Angus Gunn will want to forget his introduction to Major League Football in a hurry. The Scotland goalkeeper, entrusted with the gloves for the San Jo...
Angus Gunn will want to forget his introduction to Major League Football in a hurry. The Scotland goalkeeper, entrusted with the gloves for the San Jose Earthquakes returning from the World Cup break, endured an absolute nightmare at home as Orlando City ran riot, handing the hosts a humbling 4. 0 defeat. For a player who has navigated the pressures of Premier League football and international duty, this was a stark reminder that the American top flight demands its own brand of ruthless concentration.From the first whistle, the Earthquakes looked disjointed, as if the hiatus had severed any rhythm they might have built. The defence in front of Gunn was porous, failing to hold any sort of low block or coherent shape. Orlando, to their credit, needed no second invitation. Their transitional play was sharp, direct, and devastatingly effective. They exploited the space behind San Jose's full backs time and again, forcing the backline into uncomfortable positions and inviting pressure onto a goalkeeper still adjusting to his new surroundings.Gunn will look at the tape and feel let down, but he cannot escape responsibility for the scoreline. Four goals conceded at home is a statistic that stains any debut. He faced seven shots on target and picked the ball out of his net more often than he kept it out. Was he unsighted for the first Possibly. Could he have done better for the third Absolutely. In the cauldron of a home crowd already restless after the break, those moments of doubt can fester. A goalkeeper needs a clean sheet to build trust and his was shattered before the hour mark.The worrying part for San Jose is not just the defeat but the manner of it. They did not park the bus or grind out a narrow loss; they were systematically taken apart. Orlando's clinical finishing was a lesson in efficiency. Every time the Earthquakes wobbled, the visitors stuck the knife in. For Gunn, this is a brutal introduction to a league that never allows you to settle. He must now show the character to bounce back, or risk being remembered as the man who conceded four in his first match. Football can be a lonely business when the goals fly in, and right now, the noise in San Jose is deafening.
