If anybody felt off their equilibrium at Avaya Stadium on Saturday Night, they were far from alone. The shock rang through the stadium as the lineup sheet was handed out and for the first time in almost three years, the name Wondolowski was on the written in under “Bench.” It was among several changes that Coach Mikael Stahre made as the Earthquakes shift to a 4-3-3 formation was not enough to keep San Jose from playing to a 2-2 draw against the Houston Dynamo.
“We tried to play a 4-3-3 in this game to add one more player to the midfield and make it easier to posses the ball and control the ball from behind.” said Stahre. “We take it game by game, and it’s really important to analyze the opponent and select a game plan. We have many good players on the roster and all of them are fit, so it’s hard for the coach to select the lineup every week, and that’s good.”
The shift in formation had initially left the Earthquakes disjointed and struggling to connect passes in the final third, but they found a breakthrough in the 26th minute when Magnus Eriksson found the back of the net for the first time at Avaya Stadium to give the home team a 1-0 lead that they would take into halftime.
The second half was not as kind to the Earthquakes as the Dynamo were able to capitalize early with an equalizer from Tomas Martinez in the 48th minute, followed up in the 63rd when Mauro Manotas found the back of the net to give Houston a 2-1 lead.
San Jose Midfielder Jamir Hyka dribbles past a defender in a match against the Houston Dynamo on April 14th, 2018. Photo by Lyndsay Radnedge.
Coach Stahre immediately went to his newly anointed super sub to give some energy off the bench in the 67th minute, but it was the other sub that came on with him that would ultimately save the day for the Earthquakes as Jamir Hyka hit a wonder strike past Chris Seitz to level the score a 2-2. For Hyka, who was logging his first minutes of the 2018 season, it was an opportunity to impress his new coach that he made the most of.
“It’s not easy when you are on the bench all the time, but like a professional you have to keep working and wait for your chance and when the chance is there try your best and hope today was my chance, and I scored a goal and I helped the team.”
San Jose Forward Chris Wondolowski looks on from the bench during a game against the Houston Dynamo on April 14th, 2018 at Avaya Stadium. Photo by Lyndsay Radnedge.
While many would agree that a 4-3-3 formation does not utilize Chris Wondolowski to the best of his abilities, seeing the club legend on the bench to start the game played a major theme in the story line for this game and for the club going forward.
“It was definitely different, it was a whole ‘nother way to prepare for yourself, but its part of the game. I’ve come off the bench a few times with the US National Team so I know how to prepare myself to be ready,” said Wondolowksi. “I love playing, but I love winning and being part of a winning culture. If I play 90 minutes, one minute, zero, as long as we’re lifting a cup at the end of the year, I’m a happy man.”
“It was a really hard decision of course. We talked about it with the coaching staff and we made the decision to play with one striker and add one more midfielder,” said Stahre. “Wondolowski is a fantastic player and fantastic leader and we subbed him in in the second half and we changed the shape.”
The Quakes head out on the road next Saturday as they will make their first visit to Orlando City Stadium for a showdown with Orlando City FC while Houston will welcome defending MLS Cup Champions Toronto FC to BBVA Compass Stadium next Saturday.
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