The San Jose Earthquakes are out on the road for only the second time this season as the square off with the New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. The Quakes have had back-to-back draws against the Seattle Sounders and Toronto FC, and are looking for that second elusive victory of the season.
This is a rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference Semifinals where San Jose used a 3-1 victory at Red Bull Arena to advance. The Quakes and Red Bulls spilt their regular season meetings last year one a piece. More recently, the Red Bulls are coming off a 1-0 loss by the Philadelphia Union, and will also be ready to pounce on a victory, even though their star striker, Thierry Henry, is likely out for the match with bilateral Achilles tendonosis. As for San Jose, midfielder David Luiz is out with a left knee injury, and Omar Jessah will be in international play with The Gambia.
These teams have faced each other 30 times over the years, with New Tork winning 9 of those matches with 41 goals while the Quakes have won 15 (2 via shootout) and 47 goals. At Red Bull Arena though, New York has the edge with 7 wins and 27 goals compared to San Jose’s 4 and and 15 goals. The return match will be on July 2nd at Stanford University.
Kickoff is set for 4:30 PT this evening, and can be seen on the Direct Kick Channel or through MLS MatchDay Live. For more in depth discussion and analysis of the Earthquakes, head over to SB Nation’s Quake, Rattle, and Goal to get in on the action.