by Brian Turrel
Sporting Kansas City enters the MLS playoffs on a sour note, giving up a goal late in second half stoppage time to Real Salt Lake and dropping to third in the Western Conference standings.
The loss came with controversy. A penalty area hand ball by Salt Lake defender Justen Glad went unmarked by referee Ted Unkle in the final minute of regulation. Unkle also declined a video review of the incident, to great displeasure from the crowd and the team.
A call would have given Kansas City a penalty kick and the likely chance of closing out the match ahead 1-0.
In his post-game press conference, manager Peter Vermes ripped into the officials and the league. He called the officials’ failure a “travesty,” noting that it affected not just the teams in the match but also knocked the Los Angeles Galaxy out of the playoffs due to Salt Lake’s win.
Vermes, who earlier in the season pledged to refrain from commenting on officials, didn’t hold back in his post-game press conference. He called the decision a “black mark on this league,” and “unprofessional.”
“The fact that we missed that out there, in any game,” said the coach, “let alone the magnitude of this game, is incredibly disappointing to someone who has been in the league since 1996. We have come so far, but we haven’t come far enough. I’m embarrassed to be part of the league when you can’t do that.”
The 1-0 loss is the third consecutive for the team, which will open the playoffs at home against the sixth place Vancouver Whitecaps.
Following the match, goalkeeper Tim Melia hit a positive note, saying that at the start of the season the team would have gladly accepted the chance to open the playoffs at home.
Kansas City controlled most of the possession and had multiple scoring opportunities, especially in the second half. Daniel Salloi found himself one-on-one with goalkeeper David Ochoa in the 49th minute and again in the 62nd, but was denied by the keeper both times.
The Sporting lineup had multiple changes from the squad that played at Austin on Wednesday, due to a lengthy injury list. Frequent scorers Johnny Russell and Gadi Kinda both stayed on the sidelines, and Grayson Barber and Khiry Shelton started the match in their stead. Center back fixture Ilie Sanchez also started the game on the bench.
The date and time for Kansas City’s first-round playoff match against Vancouver at Children’s Mercy Park will be announced later by the league.
