Playoffs: 0-0-0; U.S. Open Cup: 0-0-0
All-Time Scoring: San Jose - 8, RSL - 4

Earthquakes vs. FC Dallas All-Time

MLS Regular Season: 19-13-4
Season Series: First Meeting
Home: 11-5-2
Away: 8-8-2
Shootout (1996-99): 4-3
Overtime (2000-03): 0-0-0
Playoffs: 0-0-0; U.S. Open Cup: 0-0-0
All-Time Scoring: San Jose - 63, FC Dallas - 40

Injury Report
Probable - Nick Garcia (R - thigh contusion)

Last Match
Red Bulls 2, Earthquakes 0; Apr. 27, 2008; Giants Stadium; East Rutherford, N.J.
The San Jose Earthquakes fell 2-0 to the New York Red Bulls Sunday afternoon at Giants Stadium. Mike Magee scored a penalty kick with 11 minutes to go and Jozy Altidore netted a second in stoppage time to give the Red Bulls the win. Ivan Guerrero had the first chance for the Quakes in the opening 15 minutes. Kei Kamara received a throw-in from Ronnie O'Brien on the left wing and Kamara then slipped a pass behind the defense for Guerrero. He appeared to have an opening inside the box, but Chris Leitch recovered to knock the ball away from Guerrero to end the threat. In the 38th minute, Nick Garcia provided the save of the half with a goal line clearance of a Claudio Reyna shot to keep the game scoreless. Reyna got a pass from John Wolyniec inside the box and hit a shot to the far post. Quakes goalkeeper Joe Cannon got a hand on the shot to slow it down and Garcia snuck in to clear the ball away just before it crossed the line. The Red Bulls took the lead in the 79th minute from the penalty spot with a goal from Mike Magee. Wolyniec found Jozy Altidore with a through ball and Altidore broke in with Ryan Cochrane defending. Cochrane fouled Altidore right at the edge of the box and the referee pointed to the spot. Magee then blasted a shot past Cannon. Moments later, Kamara had a chance to equalize for San Jose. James Riley found Ivan Guerrero on the wing and the Honduran international sent a cross into the box for Kamara, who pushed a header to the near post. Red Bulls goalkeeper Jon Conway dove to his right to make the save to preserve the 1-0 advantage. Garcia cleared another ball off the line in the waning moments of the game on a header by Wolyniec. With the ball bouncing in the box, Wolyniec leapt and headed the ball past a charging Cannon, but Garcia got back to clear the ball away for a second time. Altidore netted a goal in the final seconds of the match off a pass from Wolyniec to complete the scoring. Wolyniec received the ball in the box and laid it off to Altidore, who tapped a shot off the post and in for his second goal of the year.

Last Match vs. Real Salt Lake
Earthquakes 2, Real Salt Lake 2; Saturday, October 8, 2005; Spartan Stadium; San Jose, Calif.
The San Jose Earthquakes became the first team in MLS history to finish the regular season with an unbeaten home record when they tied Real Salt Lake 2-2. On a night where retiring Quakes legend Troy Dayak was honored in a post game ceremony, the Earthquakes clinched the Supporter's Shield, securing the best record in the 2005 regular season with first half goals from top MLS MVP candidate Dwayne De Rosario and Julian Nash before RSL rallied for two late goals to tie the game. The Earthquakes took a 1-0 lead on another unbelievable effort from MVP candidate De Rosario in the 38th minute. De Rosario received a low, tight pass in midfield from Ronald Cerritos, and then with his left leg touched it forward past the Real Salt Lake defense. De Rosario ran onto the ball and dribbled into the right of the RSL penalty area before attempting to slide a pass over to Brian Mullan. With Real goalkeeper Jay Nolly out of the goal, a hustling Brian Dunseth attempted to block De Rosario's pass, but the ball bounced right back into the path of the Quakes midfielder, who then slid to his left and powered a shot into the open net. Just six minutes later, San Jose pushed its lead to 2-0 on Julian Nash's first MLS goal. Nash capped off a nice Quakes attack, as De Rosario hit Cerritos with a pass, and he then sent it forward to Nash. Nash dribbled with the ball to the top of the 18-yard box, beating his man before firing a low shot to the opposite post that beat Nolly for the two-goal advantage. Real Salt Lake cut the Quakes lead in half in the 64th minute when a confused Quakes defense allowed a cross from Kevin Novak to get into the goal. Novak lofted a cross from the right side that bounced in front of the San Jose net and two Quakes defenders. The Quakes were slow to react, and a diving Pat Onstad was not able to knock the ball off the goal line as Salt Lake closed the gap to 2-1. RSL stormed back to tie the game at 2-2 in the 73rd minute on a blistering counterattack, as Leslie Fitzpatrick hit a low pass up the right sideline to Jamie Watson. Watson moved with the ball into the Quakes penalty area, beating his defender before sending a cross to the left post where an open, on-rushing Andy Williams volleyed the ball hard past Onstad to even the game.

