Category: Sporting KC

Sporting Kansas City suffered a 2-0 loss at the New England Revolution on Saturday at Gillette Stadium, conceding twice in second half stoppage time while playing shorthanded.

The defeat is the team’s first by a two-goal margin in MLS play in over a year and the second loss of the season, both coming on the road with goals in stoppage time.

The Revolution saw their best chance of the first half come in the 14th minute as Lee Nguyen’s chip played Jerry Bengtson behind the Sporting Kansas City backline. The Honduran Designated Player brought the ball down with his chest but sent his left-footed shot wide of the right post.

New England striker Teal Bunbury, acquired from Sporting KC in a trade earlier this year, had a pair of opportunities to score against his former club in the opening 45 minutes and both came from nearly the same spot eight yards out from goal. His first, a well-taken shot in the 21st minute, was blocked in the goalmouth by Sporting Kansas City captain Matt Besler and the second was tipped over the crossbar by goalkeeper Eric Kronberg in the 32nd minute in what proved to be the only shot on goal of the half for either side.

Sporting Kansas City’s defense held its opponent without a goal in the first half for the seventh straight MLS match to start the 2014 season and the team’s attack outshot the Revolution 10-5 in the first half, though failed to challenge New England goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth. Sal Zizzo came closest to breaking the deadlock in the 26th minute but fired high  from the right side of the penalty area after receiving a pass from Benny Feilhaber.

Shuttleworth was called into action in the 59th minute, diving low to his left to palm away the attempt from Alex Martinez. The rookie, making his third appearance of the year for Sporting KC, then collected the ensuing corner kick and placed his shot inches wide of the near post.

Sporting Kansas City were reduced to 10 players in the 74th minute with the ejection of centerback Aurelien Collin for his challenge on Diego Fagundez.  Nevertheless, the shorthanded visitors nearly grabbed the lead three minutes later as Chance Myers led the counter and found Dom Dwyer on the right flank. His service into the area fell to Feilhaber, whose shot was off target from close range.

The visitors had done well to hold the Revolution without a shot on goal in the second half until stoppage time struck and the Revolution converted on two separate scoring sequences. The game-winning goal came off a cross from Fagundez, initially touched by Darrius Barnes and then re-directed by Bunbury inside the six-yard box.

Bunbury’s goal, his first in a Revolution uniform and first since August of 2012, snapped Sporting Kansas City’s 282-minute shutout streak and was the first for the Revolution in the regular season series in a span of 591 minutes dating back to 2011. Bunbury now has 22 goals in his MLS career (including postseason).

Two minutes later, New England doubled the lead with a penalty kick converted by Lee Nguyen. Fagundez earned the PK, forcing a save by Kronberg on the breakaway and then heading the rebound into the arm of Oriol Rosell.  Nguyen calmly slotted his shot to Kronberg’s right for his third goal of the season and 12th of his three-year MLS career.

With the loss, Sporting Kansas City slips to second place in the Eastern Conference and sits one point back of the Columbus Crew. The two sides will meet next Sunday at Sporting Park in a nationally televised match-up on NBC Sports. Fans are encouraged to arrive early for the team’s MLS Cup ring presentation ceremony at 2 p.m.

Sporting Kansas City moved atop the Eastern Conference standings with a 4-0 victory over the Montreal Impact on Saturday at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan.

Forward Dom Dwyer scored twice in the win and how has four goals in his past four games as he moves into a tie for third place among MLS scoring leaders.

Aurelien Collin also added a goal, his second of the season and 15th of his Sporting KC career to break a tie with Jose Luis Burciaga, Jr. for the second most goals scored by a defender in club history behind Jimmy Conrad (17).

The four-goal win matches the Impact’s largest margin of defeat in the team’s three-year MLS history and extends Sporting Kansas City’s unbeaten streak to five games in 2014.
The visiting Impact were held to only three shots on the night, all coming in the first half, as Sporting Kansas City lowered its league-leading goals against average to 0.67 per game with the team’s third clean sheet of the 2014 campaign.

