SAN JOSE, Calif. – San Jose Earthquakes forward Cristian Espinoza has been named to Major League Soccer’s Team of the Matchday for Matchday 8. In a back-and-forth affair against Austin FC last Saturday, the Argentine star recorded two assists in a narrow 4-3 defeat.
Espinoza helped open the scoring for San Jose when his cross was headed home by Paul Marie in the 20th minute. With the Quakes trailing 3-2 in the 74th minute, Espinoza found fellow winger Amahl Pellegrino, who coolly slotted the ball in the back of the net to tie the game. The assists were the Argentine’s third and fourth of the campaign.
The MLS Team of the Matchday selection is Espinoza’s second of the season and 18th in his MLS career since joining the club in January 2019.
MLS TEAM OF THE MATCHDAY (MATCHDAY 8)
Forwards: Dante Vanzeir (RBNY), Willy Agada (SKC), Raúl Ruidíaz (SEA)
Midfielders: Timothy Tillman (LAFC), Sebastián Driussi (ATX), Xherdan Shaqiri (CHI), Alessandro Schöpf (VAN)
Defenders: David Ruiz (MIA), Ranko Veselinović (VAN), Alex Roldan (SEA)
Goalkeeper: Maarten Paes (DAL)
Coach: Sandro Schwarz (RBNY)
Bench: Yohei Takaoka (VAN), Sean Nealis (RBNY), Aidan Morris (CLB), Dániel Gazdag (PHI), Albert Rusnák (SEA), Carles Gil (NE), Cristian Espinoza (SJ), Lionel Messi (MIA), Felipe Mora (POR)
