Category: Sporting KC

Sporting KC extended the club’s unbeaten streak to four games with a scoreless draw against Real Salt Lake on Saturday in front of a sold out crowd of more than 20,000 fans at Sporting Park.

The visitors are now winless in five matches (0-2-3) at the stadium and have won only once in their 11 all-time trips (1-5-5) to Kansas City.

The first of three regular season meetings between the Western Conference rivals in 2015 ended in a defensive deadlock as Sporting Kansas City held Real Salt Lake without a shot on goal in the draw.

Real Salt Lake entered as the league’s second-highest scoring team with 1.50 goals per game but failed to put an attempt on target for only the fourth time in their history.

Sporting Kansas City, on the other hand, have now held opponents without a shot on goal on nine occasions and did so on Saturday for the seventh such time since 2011.

Since meeting in MLS Cup 2013, Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake have now played back-to-back 0-0 affairs at Sporting Park in 2014 and 2015.

The two teams have allowed the fewest goals in Major League Soccer since 2011 (SKC 144, RSL 155) and are the only clubs to record at least 10 shutouts in each of the last three seasons.

The game’s only shot on goal came from Sporting Kansas City outside back Jalil Anibaba in the sixth minute.

Ike Opara did well to split two Real Salt Lake defenders with a pass into the penalty area, allowing Anibaba to turn with his first touch and strike his shot on the second touch. Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando was up to the task however, reaching low to his right to palm away the effort en route to his MLS-record 118th clean sheet.

Sporting Kansas City nearly found the breakthrough goal in the opening moments of the second half.

Krisztian Nemeth’s cross was inches beyond the reach of Dom Dwyer and Jacob Peterson, but the Hungarian international was then on the receiving end of Benny Feilhaber’s whipped-in delivery seconds later. Nemeth re-directed the service toward net only to see his shot deflect off Jamison Olave and carom into the near post.

Feilhaber, who leads MLS with four assists, again played the part of provider in the 55th minute. His first-time service was placed perfectly into the path of Dwyer for a sliding finish only to see assistant referee Kyle Atkins raise his flag upon eying Dwyer a step ahead of Olave.

Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake remain level in third place in the Western Conference with nine points following Saturday’s result. Real Salt Lake – one of two remaining unbeaten teams – will next play host to league leaders Vancouver Whitecaps FC, while Sporting KC will travel to reigning MLS Cup champions LA Galaxy for a 9:30 p.m. kickoff on Saturday at StubHub Center.
– Story from Sporting KC

Sporting Kansas City will be the host for Real Salt Lake in a rematch of the 2013 MLS Cup final on Saturday at Sporting Park.

The Western Conference foes will kick off at 7:30 p.m. with local coverage available on KMCI-TV 38 the Spot beginning at 7 p.m. Additional coverage will be available on SKCTV across the Midwest and via radio in English (Sports Radio 810 WHB) and Spanish (La Grande 1340 AM).

A limited number of tickets may still be available, including standing room only tickets for $20 each, and may be purchased at Ticketmaster.com or at the Sporting Park box offices on gameday.

The home side is fresh off a come-from-behind victory against the Philadelphia Union last weekend, scoring two stoppage-time goals to secure three points in the club’s 600th match all-time.

Krisztian Nemeth’s 94th-minute game-winner marked the 1,000th goal scored in Kansas City history across all competitions. The victory is the second for Sporting KC in as many matches to move the club into third place in the standings alongside Saturday’s opponent.

Real Salt Lake is undefeated in four games to start the 2015 season and also boast back-to-back victories, most recently securing a 1-0 result against San Jose in the Earthquakes first loss at Avaya Stadium.

However, the visitors are winless in four trips to Sporting Park (0-2-2) with just one goal in 390 minutes of play and Real Salt Lake has just one victory in 10 trips to Kansas City all-time.

Sporting KC and Real Salt Lake are two of five teams to make the MLS Cup Playoffs each of the last four seasons, largely due to conceding the fewest goals of all MLS teams over that span. Moreover, the match-up features the only two teams in the league to have logged at least 10 shutouts in each of the last three seasons.