Last Match vs. FC Dallas
Earthquakes 1, FC Dallas 1; Saturday, Sept. 24, 2005; Spartan Stadium; San Jose, Calif.
The San Jose Earthquakes clinched first place in the Western Conference with a 1-1 draw against visiting FC Dallas at Spartan Stadium, remaining on track for a pair of record-setting home unbeaten streaks and staying on course to claim the Supporters' Shield, awarded to the team with the best regular-season record in the league. After a Ramon Nunez penalty kick just before the hour, the Earthquakes appeared to be energized by a second-half fight that resulted in the ejections of defender Eddie Robinson and FC Dallas midfielder Carey Talley. Brian Ching then netted the equalizer shortly thereafter. The result kept the Earthquakes unbeaten at Spartan Stadium on the season. The Quakes extended their home unbeaten streak to 17 league games overall, dating back to last season, equaling the MLS record set by the Los Angeles Galaxy from July 4, 2004 to July 16, 2005. The Hoops came out in a 4-3-3 formation with Nunez and former Earthquakes winger Arturo Alvarez creating problems for the San Jose defense from the wide forward positions. In fact, the two players switched sides in the early going and the left-footed Alvarez nearly hooked up with Abe Thompson with a cross with the outside of his foot in the 14th minute. Then, just a minute later, FC Dallas nearly capitalized on a poor first touch by left back Wade Barrett, as Thompson stole the ball away and went in alone against San Jose goalkeeper Pat Onstad, but the veteran smothered the shot with a dive to his left. The Earthquakes didn't test FC Dallas 'keeper Scott Garlick until the 22nd minute when De Rosario received a ball across the top of the box and let fly with a 21-yard shot. Garlick made the initial stop, but nearly served up a rebound to the onrushing Ching before bringing the ball to his chest. FC Dallas then took the lead in the 58th minute on a penalty kick by Nunez. The scoring opportunity was created when Nunez chipped a ball into Thompson, who outwrestled center back Danny Califf and made his way toward goal. Thompson then pushed the ball around the on-rushing Onstad, who clipped him down for an obvious penalty call. Nunez converted with a drive into the upper left corner. Ching, making only his second start since coming back from a torn right hamstring in late June, found the net in the 68th minute to bring the Earthquakes level. The play began with a shot by Ricardo Clark that deflected off Dallas defender Steve Jolley out to Brian Mullan along the right endline. Mullan drove the ball off Garlick's hand to the back post, where Ching took advantage of a failed clearance by Drew Moor to squeeze the ball into the left corner with a slide. San Jose nearly forged ahead just two minutes after Ching's goal but Mark Chung chipped over an empty net off a nice pass from Dwayne De Rosario

Misc. Notes

Open Cup History
The San Jose Earthquakes have participated in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup eight times from 1997-2005 and have earned a 10-8 record overall. The team has reached the quarterfinals seven times and the semifinals once during that time. Ronald Cerritos is the all-time leading scorer in Open Cup play with four goals and one assist in seven games. Midfielder Ramiro Corrales is tied for the team lead in appearances in the Open Cup with 10. He is tied with Dwayne De Rosario and Ian Russell.

