Sporting KC
Sporting Kansas City vs Los Angeles FC Match Thread
Sporting Kansas City faces an uphill battle as they travel to take on Los Angeles FC in a late night, midweek battle
Sporting Kansas City vs Los Angeles FC
Time: 7:30 pm CST
Location: Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, Kansas
How to Watch: Apple TV MLS Live
Commentators: English: Chris Whittyngham, Jamie Watson Spanish: Francisco X. Rivera, Francisco Pinto
Line: Sporting KC +100, Los Angeles FC +230, Draw +240
Referee: Rosendo Mendoza
The Teams
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Sporting Kansas City
5-5-8, 20 points
9th in the West
Head Coach: Peter Vermes (15th season)
Last 5: L-W-W-D-W
Injury Report: OUT: Tim Melia (quad), OUT: Kortne Ford (Achilles surgery), OUT: Logan Ndenbe (hamstring) OUT: Graham Zusi (hamstring), OUT: Willy Agada (tibia stress fracture), OUT: Marinos Tzionis (international duty), QUESTIONABLE: Andreu Fontas (hamstring), QUESTIONABLE: Kayden Pierre (hamstring), QUESTIONABLE: Dany Rosero (hamstring), QUESTIONABLE: Johnny Russell (hamstring)
Los Angeles FC
7-5-3, 26 points
3rd in the West
Head Coach: Steve Cherundolo (2nd season)
Last 5: L-W-D-L-L
Injury Report: OUT: Maxime Crepeau (left leg), OUT: Sergi Palencia (lower extremity), OUT: Aaron Long (head)
Ike Opara Departs SKC II and the Team has Just Six Players
Sporting KC signs Cielo Tschantret as a Homegrown Player
Vlatko Andonovski steps away from coaching to focus on Global Sporting Director
Jereko Signs Permanent Deal with HB Køge
Opinion: The “Winter” MLS Schedule is the Right Move
Hailie Mace Says Goodbye to Kansas City and the Current
MLS Schedule and Apple TV changes
Vlatko Andonovski steps away from coaching to focus on Global Sporting Director
Opinion: The “Winter” MLS Schedule is the Right Move
Gadi as a winger is interesting
Could be Thommy as RW, and Gadi in midfield, too.
It’s Thommy as RW.
This is almost the exact lineup I put on my Google form. I didn’t have rosero starting because I thought he was still hurt.
Well, LAFC giving Sporting every chance to get on top of this game early. Need to take advantage before they bring Vela in.
Biuk abused the entire backline there. Good save.
I like the fight from Davis
This has to be a penalty. Kinda baited him perfectly.
That’s a red card penalty
Yellow. Not red. But a PK absolutely.
I guess it’s neither color, haha
Also, what a take! That was absolutely world class penalty shootin right there
Well, maybe it was too close to the middle, but I liked it
McCarthy nearly got it. But Pulido converts.
Not even a yellow on Maldonado. Poor from the ref. But an early goal is enough.
Davis needs to watch those runs at the half-space inside him. That’s twice he’s been beat to the inside. Rosero with a great stand-up to stop the counter.
Great sequence of pressure from SKC there. Full credit to LAFC and Sanchez for the last ditch defending.
Ilie Sanchez is being a little dick this game
Thommy making tackles high is really stifling LAFC.
Then he makes a mistake and plays the ball back into pressure to Rosero.
It’s actually spelled Walter, FYI
Short-term loans from MLS reserve teams that don’t play in a competitive league. Such nonsense.
An MLS ref is calling a bad game? I am shocked!
That was a fun half to watch. LAFC’s high press made me a bit nervous at times. Hope the opportunities continue in the final third.
And here comes Vela. This will be interesting.
Well…that didn’t take long. Not marking the CB who comes forward on the set piece. Interesting strategy.
And after being lost in space on the goal, Rosero gives a yellow.
Yikes. This has not looked good so far.
We were lucky to get that offside flag too.
Maybe we could try marking center backs on set pieces?
I agree!
How is that not a penalty for holding Salloi!
