Category: Sporting KC

Second-place Sporting Kansas City (11-4-6, 39 points) will return to Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas, on Saturday for a Western Conference clash against the third-place Colorado Rapids (11-4-4, 37 points) at 8 p.m.

Tickets for the match are available at SeatGeek.com and the first 10,000 fans through the stadium gates will receive a vintage Sporting KC poster courtesy of match sponsor Children’s Mercy. Saturday will also see Sporting pay homage to its beginnings with a Retro Night celebration including clothes, gear, music from The Crossroads Sound and a 1990s-theme post-match party in the Budweiser Brew House.

For supporters watching from home, the high-stakes encounter will air live on Bally Sports Kansas City and Bally Sports Midwest Plus with three hours of live coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. The match will also stream live on BallySports.com and the new Bally Sports app. Local radio broadcasts will air on Sports Radio 810 WHB and La Grande 1340 AM, with The Final Whistle postgame show immediately following the match on 810 WHB, and fans can access the Sporting KC app for in-game updates.

With two of the league’s hottest teams on a collision course at Children’s Mercy Park, Saturday’s battle could go a long way in shaping the Western Conference playoff picture.

Led by manager Peter Vermes, second-place Sporting has 39 points from 21 matches, equaling its exact totals from the shortened 2020 regular season.

The Rapids, surging under the guidance of third-year head coach Robin Fraser, sit just two points behind with two games in hand and will be looking to secure their first four-game regular season winning streak since 2003.

Sporting’s potent and balanced attack has garnered attention throughout the year, with Daniel Salloi (12 goals, six assists), Alan Pulido (eight goals, three assists), Johnny Russell (three goals, five assists) and Gadi Kinda (four goals, three assists) contributing to the league’s second best scoring offense.

On the opposite end of the pitch, Sporting has pieced together a series of strong defensive performances in recent weeks.

Goalkeeper Tim Melia has shutouts in three of his last four appearances, while center backs Andreu Fontas and Ilie Sanchez have anchored a backline that also wields dynamic full backs Graham Zusi and Luis Martins.

Sporting’s 21 goals allowed are the third fewest in the Western Conference and Melia’s 0.88 goals against average is third lowest in MLS.

The Rapids are in the midst of a standout season with Fraser at the helm. The head coach owns a 24-12-8 regular season record since taking the job in August 2019 and took Colorado back to the playoffs last fall for the first time four years.

Colorado is 4-0-1 in its last five matches and 6-1-3 in its last 10, amassing the second most points in MLS since the start of July. The Rapids have won three consecutive road matches for the first time since 2000.

Colorado goalkeeper William Yarbrough is tied for the MLS lead in wins (11) and shutouts (eight), defenders Auston Trusty and Keegan Rosenberry have started every game this year, playmakers Michael Barrios (five goals, four assists) and Jack Price (seven assists) have complemented well-rounded midfielders Kellyn Acosta and Mark-Anthony Kaye, and forwards Diego Rubio and Andre Shinyashiki have four goals apiece. Kaye arrived in a headline trade from LAFC on July 27 and owns a 3-0-1 record as a Colorado player.

Sporting and Colorado have squared off 83 times in all competitions, making the Rapids the most frequent opponent in Kansas City history. In 33 regular season home games against Colorado, Sporting is 22-6-5 with 71 goals scored and 34 conceded.

Recent history favors the hosts, as Sporting is 3-0-2 against Colorado over the last two seasons. That includes a 3-1 home win on June 23 and a 0-0 road draw on Aug. 7. Salloi had two goals and an assist in the home victory two months ago, while Sporting posted its first of three consecutive road shutouts in the scoreless stalemate at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park earlier this month.

• Story from Sporting KC

Sporting Kansas City (11-4-6, 39 points) moved back into a share of first place in the Western Conference with a scoreless draw at Minnesota United FC (7-6-7, 28 points) on Saturday.

