Former ATP Tour Star Shows He Still Has It, On and Off the Court. – The African American Athlete

Former ATP Tour Star Shows He Still Has It, On and Off the Court. – The African American Athlete
— Read on theafricanamericanathlete.com/former-atp-tour-star-shows-he-still-has-it-on-and-off-the-court/

San Jose Earthquakes Stampeded by New York Red Bulls; Wondo Moves Up MLS List

SAN JOSE, Calf. – The San Jose Earthquakes (4-20-8) dropped another match at Avaya Stadium, 3-1, to the New York Red Bulls (20-7-5), Saturday Night, but veteran forward, Chris Wondolowski, moved within one (144) of the MLS All-Time goal scoring record.

“They are a very good team. They are in the Supporters’ Shield race for a reason: they are really good. They were better than us tonight. They were better on the field and better coaching. Obviously, I think I could have done some things differently. We should not have been surprised. We talked about it all week that they were going to press, and we played right into it. We didn’t turn around enough and we have got to do better.”   SJ Interim Coach Steve Ralston, explains the overall game.

The visiting “Big Apple” team was shutting out the home squad for more than half the match, until the Bay Area legend entered off of the bench.

“I want him to get the record, but I also have to coach the team and try to juggle and balance 20-something guys. I wanted to play the same shape we have been playing recently, and I wanted to give Danny [Hoesen] a game because I felt that they were going to high press. I thought with Danny’s speed that maybe he could get in behind them a little bit better. Wondo [Chris Wondolowksi] is going to play again in these next couple of games and get more chances to score.”  Ralston, explained why Wondolowski wasn’t in the starting lineup.

The Red Bulls ended a nearly 30-minute scoreless battle, when forward, Alex Muyl tallied on a short tap in, off of a rebound at the 29’ mark.
A few minutes later, teammate and fellow forward, Bradley Wright-Phillips kicked in a goal on an obscure angle, also via a rebound (32’), to put the East Coast guests up 2-0. That conversion gave the London native 20 MLS goals thus far in 2018, and 106 (8th) for his career.

BWP became the first MLS player to record at least 20 goals in three separate seasons, but still has respect and reverence for “Wondo” and his accomplishments:

“Wondo is a Legend! I had the pleasure of meeting him a couple of times, and I’ve watched a lot of his goals. I’m happy for him. He’s done well. Massive accomplishment in the league. It goes without saying; everyone knows he’s a good player and great striker.”

New York defenseman, Aaron Long, added another digit to the scoreboard with a 50’ header off the crossbar, and just over the fingertips of San Jose Goalkeeper, James Marcinkowski. (3-0)
Quakes forward, Chris Wondolowski enters the fray at 54’ and has two close opportunities to hit the back of the net, to no avail.  However, he cracked the goose egg with a header off of a free kick, almost 30 minutes after running on to the pitch, and to the delight of the over 17,000 South Bay faithful. (3-1)

“I think that it’s a role that I’m starting to be better at. I’m used to playing 90 minutes and going for that marathon and sometimes when you come on as a sub, you fit the 90 minutes in those five minutes and you get more tired than the guys. It’s more spacing yourself out, but still using energy, wanting to bring energy off the bench.”  Wondolowski adjusts to an unfamiliar role.

Chris also hit another unprecedented plateau, as he reached 10 goals for nine consecutive seasons. A mark that he is extremely proud of:

“To be honest, I know there’s that big number that everyone keeps asking about, but to be honest, this is the one I really wanted. Obviously, I want to get a couple more, but to have double-digit goals means a lot right now and I’m hoping to have one again next year. It’s pretty cool. It shows how good my teammates have been and also a little luck to stay healthy, but I appreciate the many teammates I’ve had through those nine years.”

The Quakes will host Mexican side Cruz Azul in an international friendly at Avaya Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 13. Their next MLS match is against the Colorado Rapids, also at Avaya Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 21.

The Red Bulls head to the City of Brotherly Love, October 21, to take on Philadelphia Union, and host Orlando City SC, in the Empire/Garden State, October 28.

San Jose made a move for the 2019 season, by hiring Matias Almeyda as head coach, October 8, 2018.

Earthquakes Manhandled 5-1 by Rude Guests, Sporting Kansas City

 

SAN JOSE, Calf. – The San Jose Earthquakes (4-16-8) continue their losing woes by dropping another match at Avaya Stadium, 5-1, Saturday Night, to Sporting Kansas City (15-7-6).

