Entering the month of July atop the Western Conference standings, Sporting Kansas City (9-3-5, 32 points) begins the second half of its 2018 MLS campaign with a visit to rivals Real Salt Lake (7-8-2, 23 points) on Wednesday at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.
The Fourth of July showdown will kick off at 9 p.m., with three hours of live coverage on FOX Sports Kansas City Plus and FOX Sports Midwest Plus beginning at 8:30 p.m.
Sports Radio 810 WHB (English) and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM (Spanish) will carry the game over the radio, while the Sporting KC Uphoria app will provide live updates. The match will also stream live on FOX Sports GO for viewers in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa, as well as on ESPN+ elsewhere across the United States.
Sporting KC is looking to bounce back into the win column after taking a 2-0 loss to the Montreal Impact on Saturday at Stade Saputo.
Manager Peter Vermes’ men have followed each of their previous two defeats this year with victories, topping the Chicago Fire on March 10 and the Colorado Rapids on May 5 to atone for setbacks against New York City FC (March 4) and the New England Revolution (April 28).
Prior to falling in Montreal, Sporting KC had strung together a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
Homegrown forward Daniel Salloi has paced the side offensively with five goals and six assists, both tied for team-highs in MLS play, while goalkeeper Tim Melia has kept clean sheets in seven of his last 13 appearances.
Right back Graham Zusi and holding midfielder Ilie, Sporting KC’s two selections to the 2018 MLS All-Star Game, have played every minute for a side that has conceded just 18 goals in 17 games.
Like Sporting KC, Real Salt Lake will be four days removed from a road defeat.
The Claret and Cobalt stumbled 2-1 at Columbus Crew SC on Saturday, conceding twice in the early stages before playmaking midfielder Albert Rusnak cut into the deficit with his fourth goal of the year.
RSL are 6-0-1 in their last seven regular-season home games, however, and haven’t lost at Rio Tinto Stadium since taking a 5-1 beating at the hands of LAFC on March 10.
Rusnak, who joined the Utah outfit last season, continues to serve as RSL’s chief attacking catalyst.
He ranks fourth in MLS with 49 chances created, while rookie forward Chris Baird has chipped in with four goals of his own.
Elsewhere, 19-year MLS veterans Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman continue to form part of RSL’s spine. The goalkeeper and midfielder rank first and second, respectively, on the league’s all-time appearances chart and remain regular starters under RSL head coach Mike Petke.
Wednesday offers a quick rematch between two teams that met four weeks ago at Rio Tinto Stadium, when Sporting KC emerged 2-0 victors in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Fourth Round on June 6.
Forwards Johnny Russell and Kharlton Belmar did the damage in the second-half, providing one goal and one assist each to propel the visitors into the Round of 16.
RSL owns a 5-4-1 record across the last 10 regular-season meetings dating back to 2014, including a 3-0-2 mark at Rio Tinto Stadium.
Sporting KC has prevailed on three straight occasions outside of regular season play, notably coming out victorious in the 2013 MLS Cup, 2015 Open Cup semifinals.
Fifteen weeks have transpired since Sporting KC vaulted to first place in the Western Conference standings.
That 15-week spell is their second-longest uninterrupted run at the top of the conference in team history.
The 2000 MLS Cup champions spent 21 straight weeks in first place before relinquishing it, then reclaiming top spot in time to capture the club’s only Supporters’ Shield to date.
Both teams will be forced to navigate Wednesday’s fixture with multiple injury absences.
RSL will have eight players sidelined, including long-term absentees Tony Beltran (knee), Demar Phillips (ankle) and Luke Mulholland (back) as well as center back David Horst, who suffered a torn Achilles on June 26 while playing for Real Monarchs of the USL.
Meanwhile, Sporting KC will continue to be without Felipe Gutierrez (hernia), Gianluca Busio (hamstring), Cristian Lobato (knee) and Jimmy Medranda (knee). Defender Amer Didic, who started in the club’s win over RSL last month, is questionable with a hamstring ailment.
Sporting KC last played on Independence Day in 2012, when Vermes’ men left the U.S. and claimed a 3-1 win over Montreal on Canadian soil.
Kansas City played on the Fourth of July in 11 of their first 14 seasons from 1996-2009, but has done so just once since then. The club’s overall record in these games is 3-7-2, with victories coming in 1997, 2002 and 2012.
– Story from Sporting KC
