The Seattle Sounders beat the San Jose Earthquakes 3–2 at home in a tense, back-and-forth match that left two things crystal clear — this team is alive in the MLS playoff race, and Danny Musovski is no longer just an option off the bench. With two goals and a major role in the team’s attacking flow, the forward stepped in after Jordan Morris left early with an injury and took over the night at Lumen Field.
The win moved Seattle up to 37 points and into fourth place in the Western Conference, continuing their strong form since returning from the FIFA Club World Cup. San Jose stayed on 29 points in ninth place, still holding a play-in spot, but clearly under growing pressure.
Morris exits, Musovski steps in, and the game flips
The match took a turn early. Just 15 minutes in, Jordan Morris collided with goalkeeper Daniel and had to come off. Musovski came on in what looked like a routine sub, but it turned into the turning point. Seattle was down 1–0 after Judd finished off a low ball from Ricketts. Just two minutes later, Rusnák floated in a perfect cross and Musovski rose up to head it in and tie things up. From that point, he became the go-to man in attack.
With the score locked at 2–2, he delivered again. Cristian Roldan sent in a sharp cross, and Musovski beat his marker at the far post to head home his second goal of the night. Two clear chances, two cold finishes and both when Seattle needed him most.
San Jose pushes, but cracks in crucial moments
The Earthquakes kept it competitive the whole way. They created chances, especially on set pieces from Espinoza, and nearly forced another draw in the closing minutes. Judd and Arango found the net, both from plays that developed down the right side. The second goal came off a rebound that Arango buried on the spot. But San Jose’s biggest issue was their shape after scoring. Defensive gaps right after their equalizers proved costly.
Seattle’s third goal came from that window. De la Vega found space on the left, took his defender one-on-one, cut inside and drilled a low shot across goal into the far corner. San Jose kept pushing. Espinoza hit the crossbar, and Martínez nearly scored with a bicycle kick in stoppage time. But their finishing let them down, and Seattle held on.