“First of all, congratulations to Sporting Kansas City. I think they are a really good team so in my perspective I think they’re the best team we have played against this season. They are organized and they have good players so they’re doing a really good job over there. We came out without energy. You can talk about game plans, structure and these kinds of things but we’re playing at home, so we at least expect some energy. Everything went wrong in the first half, no energy, poor quality with the ball and we possessed the ball way too slow. We also conceded the goals too easily.”  Former San Jose Head Coach, Mikael Stahre comments on subsequently his last game.

Kansas City got things going rather quickly, as midfielder, Felipe Gutierrez scored (18’) on a short kick, from a great dribble and assist from teammate and fellow midfielder, Gerso Fernandez, within the first 20 minutes of the contest.

Gutierrez returned the favor, five minutes later, as he provided a helper for Fernandes’ goal (23’), also in nice fashion.

Sporting KC’s head coach, Peter Vermes, liked the way his team passed to each other:

“It’s a big part in who we are.  The buildup play for us was fantastic!  There was real purpose and intent to the way we were trying to approach the goal.  Tonight we were good, very confident, and very technical.  I’m very proud of the guys from that point of view.”

Shortly before halftime, Kansas City defenseman, and former Earthquake, defenseman, Ike Opara, converted a netter (42’) off of a rebound, to put his team up 3-0.

The second stanza initiated with the Earthquakes earning two yellow cards minutes apart (Anibal Godoy 50’ & Magnus Eriksson 57’), seemingly trying to provide better efforts for the next 45.

“I do think that we were a lot better in the second half. We’re well past the silver linings and glimpses here and there. We have another game in four days, so that’s all of our concentration now. We’ll definitely watch film and learn from our mistakes.”  SJ Forward/Captain Chris Wondolowski not happy with any moral victory.

The onslaught continued when Sporting KC midfielder, Krisztian Nemeth, footed another score in the back of the net on a fast break, by another great assist by Fernandez, giving the visitors an insurmountable 4-0 advantage at the 62’ mark of the match.

San Jose did show an ample amount of pride, when forward, and leading goal scorer (11), Danny Hoesen, chipped in a shot (80’) after begrudgingly coming into the contest off of the bench, ending any shutout opportunity for the guys from the “Show Me State.” (4-1)

“A loss is a loss, and this was a big one. Of course, if I come in I want to give energy and at least get a goal for myself and for the team as well. I think today we faced a very, very good team. Quality-wise they are up there with the top. At this point we’re not good enough to get a result against this team.”  Hoesen, expresses disappointment about yet another loss.

However, the West Missouri footballers weren’t finished scoring, as the ubiquitous, Gerso Fernandes, was at it again, by booting in his second goal of the night (85’) and the essential putting the last nail in the coffin for the Silicon Valley faithful (5-1).

Fernandes had the equivalence of a basketball double-double, with two goals and two assists, and appreciated the comparison:

“I like basketball!  Especially because the whole team helped me with scoring and assisting.  They had to be there to score.  I’m happy we got the ‘3’ points.”

The Earthquakes will next be in action, Wednesday, September 19, back at Avaya, hosting Atlanta United FC, under the tutelage of Interim Head Coach, Steve Ralston.

Sporting Kansas City heads to the City of Brotherly Love, to take on Philadelphia Union, Sunday, September 23.

 

Team USA Women’s Soccer Sweeps Chile in California International Friendlies

 

SAN JOSE, Calf.  – The US Women’s Soccer team thrilled the Avaya Stadium crowd of 14,340 Tuesday Night, with a dominating 4-0 victory over the ladies footballers from Chile, in a two-part International Friendly.

Team USA completed a California sweep against the South American visitors, with victories in Los Angeles [Carson] (3-0), August 31, and San Jose, September 4.

“We’ve got high quality players.  We’re in a good place.  Obviously we’re in final preparation for qualifying.”   US Soccer Coach, Jill Ellis, on dominant win.

“It speaks a lot about the quality of players we have in this country, and the depth that we have.”

Forward Mallory Pugh got things started in the first half with a great reaction and conversion (38’) off of a rebound from team captain, Alex Morgan’s penalty kick, that was brilliantly blocked by Chilean goalkeeper, Christiane Endler.

Within minutes, Team USA doubled the score, on forward, Tobin Heath’s tally at the 38’ mark of the contest (2-0), which the North Americans took into the locker room.

“All of us can say we’re not really satisfied entirely with the way we played; any time you can help the team, it’s always a good thing.”  Heath, about her all around game and team win.

Shortly after the two teams returned to the pitch, halftime replacement, veteran US midfielder, Carli Lloyd, headed the ball into the back of the net (47’), putting the red, white and blue up 3-0, while tabulating her career goal total at a whopping 101.