And the color commentator is 100% right. This is why players are right to force the ref to blow the whistle. Because they are always punished for fighting to stay on his feet.
The Spanish language announcers claim it was because Salloi had a fistful of shirt but that’s BS. He only has shirt in his hand because it’s being forced there
Yeah, that was the VAR refs excuse. But exactly. He made a fist as a natural reaction to being arm-barred.
Espinosa at left back? And Shelton at RW?
Well. It was fun watching the attack while it lasted.
Not a fan of those subs. Let’s go back to not subbing again
Roger at leftback …….
Well, that may be the least tactically sound tactical yellow I’ve ever seen.
Rosero is lucky to still be playing.
I thought Khiry was supposed to be cupping his hand to his ear. Has been shit since he stepped on the field
Thankfully that 15 minute cameo at RW is over.
That sure was smart of Murillo to foul the crap out of Pulido BEFORE he was in the box
Defender off for an attacker. Shelton to RB?
Sporting with midfielders on both fullbacks. But LAFC moved Vela inside to the false 9.
Is this a professional match?! They should have put Johnny at RB.
Well then
And Kriry Shelton jogging forward left Carlos Vela onside.
Sporting grasp defeat from the jaws of victory.
What a waste
God I could not hate Shelton any more. He nearly gave away a goal dribbling 20 yards backwards about 15 minutes ago, then gives the game away with his lazy jogging when he’s the last man back.
He can’t pass or possess the ball, what is PV doing putting him in the back line to build possession??
Roger with an equalizer!
Or…not. Shelton with a foul.
What are we looking at here
If the ref awards LAFC after missing the Salloi penalty, it would be a disgrace
Based on the history of this ref’s game, Shelton got the ball first so it shouldn’t be a foul
The VAR tonight is a disgrace
Congratulations to the refs for gifting MLS darling LAFC another 3 points
Ref is ridiculous.
You could hear Vermes chewing out the fourth official saying “you ruined the game!” And I totally thought he was yelling at Khiry, lol
yeah, this is one we’ll look back on at the end of the year when we miss the playoffs by a point
Absolutely ridiculous that VAR can go back that far from the goal and call that challenge a “clear and obvious” error.
plus the guy completely recovered back into the play
Was it as clear and obvious as the arm-bar on Salloi? No.
But by rule, they were right to go back that far. The ball was never cleared. The player getting back into position doesn’t make it less a foul, as he was impeded from clearing the ball by the foul. Now, he never would’ve reached the ball. But Shelton clearly made shin-to-shin contact. It’s a foul. However incidental.
Man, this is such a frustrating loss. I’ve stayed off for tonight, but Khiry Shelton has to be one of the worst signings we’ve ever made. I hear everyone talk about how kind he is which is great, but guess what, I don’t get to keep my job just because I’m a nice person. It’s because I can actually freakin do it. When has he been able to play well for this team? PV says he was “in a slump”. But for how long because by my accounting it’s been about 2 and a half seasons. It is insane that we resigned him for three years AND gave him a raise. I’m so freakin frustrated by him. And I don’t give a crap that he’s playing out of position. A twelve year old knows how to hold a defensive line so there’s no excuse for that goal.
VAR was terrible, but Shelton lost us the game. Vermes’ whole post game speech about him last week was already ridiculous, but this just shows how ridiculous it was.
Shelton was awful, but the VAR official cost SKC two goals — one for and one against.
If Shelton doesn’t jog (like he does every game he plays, even though he just came on), we’re not out into the position of VAR screwing us out of at least a point though. Is Shelton doesn’t cause the 2nd goal, as well as commit the foul (even though it was absolutely terrible to call the goal back for that, considering it has to be a clear and obvious error), we walk away with 3 points. Instead, he’s in an SKC jersey making almost 3/4 of $1,000,000, playing way more than he ever should.
VAR was terrible tonight, but the center ref ultimately makes the call, so I put more fault on him for the equalizer goal callback.
Overall though, Shelton backed us into a corner where one call – from VAR or the center ref – could change the game.