Peguero Debuts
Recent acquisition Peguero Jean Philippe was officially placed on the Earthquakes roster on Friday, Apr. 25 after signing with the Quakes on Apr. 24. He traveled with the team to New York and made his Earthquakes debut as a sub in the 67th minute. He played the final 23 minutes of the match against his former team.

Same Lineup
The Earthquakes used the same starting lineup for the third straight match on Apr. 27 against the New York Red Bulls. In the first four games, the team has made only one lineup change. Rookie Shea Salinas started with Kei Kamara the first game of the season on Apr. 3 in Los Angeles at forward. Following that match, Gavin Glinton has started alongside Kamara up top.

Earthquakes Announce Festivities for the Opening of the Newly-Renovated Buck Shaw Stadium
The San Jose Earthquakes announced Monday the festivities that will take place during opening night at the newly-renovated Buck Shaw Stadium on Saturday, May 3 when the Earthquakes take on FC Dallas. The night's activities kick off with a parade of 100 children from the Tracy Quakes FC, San Ramon Bellazzurre, Santa Cruz Breakers and the Santa Clara Sporting Girls walking on the field, followed by an Earthquakes video on the big screen. The Santa Cruz Breakers will serve as player escorts for both teams. The color guard will be provided by Santa Clara University Army ROTC. The Mayor of San Jose Chuck Reed and Mayor of Santa Clara Patricia Mahan will do the official coin toss. The national anthem will be performed by Bay Area native Jennifer Macias, who has performed anthems for professional teams around the Bay Area and also on the East Coast. Opening day activities will also include a pre-game Fan Zone that will be located at the entrance of the South gate. The first 5,000 fans will receive free magnetic Earthquakes schedule presented by Comcast and KLOK.

Corrales Sixth in Appearances
By starting and playing 90 minutes against the New York Red Bulls on Apr. 27, Ramiro Corrales has now appeared in 125 games with San Jose. He is sixth in appearances in team history. Next on the list is Ian Russell (2000-05), who appeared in 131 games. Corrales has played 9,815 minutes for San Jose. By playing 185 minutes, he will become the sixth player in team history to reach 10,000 minutes played with San Jose.

Quakes-Real Salt Lake Connections
Real Salt Lake forward Robbie Findley and midfielder Nathan Sturgis played for current Quakes head coach Frank Yallop in 2007 on the Los Angeles Galaxy before being traded to RSL.

History of the Quakes-Real Salt Lake Rivalry
The Earthquakes and RSL have never met in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup ... RSL was an expansion team in 2005, so the Quakes and RSL have only met four times in their history, with San Jose winning twice and earning two draws in 2005 ... The two teams tied 2-2 in the first ever meeting on Apr. 30, 2005 with Alejandro Moreno scoring a late goal for San Jose to tie the game ... RSL was the last regular season opponent to play against the Quakes at Spartan Stadium, earning a 2-2 tie on Oct. 8, 2005.

RSL All-Time Leaders vs. San Jose
Dema Kovalenko has three career goals against San Jose and Andy Williams has scored twice in his career vs. the Quakes.

Quakes All-Time Leaders vs. RSL
Forward John Cunliffe scored twice vs. Real Salt Lake on Oct. 6, 2007 while playing for Chivas USA ... Peguero Jean Philippe, Ronnie O'Brien and Gavin Glinton have all scored one goal against RSL, while Ivan Guerrero has three assists vs. RSL in his career.

Quakes-FC Dallas Connections
FC Dallas midfielder Arturo Alvarez was drafted by San Jose and played two seasons with the Quakes (2003, 2004), before being traded to Dallas prior to the 2005 season. He played with current Quakes Ryan Cochrane and Ramiro Corrales and played for current Quakes head coach Frank Yallop in 2003 ... Dallas midfielder Dax McCarty played at North Carolina with Quakes defender Adam Sloustcher ... Dallas defender Adrian Serioux played for current Quakes coach Frank Yallop on the Canadian National Team.