Lloyd wasn’t finished with her scoring prowess–although it took until extra time of the game–as she kicked in her 102^nd score and second of the match. (4-0)

Carli discussed the milestone, and the win:

“It’s always good to get.  As a forward, you’re meant to be scoring goals.  It’s always good to be on the score sheet, but more importantly, to be able to win.”

With the victory in the Silicon Valley, Team USA remains unbeaten in their last 21 matches (18-0-3); outscoring opponents 65-17, while averaging three goals per game.

The US ladies will next be in action October 4-10, in Cary, NC, for the CONCACAF Championship, competing against Mexico, Panama, and Trinidad & Tobago. 

Equipo Chile will participate in another International Friendly in the “Land Down Under” November 10-13.

 

 

Wondo’s Foot Helps End Earthquakes Home Futility, with 4-3 Win Over FC Dallas

SAN JOSE, Calf. – The San Jose Earthquakes (4-14-8) finally end their home winless streak (11) after a thrilling 4-3 victory over FC Dallas (13-6-7) on the right foot of team and future MLS legend,  forward & captain, Chris Wondolowski, Wednesday Night, at Avaya Stadium.

“Proud to be a part of it.  Proud to be out there.  It’s great to get the goal. I keep using this word, but so proud to be the captain of these guys, to be out there with them, fighting. Ninety minutes with them, it’s a huge pleasure.”  Chris Wondolowski, after return to starting lineup.

Despite being down early (1-0), after an 8’ goal by Dallas forward, Maximilianl Urrut, San Jose was able to respond with two scores (15’ & 42’) by Quakes’ forward, Valeri Qazaishvili before halftime.

With another lead (2-1) at the midway point, the worry was would the home team collapse again in the second stanza.

Dallas put fear into the team and fans, with a relatively quick equalizer (2-2), six minutes into the second half (51’), by midfielder, Santiago Mosquera.

San Jose responded a few minutes later (54’) with a kick into the net by midfielder, Magnus Eriksson, regaining the lead at 3-2.

The Lone Star State visitors were not planning go down easy and scored themselves, by the effort of forward, Dominique Badgi, less than five minutes later (58’), knotting things up at three.

San Jose Head Coach, Mikael Stahre didn’t enjoy this moment:

“Not happy. We spoke about it in the locker room that we just have to continue to play and follow our game plan. Even if you concede a goal, stick to the plan. That was the main message to the guys in the locker room.”

It didn’t take long before Captain Bay Area (Danville) was the hero and booted in the eventual Game-Winning goal (62’), to the delight of the 15K+ in the stands.

This clutch moment, marks the 40^th time Wondolowski converted the triumphant tally, behind only, Landon Donovan (41).  Another milestone he got closer to with his put away, was the MLS all-time goals scored record, (145)–also held by Donovan—by notching his 142^nd.

“A little bit. It’s a weird thing, it’s been talked about throughout the whole year. It’s still there. It’s still a bit surreal to even be this close so I have no idea. I’m hoping to get it.”  Wondowlowski, on if he will break the record.

The Earthquakes are next in action north of the border versus the Vancouver Whitecaps, September 1, while FC Dallas hosts Houston on the same date.

Earthquakes Unable to Scale Whitecaps; lose 3-2

SAN JOSE, Calf. – The San Jose Earthquakes (3-14-8) dropped another match Saturday Night at Avaya Stadium, 3-2, despite an early lead on the north of the border neighbor, Vancouver Whitecaps FC (10-9-7).

“We played really well, especially in the first 30 minutes and we took control of the game. We talked in the locker room at halftime about continuing to score and get a third one. When we conceded the first goal, I think we lost everything, actually. We lost the shape, the power and the will to play. We lost everything in seven minutes or something like that. Crazy defeat.”  SJ Earthquakes Head Coach, Mikael Stahre

The Quakes were off to a great start the first 20 minutes of the match, by kicking in two goals, while shutting out the British Columbia footballers.

San Jose Midfielder Jahmir Hyka, broke the scoreless tie at the 7’ mark of the contest.  In a short 11 minutes later, fellow midfielder and teammate, Magnus Eriksson, scored on a penalty kick (18’), putting the Earthquakes in a commanding 2-0 first half position.

They not only retained the lead for the rest of the initial 45 (+2) minutes, but continued to shutout their opponent.

The second half turned out to be a totally different story for the Whitecaps, as they not only cracked the goose egg, but they knocked in three consecutive goals in rapid succession.  Vancouver hit the back of the net thrice in less than 10 minutes.