Real Salt Lake’s veteran duo of Kyle Beckerman (357) and Nick Rimando (373) lead all active MLS players in games played, and were U.S. Men’s National Team teammates with Sporting Kansas City’s Matt Besler and Graham Zusi at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Zusi is listed as questionable on the injury report for Saturday’s contest after suffering a left hamstring strain in Sporting KC’s 1-0 win at Yankee Stadium last month.

Sprint Plaza activities will begin at 5:30 p.m. highlighted by a meet-and-greet with U.S. Women’s National Team players Becky Sauerbrunn and Heather O’Reilly ahead of the FC Kansas City season opener at Sporting Park on Sunday.

Additionally, the first 10,000 fans to enter the stadium on Saturday will receive a pair of Sporting KC spirit sleeves.

Fans are encouraged to donate new or gently used soccer equipment on Saturday to contribute to Sporting KC’s Recycle Your Game initiative. The donations will then be redistributed to youth in need throughout the Kansas City area. Collection bins will be located at stadium entrances and all donors will receive a coupon for 10 percent off Sporting Style purchases.
– Story from Sporting KC

Playing the team’s 600th all-time regular season match, Sporting Kansas City came from behind for a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Union on Sunday with two goals in second-half stoppage time.

Jalil Anibaba pulled the home side level in the 91st minute to set the stage for Krisztian Nemeth’s game-winner – the club’s 1,000th goal in team history across all competitions – in the 94th minute.

The visiting Union took an early lead in the game’s third minute from a corner kick swung in by Sebastien Le Toux. Anibaba nearly cleared the ball – last touched by Jacob Peterson under pressure from Andrew Wenger – off the goal line, however assistant referee Adam Garner immediately signaled for the own goal to be awarded by referee Ismail Elfath.

Sporting Kansas City responded with a goal of its own off a corner kick in the 16th minute. Dom Dwyer headed home Benny Feilhaber’s service at the back post for his first goal of the season after setting the team’s single-season record with 22 goals in 2014.

His 25th career regular season goal – and third in his last four games against Philadelphia – came on a night in which 10,000 fans in the sold-out crowd in Kansas City, Kan., received commemorative Dwyer posters courtesy of adidas.

The momentum from the equalizer was short lived as Philadelphia re-gained their advantage just over three minutes later.

Le Toux’s free kick from the right flank found Fernando Aristeguieta, who powered his header past the outstretched arms of Luis Marin from 10 yards out for his team-leading third goal of the year.

The two sides continued to exchange chances in an entertaining back-and-forth affair nationally televised. Dwyer’s header from a Matt Besler throw-in forced a fingertip save by Rais Mbolhi in the 28th minute. On the opposite end, Luis Marin made a pair of saves on Wenger in the 37th and 63rd minutes.

With regulation nearing an end, the Chilean goalkeeper kept Sporting KC in contention with important saves in back-to-back minutes.

He held a deflected attempt from Aristeguieta in the 87th minute and made his best save of the night a minute later to push Le Toux’s effort onto the post in a one-on-one situation. The rebound fell to Michael Lahoud, whose first-time shot carried well over the bar with a vacated net in front of him.

Set pieces would once again prove pivotal as six minutes of second half stoppage time commenced with the score still 2-1 in Philadelphia’s favor. Aristeguieta cleared away Feilhaber’s free kick from the left sideline but Roger Espinoza was first to the loose ball and lofted an entry pass back into the penalty area.

Anibaba won the aerial and snapped his header downward inside the post for his fifth career MLS goal and first since October 2013.

The late-game heroics culminated in a milestone moment when Feilhaber’s corner kick – flicked on by Besler – was pushed over the line by Nemeth. A second-half substitute, the newcomer’s first MLS goal goes into the record books as the team’s historic 1,000th goal across all competitions.

Sunday’s match was Sporting Kansas City’s first to feature two goals in second half stoppage time since 2007 and moves the team into a tie with Real Salt Lake for third place in the Western Conference. The two teams will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan., in a rematch of MLS Cup 2013.

A limited number of tickets, including standing room only tickets, are available online at Ticketmaster.com. The first 10,000 fans will receive Sporting KC spirit sleeves,
– Story from Sporting KC