The defensive play of the game came from Collin in the 14th minute after Montreal countered down the right flank. Felipe Martins led the two-on-one break and found forward Marco Di Vaio in the middle of the area. The designated player’s first-time shot from 10 yards out was cleared in front of the goal line by Collin and Eric Kronberg recovered in time to save Collen Warner’s foliow-up effort from the top of the box.

Sporting Kansas City responded in the 26th minute. Lawrence Olum, inserted into the lineup in place of the suspended Oriol Rosell, forced a turnover inside midfield and Benny Feilhaber threaded a pass between two Impact defenders to Sal Zizzo. Montreal goalkeeper Troy Perkins was forced off his line to intervene and made a sliding stop to thwart the attack.

Five minutes later, the home side took the 1-0 lead in front of a standing-room only crowd of more than 20,000, the team’s 40th straight MLS sell out at Sporting Park dating back to 2012. Matt Besler’s throw-in from the left sideline was challenged between Olum and Calum Mallace with the ball deflecting off the Impact midfielder and looping over Perkins inside the far post.

It was the first goal scored by Sporting KC in a first half this season, but it was the second half in which Peter Vermes’ side asserted its control on the match. In the 67th minute, Feilhaber intercepted a pass from Patrice Bernier and delivered another well-weighted through ball for Dwyer behind the Impact backline. Perkins was again alert to cut down the angle and blocked the chip with his face before then making a second save in short succession on the rebound.

A throw-in from Besler set up the second goal of the match, as well. The initial header from Collin led to a scramble inside the penalty area before the two-time MLS All-Star let loose a left-footed effort that beat Perkins at the near post for the club’s first goal from outside the penalty area this season.

Less than three minutes later, the lead stretched to 3-0. Graham Zusi’s free kick was chased down by Jacob Peterson in the right corner and sent into the box where Collin left it for Dwyer to hammer home with a sliding finish from six yards out. Peterson, a second-half substitute,  now has a goal or assist in each of his nine professional seasons.

Dwyer would continue his strong start to the season with his second goal of the game in the 86th minute. Zusi delivered a cross to Dwyer, positioned between Maxim Tissot and Karl Ouimette, and the third-year pro directed his header under Perkins for the game’s exclamation point prior to exiting to a standing ovation.

Sporting Kansas City will next travel to take on the New England Revolution (2-3-2, 8 points) at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday live on KMCI and SKCTV.

Sporting Kansas City will play host to the Montreal Impact at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kan.

After a bye last weekend, manager Peter Vermes’ squad (2-1-2) resumes regular season action with a four-game unbeaten streak while Montreal (0-3-3) arrives in search of the club’s first victory this season.

A limited number of tickets, including the recent release of standing room only tickets, are available online at Ticketmaster.com and at the Sporting Park box offices. A sell-out crowd, the stadium’s 40th straight for an MLS match, will be in attendance for the Eastern Conference match-up.

Saturday’s match, presented by Ivy Funds, will be broadcast locally on 38 the Spot and SKCTV across the Midwest. Fans can listen to the match on Sports Radio 810 WHB (English) or on LA Gran D 1340 AM (Spanish) with special guest analyst Oriol Rosell.

Montreal suffered three straight losses to start the season under new head coach Frank Klopas, but is unbeaten in their last three matches after a 1-1 draw with the Chicago Fire last Saturday. The Impact’s newest acquisition, forward Jack McInerney, scored the lone goal in his debut after being acquired in a trade from the Philadelphia Union earlier this month.

Sporting KC’s last outing came two weeks ago in a scoreless draw against Real Salt Lake at Sporting Park, in which the home side outshot the visitors 20-4. Rosell received a straight red card in the 83rd minute of the match and will be unavailable on Saturday due to a mandatory one-game suspension.

Sporting KC will also be without striker C.J. Sapong due to injury while Montreal Impact Designated Player Hernan Bernardello is questionable after suffering an ankle injury on April 5.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early on Saturday for pregame events on the Sprint Plaza, including an autograph session with Sporting KC midfielder Christian Duke.  Gates will open at 5:30 p.m. and collection bins will be available at all entrances to donate new and gently used soccer equipment as part of Sporting KC’s “Recycle Your Game” initiative. All items will be distributed to youth soccer players in underprivileged communities and fans that donate will receive a 10 percent off coupon for Sporting KC merchandise at Sporting Style locations.