“We have had a pretty rough season. The confidence is maybe not on top, but we’re up 2-0 and we need to play more organized. We need to play better than we did. We played pretty naïve today, made mistakes and eventually lost the game.” Commented Magnus Eriksson

Whitecaps’ forward, Yordy Reyna, began the comeback with a 58’ scoring kick.  Next, midfielder, Christian Techera, chipped in the game tying tally (61’), assisted by forward, Kei Kamara, who in turn knocked in the game-winning goal (68’), via hockey assist from Reyna and defenseman Aaron Maund.

After 90 (+6) minutes of play, the Western Canadian football club increased their win total, while simultaneously continuing the Bay Area team’s home winless streak at 11.

“Devastating. I don’t think words can quite describe it right now. Just a gut punch. I think we played so well for so long and then 15 minutes of just complete let downs. Again, we’re trying to fix it, trying to work on things that led to it, but all in all, from top to bottom, our mentality is just not strong enough right now.” Explained Chris Wondolowski about loss.

The Earthquakes are next in action Wednesday, August 29 at Avaya Stadium versus FC Dallas. While the Whitecaps will host the very same San Jose team in Canada, September 1.

Sounders silence Earthquakes 1-0 in the Silicon Valley

SAN JOSE, Calf. – The San Jose Earthquakes (2-12-6) extended their winless streak, now a “Baker’s Dozen” (13), after a 1-0 loss to the Seattle Sounders (6-9-5) in front of a sparse crowd of over 16,000 at Avaya Stadium, Wednesday Night.

“I think it was a very slow game in general. Very few chances for both teams actually. It was more of a 0-0 game from my perspective. I think we came out quite well in the first part of the game, with more quality and intensity than Seattle. Then we lost a bit of momentum in the last part of the first half. We talked in the dressing room to speed up the game a little bit more, more intensity in everything actually. We conceded a goal from out of the blue. We tried to sub in some players to bring in some energy and change the shape up a little bit, but we hardly created any chances. Tonight we lacked quality in the final third of the field.”  States SJ Earthquakes coach, Mikael Stahre.

The Earthquakes, who have also been shut out in each of their last three contests, were competitive most (2/3) of the match, until Seattle broke the scoreless tie.

The lone goal was kicked in by Sounders’ newcomer, and Peruvian sensation, Designated player and birthday boy, Raul Ruidiaz (62’), in only his second game with the football club.

Ruidiaz, 28, also played in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, for his home nation of Peru and in North America for Morelia in Mexico.

San Jose had a few close calls for goals, and even had more attempts, but nothing got past the opposing goal keeper.

The goal futility and lack of wins is putting things into a desperate perspective, according to team captain and forward, Chris Wondolowski:

“To be honest right now, we’re playing for jobs.  We have two wins right now; we’ll be lucky if any of us is around next year.  If that’s not motivation, I don’t know what is.”

The Earthquakes are next in action, Saturday Night, April 28, at Avaya Stadium versus Real Salt Lake, while the Sounders will host NYC FC Sunday Afternoon (4/29).

SJ Earthquakes and LA Galaxy tie in California Classic

STANFORD, Calf. – The San Jose Earthquakes (2-9-6) continued their winless streak (8) after a 3-3 tie with the downstate rival, Los Angeles Galaxy (6-7-3), in front of 50,743 raucous fans at nearby Stanford Stadium, Saturday Night.

“The atmosphere in the stands was absolutely fantastic. We wanted to give something back to our fantastic fans and reward them with three points but we were just missing one goal.”  San Jose Coach Mikael Stahre remarked about home crowd.”

The Swedish Superstar forward, Zlatin Ibrahimovic, did not disappoint the Bay Area faithful or his LA followers, as he scored his first goal within the first minute of the match, and the second at the 25’ mark.

Not to be out shown in front of the alternate locale home crowd, Earthquakes’ forward, Chris Wondolowski, also kicked in two goals himself.  The first was on a penalty kick, which was blocked at first, but he converted on the rebound (15’).  His second tally also came on a penalty kick (69’), however, this particular one tied the score at 3-3, which lasted until the final whistle at 90+ minutes.

“He’s an excellent penalty-taker. He does it in training all the time. He’s the penalty-taker of this team, so there’s no question who should take it. Wondo’s always in the box and always on the move, also after his penalty. It was a bouncy rebound and he stayed calm. With the second one, you saw how badly he wanted it. He put it away with a lot of power.”   SJ Forward Danny Hoesen commented about teammate Chris Wondolowski’s scoring prowess.

Of course these two weren’t the only players on the pitch; however, multiple goals from each team’s star footballer were well received by the individuals in the seats.

