HOUSTON — The San Jose Earthquakes defeated Houston Dynamo FC 2-1 on Saturday at Shell Energy Stadium in Major League Soccer regular-season play in front of 17,359 fans to climb back into the Western Conference top eight with six games left to play.
The Earthquakes drew first blood in the 28th minute when Daniel Munie played DeJuan Jones on the right wing. Jones’ low cross from the end line into the box was then swept into the net by Cristian “Chicho” Arango after a streaking Preston Judd’s “dummy” move momentarily froze the Houston back line as the ball rolled by. Three minutes later, the hosts had a chance to equalize but Junior Urso’s point-blank attempt was parried away by Quakes goalkeeper Daniel. Moments later, San Jose had a golden opportunity to double the advantage off a corner kick, but Mark-Anthony Kaye’s initial attempt bounced off the crossbar and Arango’s subsequent header in front of the goal line was blocked by Dynamo goalkeeper Jonathan Bond. In the third minute of stoppage time, Houston’s Ezequiel Ponce headed home a Griffin Dorsey cross from the right wing, but Ponce was ruled offside and the first 45 minutes ended with San Jose ahead 1-0.
In the second half, San Jose continued to push forward and were rewarded in minute 64, when Cristian Espinoza’s outswinger of a corner kick found Daniel Munie, who headed it toward the edge of the box. Ian Harkes took it off the bounce and uncorked a screamer that Judd redirected past Bond to make it 2-0 for the visitors. However, Houston would cut the lead in half in the 72nd minute when a Jack McGlynn corner kick was headed by Antonio Carlos past Daniel to make it 2-1. San Jose would lock in defensively the rest of the way through the final whistle to secure all three points.
With the victory, San Jose snapped an eight-game winless streak at Houston dating back to 2015 and remains firmly entrenched in the MLS Audi Cup Playoff hunt, moving up to eighth in the current Western Conference standings with just six matches remaining.
The Black and Blue now travel to Austin, Texas, next Saturday, Aug. 30, when they face Austin FC, currently even on points with the Quakes and sitting in the ninth and final playoff spot. Kickoff from Q2 Stadium will take place at 5:30 p.m. PT and will be broadcast globally via MLS Season Pass on Apple TV (English/Spanish), as well as via local radio on KNBR 1050 AM (English) and KZSF 1370 AM La Kaliente (Spanish) .
GAME NOTES
The Quakes move up to eighth in the MLS Western Conference standings with 35 points (9-11-8). Houston Dynamo FC are 12th in the West with 29 points (7-12-8).
The Earthquakes are now 11-19-5 (46 GF, 57 GA) against Houston Dynamo FC all-time in MLS regular-season play with a 3-13-1 (19 GF, 37 GA) record on the road.
Tonight’s result snaps a four-game winless streak against the Dynamo dating back to April 1, 2023 (2-1 in San Jose thanks to a Cristian Espinoza brace), and is the Quakes’ first win in Houston since May 5, 2015. That night, Adam Jahn’s 54th-minute goal was the margin in a 1-0 triumph.
Bruce Arena won his 271st career regular-season game, extending his record among MLS head coaches. The late great Sigi Schmid is second with 240.
Vítor Costa was originally scheduled to start at left wing back but was injured in warmups and ruled out altogether. He was replaced in the lineup by Jamar Ricketts. Nick Fernandez, who less than 24 hours ago scored the game-winning goal for the Quakes’ MLS NEXT Pro team, The Town FC, against Houston Dynamo 2, stepped into the bench.
Chicho Arango’s 28th-minute goal was his 12th of the season to tie Josef Martínez for the team lead and his 65th career goal in league play.
DeJuan Jones’ 28th-minute assist was his seventh of the season and his 29th career assist in league play.
Daniel Munie’s 28th-minute assist was his second of the season and his second of his career in league play.
Preston Judd’s 64th-minute goal was his sixth of the season and 10th of his career in league play.
Defensive midfielder Ronaldo Vieira, recently signed from Italy’s UC Sampdoria, made his Quakes debut. He came on for Mark-Anthony Kaye to start the second half and played the remainder of the match.
Cristian Espinoza had one key pass tonight, running his league-leading total to 90. He remains tied for fourth in MLS with 12 assists and is second in crosses (61) and corner kicks taken (122).
With his 55th-minute caution, Cristian Espinoza will serve a one-game suspension next Saturday on the road when the Quakes face Austin FC at Q2 Stadium.
Daniel had three saves, upping his total to 86, which is sixth in MLS this season.
The Earthquakes continue to lead the league in expected goals (57.37). With two goals tonight, San Jose is currently fourth in MLS with 51 club goals this season.
Dynamo President Pat Onstad is an Earthquakes legend, having won the 2003 MLS Cup (and MLS Goalkeeper of the Year award) and the 2005 Supporters’ Shield with San Jose.
