Minnesota United wins season finale but falls short of MLS playoff spot

Minnesota United’s late-season bid at an unlikely MLS playoff spot came up just short. Nectarios Triantis scored two goals late in the second half as Minnesota United beat the San Jose Earthquakes 3-1 on Saturday at Allianz Field to close the season with their third straight victory. “The guys leave the stadium in a really good place,” Cameron Knowles said after completing his first season as Loons coach. “It’s a shame that it’s too little too late, and I think when you look at missing out on the playoffs by a result, there’s probably 10 different games where we can find it, and it’s just sort of understanding and having an appreciation for all of those games along the way that could have made a difference.” Despite the loss, San Jose (14-10-10) clinched a top-four spot in the MLS Cup playoffs. Advertisement Minnesota (11-12-11) entered needing a win and some help to secure a wild card spot. They almost got it. They needed Colorado to lose, which it did to Dallas, but they also needed Seattle not to win, and the Sounders held on to beat LAFC 2-1 to keep the Loons out of the playoffs. Tomás Chancalay tied it at 1-1 in the 57th minute for Minnesota. Chancalay raced past the defense for a through ball from Joaquín Pereyra and rolled a breakaway shot inside the far post. Minnesota took a 2-1 lead in the 82nd when Marcus Caldeira settled a ball at the back post and poked it to Triantis for a deflected shot that bounced off the post and in. Triantis received a pass near the midfield circle and took four touches to get inside the 18-yard box for a shot through the legs of a defender and under a diving Angus Gunn in stoppage time.