Sporting KC
Sporting Routed in Columbus
Sporting Kansas City’s 2024 woes reached a new low on Saturday night in Columbus as Sporting was routed 4-0 by the Columbus Crew at Lower.com Field. The Crew got a hattrick from Cucho Hernandez and a goal from Christian Ramirez to get the win. Sporting came out in a new formation for the game, a 3-4-3, but were hit with an early substitution as Kayden Pierre went down with an injury and was replaced by Khiry Shelton. Shortly after the substitution, the Crew took the lead as Max Arfsten was played in behind Shelton and Robert Castellanos down the line. He played the ball back into the box for Hernandez who cut around two sliding KC defenders and put the ball into the far corner for the lead. Hernandez doubled the lead in first half stoppage time as a Crew short corner was eventually played into the box where Hernandez got a step on Robert Voloder and some help from a deflection as the ball went through Dany Rosero’s legs and into the net.
Half time saw Sporting make three more substitutions, bringing on Alenis Vargas, Johnny Russell, and Andreu Fontas for Willy Agada, Stephen Afrifa, and Castellanos respectively. The substitutions didn’t improve Kansas City’s offense though as they were held without a shot in the second half until a speculative Memo Rodriguez effort in the 86th minute. As KC tried to get back into the game they pushed their defensive line higher and like against Real Salt Lake, left them exposed to counters, which Columbus was able to find success at. Ramirez tallied his goal in the 66th minute on one such counter, getting played in behind the KC defense. John Pulskamp made the initial save on Ramirez’s effort but Sporting’s defense had slowed their recovery by that point and Ramirez was easily able to be the first player to the rebound and put it away for the 3-0 lead. Hernandez finished off his hattrick in the 71st minute on a free kick that he curled into the far post.
The loss drops KC to 3-12-5 on the season, having won just one of their last fourteen league games. They’ve won only one of their last eleven league games.
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Stick with that Vermes rebuild, ownership. It’s guaranteed to work….not. I’ve been to SKC practices when they are in good times, and I was struck by what an ass Vermes is to his players even when things are good. I can’t imagine what it is like to be in training with him when the wheels have fallen completely off.
I left training sessions thinking what a dysfunctional culture Vermes promoted. Honestly, it amazes me he has lasted this long. If ownership had any clue, he would have been replaced at least two years ago.
You think ownership doesn’t know as much about the team as you do? That seems kinda silly. The number of folks who have come back to SKC after playing elsewhere makes me think that (historically) the culture is pretty good. I know I don’t go back to jobs where the boss is an ass unless I’m getting paid a ton and we know SKC isn’t doing that.
All that said, yes Vermes should definitely fire Vermes. I’m with you on that.
Or you have no other option.
Routed is a word for it.
Zero shots on goal. Zero.
Not even in frustration or anger.
No real cards out of frustration or anger.
This team is 100% cooked
We all knew they had zero shots because the broadcast highlighted it, but I wonder if the players realized? Obviously, they knew it wasn’t going well.
In those dying moments I wanted someone to just get something on target and instead the game just ended.
They either didn’t realize it or just didn’t care – both point to players being checked out of the game.
If my contract was potentially ending, I would play to earn my next contract. I don’t even see that spark.
Even those that work hard with an endless motor were aimless.
You don’t even have to confine it to league games. Since April, SKC has only been able to defeat one MLS team. That 40% of their wins in 2023 come against USL teams is unforgivably embarrassing. We’re at the point now where a managing a draw feels unrealistically optimistic.
I just keep thinking of the quote from the dark knight, you either die a hero or live long enough to become a villain. Vermes is inching closer to villain status every week, and the longer ownership believes he should still be in charge, the more he will continue to tarnish his legacy. This is a dire, dire situation for the club and I’m not sure ownership even understands the gravity of it. Assuming ownership only cares about money, surely they’re still smart enough to see that having Vermes in charge of the off-season rebuild is too risky a proposition when future support and revenue is on the line. The new PV contract is a sunk cost…they need to look at what’s at risk long-term if they don’t get this fixed sooner than later.
You may be thinking of that Villain line because Mike used it in his article saying it’s time for PV to go: https://kcsoccerjournal.com/opinion-thank-you-peter-but-its-time-to-go-sporting-kc/05/30/2024/
It’s stuck with me too.
That had to have been where I picked it up from. Really great reference by Mike!
This quote always makes me think of this meme, and honestly I’d love to see Vermes as Sherlock Holmes.
1000x better than the LA fan boys bringing on 3 or 4 ex-La players and gawking at them, or the other 75% of commentators who don’t even know how to pronounce half the player’s names.
I feel bad for Pulskamp. It seems like every game he plays is due to doing some weird lineup or formation switch, which isn’t setting him up for success. Then he’ll make some really solid saves and play generally well, but is hung out to dry because our defense is…..non-existent. He deserves better.
