SAN JOSE, Calif. — The arrival of Matias Almeyda to the San Jose Earthquakes heralded a new era for soccer by the Bay, and the Argentinean coach delivered big-time in his first year in charge.
Coming off the worst season in franchise history and employing many of the same players that toiled through that year, the Quakes made a tremendous turnaround under Almeyda’s leadership, more than doubling their point total from 2018 and missing out of qualifying for the MLS Cup playoffs on the last day of the season.
From the beginning of the 2019 preseason, Almeyda instilled in the squad a style of play that quickly became described as a man-marking system.