Reid Roberts scored in the eighth minute of second-half stoppage time Saturday and the host San Jose Earthquakes earned a 2-2 draw with 10-man LAFC.
Roberts recorded his third goal of the year by wiring a long left-footed shot past diving goalie Hugo Lloris inside the right post. The shot had an estimated goal expectancy of 2%.
Son Heung-min and Denis Bouanga each scored to give LAFC (11-8-8, 41 points) a two-goal advantage early in the second half. But the expulsion of captain Aaron Long in the 36th minute for a foul just outside the 18-yard box came back to haunt the visitors.
San Jose (12-8-6, 42 points) possessed the ball 63.1% for the match, leading to a 22-4 shots advantage. Lloris made seven saves to keep LAFC in front until the end.
The Earthquakes were aiming for a season sweep after a 4-1 road win in April. Neither squad found much offensive success for the first half-hour before things suddenly made a 180-degree turn.
Heung-min initiated the scoring in the 34th minute with Mark Delgado netting the first assist. Heung-min dribbled to his left and scalded a shot that skidded between goalkeeper Angus Gunn and the left post for his sixth goal of the year.
After Long’s dismissal, San Jose spent the next two minutes generating a whopping four corner kicks but couldn’t find the equalizer. It owned the ball for most of the second half but made one critical mistake that proved costly in the 53rd minute.
A giveaway in the offensive end resulted in a 2-on-1 with Heung-min on the right and Bouanga running down the left side. Heung-min fed Bouanga near the post and he tapped it by Gunn for his team-leading 14th goal of the year.
Preston Judd pulled a goal back for the Earthquakes in the 70th minute. Timo Werner crossed from the right side into the middle and Judd powered a header past Lloris into the right corner for his team-leading 13th goal.
–Field Level Media
