San Jose Earthquakes have moved into second place in the Western Conference courtesy of a 2-1 victory over the Eastern Conference's bottom club Chicago Fire.
The visitors almost forced a breakthrough in the fourth minute when Harrison Shipp's strike brought an early save out of David Bingham.
However, San Jose broke up the other end and took the lead when Mattias Perez Garcia's pinpoint corner allowed Abdul-Fatai Alashe to head home for the hosts.
Chicago then fell further behind on 21 minutes when they failed to clear another Garcia cross before Ty Harden pounced on the loose ball to score San Jose's second.
The Fire pulled a goal back before the half-hour mark, however, thanks to Shipp's well-placed effort.
Midway through the second half, San Jose almost managed to restore their two-goal advantage when yet another tantalising ball into the box from Garcia allowed Chris Wondolowski the chance to score, but his strike was deflected away from danger.
However, the home side were able to hold on for a victory that moves them three points behind Dallas in the Western Conference rankings.
The result also leaves Chicago without a point from their first three games this season.
Chris O'Keefe