Houston Dynamo FC 1 – 2 San Jose Earthquakes
Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025 — Shell Energy Stadium; Houston
Weather: 83°F Mostly Cloudy
Attendance: 17,359
*all stats unofficial
Match Officials:
Referee: Sergii Boiko
AR1: Cory Richardson
AR2: Stephen McGonagle
4th Official: Tori Penso
VAR: Daniel Radford
AVAR: Fabio Tovar
Scoring Summary:
SJ (0-1) – Cristian “Chicho” Arango (DeJuan Jones, Daniel Munie) 28’
SJ (0-2) – Preston Judd (unassisted) 64’
HOU (1-2) – Antonio Carlos (Jack McGlynn) 72’
Misconduct Summary:
HOU – Jack McGlynn (caution) 21’
SJ – Mark-Anthony Kaye (caution) 30’
HOU – Ezequiel Ponce (caution) 35’
SJ – Cristian Espinoza (caution) 55’
SJ – Reid Roberts (caution) 90+3’
HOUSTON DYNAMO FC: Jonathan Bond (GK); Antonio Carlos, Pablo Ortiz (Ethan Bartlow 13’), Griffin Dorsey (Toyosi Olusanya 82’), Felipe Andrade; Artur (C), Ondrej Lingr (Amine Bassi 82’), Jack McGlynn, Sebastian Kowalczyk (Lawrence Ennali 58’), Junior Urso (Duane Holmes 58’); Ezequiel Ponce.
Substitutes not used: Jimmy Maurer (GK), Femi Awodesu, Franco Escobar, Daniel Steres.
POSS.: 53.2%; SHOTS: 10; SOG: 4; CORNERS: 8; OFFSIDES: 2; SAVES: 2; FOULS: 12; xG: 0.8
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES: Daniel (GK); Reid Roberts, Dave Romney, Daniel Munie; Jamar Ricketts (Bruno Wilson 85‘), Mark-Anthony Kaye (Ronaldo Vieira 46’), Ian Harkes, DeJuan Jones; Chicho Arango (Josef Martínez 79’), Cristian Espinoza (Noel Buck 79’), Preston Judd (Ousseni Bouda 65’).
Substitutes not used: Earl Edwards Jr. (GK), Nick Fernandez, Max Floriani, Beau Leroux.
POSS.: 46.8%; SHOTS: 11; SOG: 4; CORNERS: 6; OFFSIDES: 2; SAVES: 3; FOULS: 8; xG: 1.6
EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH BRUCE ARENA
On tonight’s performance overall:
“An important win for us tonight. You know, last week we really blew a game, and we’ve done that on at least half a dozen occasions this year, so tonight if anything we learned to win ugly. That was important to walk off the field with three points. I’m disappointed that we conceded a goal. Unnecessary and those are the kind of mistakes we continue to make. But hopefully we continue to grow from this and get our team ready next week to play in Austin.”
On Chicho Arango’s early goal setting the tone on the road:
“Very important because I think the first half was difficult, and to get that goal in the first half was critically important. And then, the second goal was great. Then obviously, generally when you’re on the road, you face a lot of pressure in the closing minutes, and unfortunately, we gave up a goal which I think was a mistake. We had to battle to the end to try to walk off the field with three points, and we accomplished that, which has been a rare occasion for us this year. So overall, we have to walk away pleased, but at the same time, we realize we can do better than we did tonight.”
On playing smarter tonight to close out the win compared to last week’s late defensive collapse:
“A little bit smart at the end. We were fatigued, as was their team I think with the heat and humidity. But a little bit smart. At least we had good numbers behind the ball and trying to close out the game. We did that. It was far from perfect, but I think they learned a little something from last week.”
On Preston Judd’s performance at striker:
“I think he laid off that ball for [Ian] Harkes’ goal. The role he's played for the most part is coming as a reserve, but he’s continuing to earn more time. I think it’s important we have a number of options at that position and Preston gives us that.”
On newly signed defensive midfielder Ronaldo Vieira making his Quakes debut:
“He’s an experienced player. He's played a number of games in England and Italy, and this isn’t his first rodeo, as they say. He’s an experienced player. You saw that tonight. He gave us some calmness and some organization in the midfield, so that was a real plus, and it was good to have him.”
EARTHQUAKES DEFENDER DANIEL MUNIE
On being involved in both goals, especially combining on the first one with DeJuan Jones and Preston Judd to set up Chicho Arango:
“It’s always a good feeling whenever I can help my team and get on the scoresheet, so we knew how they were going to come out and the way we wanted to attack the wide spaces. D.J. did a good job getting in line and serving a good ball, and I think Preston made a hard run on the first post. Both of them have just been good team goals, and I think this is something we’re going to keep trying to build off.”
On whether this might be the game that turns things around toward a playoff run:
“We hope so. We know Houston was right behind us, so this was going to be an important game for us, and we got another big game against Austin, another team that’s in our way. I think it’s huge for us considering last week we gave up three points at home, which we shouldn’t do. So coming in here and responding back shows the resiliency of this group, and hopefully we can keep pushing forward and push for the playoffs.”
On closing out the win after last week’s tough defeat at home:
“Yeah, we definitely wanted to emphasize how we play with late leads even with closing the half, the last five minutes, or the last 15 minutes. We found a way to win ugly and that was important for us, and I think this was an important win, just to win a game like this. Being able to win in different ways. I’m really happy with our performance tonight and excited to take on Austin next week.”
On the addition of Ronaldo “Rony” Vieira:
“He’s been great for us in training. As you saw in the game today, he just came in and had an immediate presence. I love what I’m seeing from him, and I think it’s something we can just keep building from. I’m happy to have him with his playoff run.”
“You saw tonight what he’s able to provide for us. He's a ball-winner. He's going to be able to break lines and he’s able to beat guys off the dribble, so I think he’s going to be really huge for us going forward.”
On growing into his role defensively:
“I’m just going to go out there and do whatever the team needs me to do, whether it’s playing central, playing on the right, or wherever. I’ll do whatever it takes to help this team win.”