History of the Quakes-FC Dallas Rivalry
The Earthquakes were 9-1-4 in the final 14 games against Dallas prior to San Jose's relocation to Houston ... The Quakes posted a seven-game winning streak during that stretch from July 20, 2002-Apr. 15, 2004 ... San Jose and Dallas met in an important match on Oct. 16, 2004, as San Jose needed a win or a tie to advance to the playoffs, while Dallas needed a win to clinch the final berth in the playoffs. The two teams played to a 2-2 tie at the Cotton Bowl, giving San Jose a spot in the playoffs, while Dallas did not qualify. Ramiro Corrales scored the Quakes second goal in that game ... On Sept. 27, 2003, San Jose's Dwayne De Rosario scored the fastest goal from the start of the game in MLS history, netting a goal 11 seconds into the match at Spartan Stadium against Dallas. De Rosario would go on to net a hat trick in the game, the second hat trick in Quakes team history ... The Quakes +23 goal difference against Dallas is the highest against any team in the league.

FC Dallas All-Time Leaders vs. San Jose
Bobby Rhine has netted three goals and notched two assists in 18 career games against San Jose, while Arturo Alvarez has one goal and one assist against the Earthquakes.

Quakes All-Time Leaders vs. FC Dallas
Ramiro Corrales has been unstoppable in his career against Dallas, scoring four goals and notching six assists in 20 games. He scored one goal and recorded two assists on Aug. 21, 2002 to earn MLS Player of the Week honors ... Gavin Glinton and Peguero Jean Philippe have each scored one goal and registered two assists in their careers against Dallas.

Cannon Amongst All-Time Leaders
Earthquakes goalkeeper Joe Cannon is among the all-time league leaders in Major League Soccer history in a number of goalkeeping categories. He is currently fifth all-time in MLS in appearances (220), fourth in minutes (19,815), fourth all-time in saves (921), tied for third all-time in shutouts (57), fifth all-time in wins (85) and eighth all-time in goals against average (1.30). For San Jose, Cannon is first in club history in appearances (105), first in minutes played (9,621), first in saves (453), first in wins (47), tied for first in shutouts (27) and second in goals against average (1.25) and saves percentage (74.5). He also holds the team's all-time record for saves in a game with 12 on July 8, 2000 at Colorado.

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Earthquakes look to peak again

If one were to chart out the performances of the San Jose Earthquakes since their return to MLS, you'd get an uncanny resemblance to the Dow Jones Industrial Average -- up one game, down sharply the next, with last Sunday's performance in a 2-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls falling in the latter category.

It was a match that was reminiscent of the team's season opening loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy by the same score. Possession, while slightly better against New York, was difficult to come by. The team defended well for long stretches, only to be undone by some catastrophic giveaways in the wrong part of the field.

It all added up to a loss that was no more than the team deserved, although head coach Frank Yallop thought a draw was within the team's reach.

"It obviously wasn't one of our best games, but I thought both teams canceled each other out to be honest," said Yallop. "Both teams tried to play, but just struggled with the pressure from the other team."

The most disappointing aspect was the performance of the midfield, which had shown significant improvement over the last few weeks. There was little semblance of attacking rhythm and combination play was nonexistent. Yet Yallop was reluctant to single out a single player or group for what was a tepid performance in attack.

"I don't place blame on anybody, because the last two games before this one, we played great," said Yallop. "Some days you just can't play well. For whatever reason we couldn't get it together."

San Jose can now look forward to the christening of newly renovated Buck Shaw Stadium this weekend, which will be their primary home for the next few seasons. But before resuming their league program, there is the not-so-small matter of a U.S. Open Cup play-in match on the road against Real Salt Lake. The Open Cup is a competition that some teams have taken seriously, while others have used it as a glorified reserve team match. Yallop minced no words when asked about his approach to Wednesday's game.