I know we won against Seattle, but they’re another struggling team that was off that night, even by their struggling-season standards. We won because they didn’t put away a couple of the solid chances they had, and the ball trickled through Frei’s legs.
Outside of that, we’re just straight up losing every game – not even getting draws – it’s crazy how truly bad we are.
5 points out of the last 42, that’s criminally terrible
It looks like the players are giving up more and more every game. On Wednesday, they all dropped their heads after the first goal, despite there still being 75+ minutes to go.
No team that has even the slightest bit of belief in themselves and their coach would be looking dejected after going down 1-0 at home in the 14th minute.
Has anyone else noticed the amount of fingerpointing and yelling at each other there is too? There’s no team chemistry, no support, no talking – only yelling or frustratingly communicating – and no fight in the team.
I’d bet money on it that a lot of them know how many have expiring contracts and know where Illig stands on it, and they’re basically saying “F it”. They have no reason to care; the primary owner of the organization has basically already told those 17 players with expiring contracts or option years that they are all as good as gone. Although all 17 won’t be gone, none of them know who will or won’t be, and Illig’s comments give them nothing to fight for, so why should they care?
The players are stupid, they know the season is a bust. That’s gotta be pretty demotivating being at the halfway point of the season knowing it’s all for nothing, and there’s a solid chance you’ll be gone after this season anyways.
Last note: Vermes is a prick. It’s nothing new to me, but I’m just reminded of it every time I see him yelling at the players, his fellow staff, etc. I think it was against Seattle when we tied it, and they pan to Vermes and he’s screaming at the players, in a what looked to be furious way. Compare that to when they show other coaches, and I can’t remember the last time I saw any of them sitting them pouting and mumbling like he does, or yelling at the refs or their own players. Half the time when they show other coaches after they score or we score, they’re immediately taking notes or obviously listening to their staff and working on a plan. Vermes’ plan? Yell some more.
I used to love the SPR matches as I had seats right in front of the box where Vermes would sit and I could hear his commentary on the games. When he wanted someone to push up. When he wanted someone to tuck in. Etc. I played for a log of coaches and none were my friends. I’d have been just fine playing under Vermes.
I do agree it was nice to hear a commentator point out that SKC hasn’t splashed big money on a player in a long time. Hearing him try to coach however doesn’t excite me anymore than hearing anyone here do it. Like hearing some drunk bro at a bar explain how he’d have made that 42 yard field goal on the game he’s watching.
The commentary was pretty good.
Has he lost the locker room? This game seems to be an important data point. Thank goodness I only watched the “highlights”. This was very bad. Very, very bad. I get that it’s against one of the best teams, but we looked defeated from the first goal. The writing is on the wall and ownership is illiterate. It’s time for a shake up everywhere: players, staff, and maybe ownership too.
The ownership only care about the profits they made from our tickets.
This line is gold: “The writing is on the wall and ownership is illiterate.”
I wonder this too, and while I can’t say for sure, I can say this: PV essentially sent the players to their deaths by having them play a formation they were clearly unprepared for, and it’s that type of stuff that contributes to a lost locker room
I think so. They aren’t even going through some of the motions. The body language is worse and worse.
That was pretty ugly. It’s one thing to not have a true #10 (and EVERYONE knew that one was needed over the winter) but a formation where we don’t even put a playmaker on the field? Ugh that locker room much be real ugly right now and Peter’s sh*tlist must be deep and varied (both earned and unearned).
I made the right choice in falling asleep to a baseball movie instead.
Oooh, what movie?
I’m gonna need a good nap because I stayed up way too late making/editing a podcast then my 15-year-old (ish) senile, mostly deaf, partially blind dog decided barking at walls in the middle of the night was a good idea (more than once, sadly). But then I came to see if he wanted to go out (his open dog door) and he was so happy to… smell me? (I’d say see, but those eyes are cloudy!)
This is a beautiful allegory on where we’re at with Peter’s coaching tenure. Were you ever able to get him to go out?
So far no one’s been able to show Vermes the door even when he’s pissing on the floor.
Eight Men Out. I love baseball and I still found it underwhelming. It felt like watching a historical re-enactment rather than an actual film with character development and drama. And don’t even try showing it to a non-baseball-nerd.
See, I feel like it is necessary watch 8 Men Out prior to watching Field of Dreams.
I think it does have character development for several of the characters in the movie. the pitcher who has his family threatened, the manager realizing something is going on, bucky trying to not be a part of it, but getting a lifetime ban.
this is said with friendly film critique from my perspective. it is completely fine that you didn’t connect with it
Could part of the problem be that they are running a bar in the P&L. Is it that they are running youth rec leagues or youth competitive teams in D5. Or is it that they are have a rugby team? Without a total reboot of the organization to reflect today’s MLS failure is the future.
The lads played a hell of a match on Saturday. They certainly gave the crowd a performance that was worth the money that was spent. I don’t know what more they could’ve asked for?
Thank for god for Peter.
I’m assuming the downvotes are people who don’t appreciate/recognize sarcasm?