Playing a man down for 70 minutes following the first-half ejection of Remi Walter, goalkeeper Tim Melia made a season-high seven saves as Sporting KC secured a sixth straight road result and a third consecutive clean sheet away from home.

Melia, who joined Sporting Kansas City in 2015, now leads all MLS goalkeepers with 57 shutouts over the last seven seasons.

Sporting Kansas City started the match on the front foot at

Sporting Kansas City started the match on the front foot at Allianz Field and twice forced saves by Minnesota United FC goalkeeper Tyler Miller inside the opening 10 minutes.

Khiry Shelton’s shot from distance in the fifth minute came after a long-run forward by left back Luis Martins, while Gadi Kinda’s first-time effort from 20 yards out in the ninth minute was the result of a buildup on the right flank between Johnny Russell and Graham Zusi.

The hosts responded in the 17th minute as Adrien Hunou pressed high to win the ball and attempted to catch Tim Melia out of position, however his chip was safely collected.

Moments later, Sporting KC were threatening on the opposite end as Shelton played Martins into the penalty area and Tyler Miller was called into action for a third save.

The complexion of the fixture changed drastically in the 21st minute as Remi Walter was shown a straight red card following a collision with Emanuel Reynoso.

Video assistant referee Kevin Terry Jr. recommended a review for a clear and obvious error, however referee Marcos DeOliveira stood by his decision to issue the first ejection of a Sporting Kansas City player this season and the club’s earliest dismissal since Sept. 21, 2019.

Playing with a man advantage, Minnesota seized the momentum. Hunou’s header struck the post the 28th minute, albeit from an offside position, and Tim Melia was at his best to deflect Ethan Finlay’s point-blank shot over the bar in the 30th minute on a perfectly placed pass to the edge of the six-yard box from Reynoso.

Sporting continued to create chances despite being reduced to 10 men, including a pair of scoring opportunities in first half stoppage time. Ilie’s glancing header was off target on a cross from Kinda, while Martins tested Miller with a dipping shot from distance moments before the halftime whistle. Ultimately, Sporting’s four shots on goal in the opening 45 minutes were the most Minnesota had faced since last year’s playoff match in Kansas City.

The back-and-forth match picked up where it left off in the second half. Miller made his fifth save of the match in the 47th minute on a well-struck shot from Cam Duke, followed in short succession by Reynoso sending a shot into the near post after evading the tackle of Andreu Fontas.

Reynoso was once again involved in the 52nd minute, slipping a through ball for Hunou to run onto inside the box. Melia raced off his line to cut down the angle before making a sliding save in the one-on-one situation.

Manager Peter Vermes inserted Daniel Salloi, who leads MLS with 18 combined goals and assists, in the 63rd minute and the move nearly paid immediate dividends as Sporting caught Minnesota on the counter. Salloi outran his defender and played the ball square for Shelton, whose sliding shot was scuffed wide with only Miller to beat.

Salloi, who will represent Sporting Kansas City in the 2021 MLS All-Star Game on Wednesday, kept the Loons on alert with a shot just above the crossbar in the 75th minute.

Sporting survived close calls of its own, first when Bakaye Dibassy unleashed a blistering shot that carried narrowly wide of frame in the 67th minute, then in the 69th minute as Melia produced a double save to deny Hassani Dotson and Hunou, and again in the 74th minute as Melia dove to his left to keep out a header from Dibassy.

Melia’s man of the match performance was highlighted in the 78th minute with his sixth save of the day to thwart Juan Agudelo on a breakaway. A breakthrough goal continued to elude Minnesota up until the final minute.

Michael Boxall latched onto a loose ball in the box on a set piece situation in the 87th minute but put his shot high and Agudelo saw his shot superbly blocked by Martins eight minutes into second half stoppage time.

After a grueling stretch of seven games in 22 days, Sporting KC will now get a full week of preparation before meetng the Colorado Rapids at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 28, at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.

Tickets are available online at SeatGeek.com for Retro Night at Children’s Mercy Park featuring two MLS charter clubs in contention for the top spot in the Western Conference.

• Story from Sporting KC