"I'm going to play all of the reserves, guys who haven't played," said Yallop. "They've done well in the reserve games, and they've done well in training, so they deserve the chance. I'm going to get them game sharp for whenever we're going to use them."

The match will mark the second consecutive game that San Jose will be playing on artificial turf, a prospect made even more daunting by the perception that the surface at Rice-Eccles Stadium is among the most unforgiving in the league. For that reason, Yallop said that a player like Ronnie O'Brien, who is coming off an injury-plagued 2007, "won't see the field at all."

The same won't be true for newly acquired forward Peguero Jean Philippe, who despite coming off a knee injury of his own, will use the match to get better acquainted with his new teammates. The Haitian international certainly provided a spark in Sunday's match, with some quick touches giving the Quakes attack a badly needed dose of urgency.

"[Philippe] came on to make a difference, and he did," said Yallop. "He tried to do the right things. I thought he held the ball up well, when he drifted wide he hit a good early cross. He did fine."

Yallop will be looking for the rest of the team to deliver a similar performance come Wednesday, and help re-establish the team's upward trend.

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The earthquakes will face real salt lake tomorrow for the U.S. Open

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Final RSL 4 SJ 0

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May 2 updated injuries


OUT
DF Ryan Cochrane (concussion); DF Jay Ayres (facial fracture);
PROBABLE DF Nick Garcia (R thigh contusion)

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Jay Ayres surgery successful

The San Jose Earthquakes announced Friday that defender Jay Ayres underwent successful surgery to repair a facial fracture on Thursday, May 8. Ayres is expected to be sidelined for eight weeks. Dr. Peter Lorenz performed the surgery on Ayres.

Ayres and defender Ryan Cochrane were involved in a collision during the Quakes U.S. Open Cup game on April 30 at Real Salt Lake. The pair went for a head ball and collided, leaving both players with concussions and Ayres with a facial fracture.


San Jose Earthquakes: News: Article


Yallop not ready to make changes

If the San Jose Earthquakes attack had a theme song, Bob Dylan's "Tangled Up In Blue" would probably suffice, given their paltry production of two goals in five games.

Yet as the Quakes prepare to play host the Columbus Crew this Saturday, manager Frank Yallop is also following Dylan's lead. Rather than make wholesale changes, his plans are to "keep on keepin' on," both in terms of his lineup and tactics.

San Jose Earthquakes: News: Article

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When the San Jose Earthquakes broke through for their first home victory last week against the Houston Dynamo, they had every reason to believe that they had turned the proverbial corner. Their slumbering offense awoke to score two goals from open play and there were signs that some chemistry was beginning to develop in the attacking third of the field.

But with World Cup qualifying set to commence in many parts of the globe, whatever momentum the Quakes generated has now been compromised ahead of this weekend's away match with Real Salt Lake.

Both scorers from the Houston game -- forward Kei Kamara and midfielder Ivan Guerrero -- have been called away by Sierra Leone and Honduras, respectively. Add in the decision of manager Frank Yallop to rest midfielder Ronnie O'Brien, and you have a side missing a significant chunk of its offense, one that has struggled to score in the best of times.

San Jose Earthquakes: News: Article

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Peguero Jean Philippe has now been deactivated due to injury.

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After Losing to Salt Lake, manager Frank Yallop had these quotes to say.

"We didn't really show any urgency until it went to 2-0, and then all of the sudden we started to get going,"

"Yeah, their third goal goes in, but at least we played a bit better when it was at 2-0."

"It's not so much the guys coming in, but the guys you're losing,"

"The guys that came in gave everything they had, but it's just the chemistry when everything was going well, and then all of a sudden it slips away from you and you've got to play again. You get a little disjointed."

Player Quotes

Nick Garcia
We fell asleep," "First half we were fortunate for Joe [Cannon] to come up big on the penalty kick. The second half was just a lackluster effort, and we were punished for it. The steady, slippery slope began from that point on and we were punished.