Galaxy Midfielder, Romain Alessandrini’s free kick eluded the goalkeeper at 20’ for a 2-1 lead.  Vako Qazaishvili, ‘Quakes’ midfielder, brought his team within one (3-2) shortly (39’) before halftime.

With these two teams earning draws at the midway point of the MLS season, it doesn’t help much with their Western Conference positions or rankings.

San Jose travels to the Northwest to take on the Portland Timbers, on July 7.  Los Angeles will host D.C. United on the 4^th of July.

Earthquakes and Revolution Can’t Find Resolute Winner; Settle For Tie.

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes (2-9-4) held the visiting New England Revolution (6-4-6) to a stalemate, 2-2, while continuing their winless streak at six consecutive matches, Wednesday Night at Avaya Stadium.

San Jose Earthquakes Head Coach Mikael Stahre talks about team’s effort:

“I am really proud of the players’ energy today. We came out well again, we scored the first goal. Then, from my perspective, conceded two really easy goals from a transition from a set piece. We can’t concede goals like this. It is absolutely crazy from my perspective. I must say that in the second half we came out like the second half against LAFC. We created lots of chances. We must also be frank and admit that they also created some chances at the end of the game. I think we were better than the opponent, but it is still just a tie. It is a step in the right direction, I think.”

The Earthquakes got off to an encouraging start–coming off their heartbreaking 4-3 loss to Los Angeles Football Club, last Saturday–with forward, Danny Hoesen placing his first of two goals in the back of the net within the first 20 minutes (17’) of the contest.

The Revolution responded with two straight goals before the halftime horn, 2-1, on the feet of forward and captain, Diego Fagundez (31’) and midfielder, Christian Penilla (43’).  The East Coast guest garnered momentum after 45+ minutes of play.

The second stanza swung back to the home team, as Hoesen tallied his other scoring conversion on a “header,” (51’) from a corner cross assist by teammate and defenseman, Nick Lima.

“It’s tough. We’re in a tough situation. The confidence is not where we want it to be, but we’ll keep working hard and every positive thing, we have to take home and put in our hats and keep going. I don’t believe it will keep going like this the whole season. We have to stick together and be positive.”   

Danny Hoesen explaining match and six-game stretch.

Neither team was able to beat the opposing goalies for the go-ahead score; after 94’+ minutes both squads added ties to their respective records.

The Earthquakes will next be in action on June 23, 2018, against Real Salt Lake, in Utah.  A week later they will host the LA Galaxy at Stanford Stadium.

The Revolution will not play again until June 30, welcoming D.C. United.

As the World Cup begins play in Russia, the MLS will have a break in action to accommodate some of the players participating in the quadrennial extravaganza.

 

The San Jose Sharks Swarmed and Attacked the Chicago Blackhawks, 7-2, in the Silicon Valley!

SAN JOSE, Calf. – The San Jose Sharks (35-21-9) devoured the Chicago Blackhawks 7-2 inside the “Shark Tank” (SAP Center), Thursday Night (3/1) in the capital city of the Silicon Valley.

Although the Blackhawks netted the opening and last goals, the Sharks were in total control, lighting the lamp seven consecutive times in between those aforementioned two scores.

San Jose center,  Joe Pavelski led the home team with two goals (10:22 – P1 & 12:14 – P2), while center, Logan Couture (14:14 – P1), rightwing, Kevin Lebanc (2:13 – P2), rightwing, Timo Meier (5:21 – P2), defenseman, Marc-Edouard Vlasic (19:58 – P2), and rightwing, Barclay Goodrow (2:32 – P3) all added to the seven straight ”biscuits in the bucket” onslaught.

“Pucks found their way in, whether it was off their D, or guys made plays.”  Pavelski explains the multitude of scoring.  “It’s not going to be like that every night, but it’s good to see guys do it the right way a lot of nights step up and get rewarded.  Everyone likes to score a goal; it’s good a lot of guys got involved tonight.”

Chicago’s two bookend goals were tallied by center, Artem Anisimov (2:12 – P1) and center, Nick Schmaltz (19:27 – P3).

Despite the pair of goals by his team, Blackhawks coach Joel Quinneville was less than happy, and said, “I can’t say anybody had a great night, so you can’t talk about one guy.  We gave up too many high quality shots off the rush.”

 

The Blackhawks (28-29-8) did respond to the loss two days later (Sat. 3/3), downstate in Los Angeles, with a 5-3 win over the Kings.  They will next play in nearby Anaheim against the Ducks on Sunday.

The Sharks will host the Columbus Blue Jackets (32-28-5), also on Sunday, March 4.