Bruce Arena remembers greatest Cali Clasico matches as he readies for first home Clasico with Earthquakes

SAN JOSE Bruce Arena is more familiar with the California Clasico than just about anyone The longtime soccer coach now in charge of the San Jose Earthquakes helmed the LA Galaxy for nine years and coached in double-digit matchups against the Earthquakes On Saturday night he ll return to Stanford Stadium a place where he has coached a multitude of a storied Clasico match as a Quakes adversary Arena s majority notable battles with San Jose include a - draw in June when Galaxy field player Mike Magee took over in goal after LA keeper John Saunders was given a red card Magee a forward had never played goalie at any level but stopped three shots to secure the clean sheet That s the one that I ll invariably remember Arena notified the Bay Area News Group San Jose Earthquakes' Jason Hernandez dribbles the ball against Los Angeles Galaxy's Mike Magee in the second half of the second leg of the Western Conference Semifinal at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara Calif on Wednesday Nov Nhat V Meyer Staff It was a memorable matchup to be sure Saunders earned the sendoff after elbowing San Jose s Steven Lenhart in the head and someone had to step up in goal for the Galaxy Magee happened to be in the right place at the right time I think I was just the closest guy to him after it happened Magee mentioned of Arena after the contest Bruce was having choice words with the ref and I was just standing next to him It conclusively caught my attention that someone had to play goalkeeper I looked at him and requested Bruce who is going to play goalie I can t even say his words at the moment but then I announced Alright I ll go in PALO ALTO CA - JUNE David Beckham of the Los Angeles Galaxy battles for control of the ball with Justin Morrow of the San Jose Earthquakes in the first half of their MLS soccer challenge at Stanford Stadium on June in Palo Alto California Photo by Thearon W Henderson Getty Images In the Earthquakes staged a thrilling comeback from down - to win - in a event where Galaxy forward David Beckham got into an altercation with Quakes mascot Quakesadus Mascotacus during second-half stoppage time Q as he is better known confronted Beckham on the field with a sign reading SPORTSCENTER IS NEXT The match aired on ESPN and the framework s flagship sportscast was due to air after the event s conclusion It wasn t at Stanford Stadium but the teams also contested a two-leg playoff series in that also ranks among Arena s standout memories from his history in the Clasico In that semifinal pairing the Earthquakes took the first tournament - in Carson but the Galaxy avenged their home defeat with a - win at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara and advanced to the MLS Cup which they won - over the Houston Dynamo San Jose Earthquakes Chris Wondolowski reacts to call against Los Angeles Galaxy in the first half of the second leg of MLS Western Conference Semifinals match at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara Calif on Wednesday Nov Josie Lepe Staff Nowadays Arena is on the San Jose side of things having joined the Earthquakes in November as coach and sporting director He s led San Jose to a resurgent season so far Last season the Quakes finished dead last in MLS with points in matches nine behind the second-worst crew Chicago This year San Jose already has points in matches played and is in playoff position currently the No unit in the Western Conference The Galaxy meanwhile have plunged from capturing an MLS Cup last season to the league s worst gang this year They have one win five draws and losses Arena has already faced the Galaxy once as Quakes coach beating them - in Carson in May But this will be his first taste of the rivalry on this side of the state and he s looking forward to seeing what Quakes fans bring to the table on Saturday San Jose Earthquakes' Simon Dawkins controls the ball against Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham in the second half of the second leg of the Western Conference Semifinal at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara Calif on Wednesday Nov Nhat V Meyer Staff It s a nice event at Stanford Arena revealed It s reliably a good crowd and obviously the Galaxy are unfailingly a draw on the road I personally have a lot of good memories of the competitions against the Earthquakes so it ll be an enjoyable day The Clasico has consistently been a showcase event for the Earthquakes one where they can reliably draw well over the maximum of PayPal Park Thus Stanford Stadium which in recent times was used as a softball field while Stanford renovated its diamond complex will get another chance to host a specialty event I don t know how this domain responds Arena admitted I m really still new here so I don t have a great feel for all of that But I imagine from what I recall in the past every time we played at Stanford we had close to people at the competition so hopefully we get that same kind of turnout this time around The rivalry between two teams representing different sides of California is one of MLS longest-running and largest part notable and has grown up with the league to become one of the featured games on the Bay Area sports calendar Twenty-nine years after MLS started in both clubs have survived ups and downs San Jose Earthquakes' Marvin Chavez reacts to a missed goal attempt by San Jose Earthquakes' Ike Opara late in the second half against the Los Angeles Galaxy for the second leg of the Western Conference Semifinal at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara Calif on Wednesday Nov Nhat V Meyer Staff The Earthquakes an MLS charter franchise that began as the San Jose Clash in relocated to Houston and became the Dynamo in Another version of the Earthquakes was restarted under new ownership in Since then the rivalry between San Jose and the Galaxy has picked back up and has once again been a beacon of MLS s growing impact on the West Coast I don t know how much it contributes to MLS but certainly it does for the clubs Arena declared In the years I was with the Galaxy this was inevitably a huge tournament for our fan base And I know when I was here the fans got on me pretty good especially at Santa Clara So I know both fan bases take it very seriously and that ll make for a fun surroundings I think we ll have a great day on Saturday Looking beyond the Clasico Arena expressed excitement about the Earthquakes future San Jose broadcasted last Wednesday that owner John Fisher would start a process to sell a controlling interest in the club eventually paving the way for new ownership to take over the Quakes Earthquakes and Oakland A's owner John Fisher left chats with Quakes' star Chris Wondolowski at Earthquakes Stadium on Wednesday Jan after the club informed a new jersey sponsorship deal Fisher is taking a more visible role with the club after years of being an enigmatic owner San Jose is on the rise this year and depending how things fall with the ownership transition the Quakes could be back on a path toward the success they had in winning MLS Cups in and All the original clubs have played a big role in the league Arena revealed In there were teams and in the present day there s and there s eventually going to be from what I understand And this club in particular had to go through specific hard times It s unfailingly been a good field for the league and for a large number of years the Earthquakes were a very competitive band in the league and that s what I m trying to do now The backing that the professional teams have received in this marketplace has been central The future for this club and with new ownership coming in will be tremendous and there s so much possible here and I look forward to seeing the development It s a nice diverse marketplace So there s everything you need here to be flourishing And they like soccer The home crowds have been very good San Jose Earthquakes Bruce Arena and San Jose Earthquakes' Cristian Espinoza look on duirng the second half of an MLS soccer match against the Inter Miami at PayPal Park in San Jose Calif on Wednesday May Ray Chavez Bay Area News Group