Chris Wondolowski scores twice, Earthquakes top Real Salt Lake 2-0
Chris Wondolowski scored twice and the Earthquakes beat visiting Real Salt Lake 2-0 on Wednesday night.
San Jose (7-8-6) moved into seventh place in the Western Conference, one point behind LAFC and FC Dallas. Real Salt Lake (5-8-7) has been shut out in back-to-back games and remains two points back of eighth-place Vancouver with two games remaining in the regular season.
Cristian Espinoza fired a shot that hit the left post and Wondolowski tapped in the rebound from close range in the 16th minute. The two nearly connected again, but goalkeeper Andrew Putna blocked Wondolowski’s right-footed shot in the 53rd.
Shea Salinas later crossed to Wondolowski, who tapped in his sixth goal of the season in the 74th minute. Wondolowski has 165 career goals and is the MLS all-time scoring leader.
• In MLS highlights, Jaroslaw Niezgoda scored two first-half goals and the host Portland Timbers clinched a spot in the playoffs with a 5-2 victory over the LA Galaxy. ... Cory Burke scored on a header in the 65th minute and the host Philadelphia Union beat the Chicago Fire 2-1 to break a tie with Toronto FC for the MLS lead. ... Roger Espinoza scored and Sporting Kansas City clinched a playoff berth with a 1-0 victory over host FC Cincinnati. ... Aaron Long scored in the 89th minute to lift the host New York Red Bulls past New England 1-0. Both teams clinched playoff spots when FC Dallas beat visiting Inter Miami 2-1.
• In Champions League, Marcus Rashford came off the bench to score an 18-minute hat trick as Manchester United thrashed visiting Leipzig 5-0 for a second win to open the group stage.
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