Just in Kick of Time for MLS

Major League Soccer, all of a day old, already has its first highlight.

It came in the 87th minute of Saturday’s inaugural game between the San Jose Clash and Washington D.C. United, and it arrived not a moment too soon.

A superbly scored goal by San Jose forward Eric Wynalda sent the crowd of 31,683 into celebration, giving the Clash a 1-0 victory and saving MLS from potential disaster.

As several officials of the new league were quick to point out, a 0-0 tie and resulting shootout would have had columnists from coast to coast bemoaning the return of a sport that has been criticized all too often for its lack of scoring.

“I don’t think anyone in the world would have believed, if we had told them it was a 0-0 draw, that it was an exciting game and that it was a great weekend,” said Sunil Gulati, deputy commissioner of MLS. “What they would have written was that it was 0-0 on July 17, 1994, [in the World Cup final between Brazil and Italy at the Rose Bowl] and 0-0 again today and nothing has changed.”

The truth is that Saturday’s afternoon festivities had all the ambience of the World Cup two summers ago, with the added bonus that this time the games will not pack up and leave town after a month.

MLS got off to the best possible start--perfect weather, the largest crowd ever to see a sporting event in San Jose and a victory by the home team that was celebrated as if the Clash had just won the championship.

But it might have easily turned sour, but for Wynalda.

Once the pregame celebrations ended, attention turned to the question that has been asked frequently in recent months: Will the quality of play in MLS live up to all the hype?

The answer, after the first 90 minutes, is yes and no.

The skill players the league has signed made an immediately favorable impression. Nigeria’s Michael Emenalo and Ben Iroha, Chile’s Victor Mella and Guatemala’s Jorge Rodas stood out for San Jose.

Washington’s frontline of Bolivians Marco Etcheverry and Juan Suarez and El Salvador’s Raul Diaz Arce, on the other hand, had limited impact, failing to click with the midfielders and defenders behind them.

There was also ample evidence that MLS has signed several players who do not belong at this level. Too many late tackles, too many crude fouls and sloppy passing kept the game from rising to any great height.

But despite the lack of goals, there was drama and tension, and most important, enough entertaining soccer played to probably bring the crowds back. At least, that’s what MLS is counting on.

Fans streaming out of Spartan Stadium clutching the Eric Wynalda poster that had been given to them coming in left with memories of his historic goal.

It was Iroha who set it up, easily eluding a late tackle attempt by D.C. United’s Thor Lee, then passing to Wynalda. The U.S. national team’s all-time leading goal-scorer beat his U.S. teammate Jeff Agoos, then got off a shot into the far corner of the net past diving Washington goalkeeper Jeff Causey.

“Thank God for Eric Wynalda,” Gulati said, a feeling that was echoed by San Jose Coach Laurie Calloway, who, along with his assistants, was dancing up and down like a man possessed when the final whistle sounded less than three minutes later.

“Well, you know, Waldo [Wynalda] is Waldo, isn’t he?” Calloway said. “He gets sort of frustrated on a number of occasions. He was a little disturbed at halftime, which is not unusual, that he wasn’t getting enough of the ball. I told him he had to be patient and that things would come.

“He’s too good a player to hold down for 90 minutes. They started pushing forward a little bit, he got that couple of [extra] yards that he needs and what a goal. He bent it in past the keeper’s left hand.

“Eric Wynalda’s Eric Wynalda. he’s won so many games like that for the teams he’s played for.”

And the first MLS game is in the record books. Next weekend, the rest of the league begins play, including the Los Angeles Galaxy at the Rose Bowl. It could do worse than copy San Jose’s lead.

“I don’t think we could have written a script with a better ending,” said MLS Chairman Alan Rothenberg. “To end up with a dramatic goal by the leading goal-scorer in American soccer history before a home crowd--what else could you ask for?

“I wouldn’t have dared to write a script that had that kind of a corny ending. It’s a great start.”