When: Saturday, June 28 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Children’s Mercy Park
How to Watch: MLS Season Pass

Last Result:
SKC: 2-1 Win vs Charlotte FC
RSL: 2-0 Win vs DC United

Preview:

Sporting Kansas City waited until the dying embers of their midweek matchup against Charlotte FC to complete an unlikely comeback for a 2-1 victory, after falling behind in the first half.

Despite the first half deficit, SKC pushed the envelope and registered a 2.2 xG, their highest of the season, and just the third time they’ve achieved higher than two, according to FBref.com.

But while the vibes are riding high, Kerry Zavagnin’s men will need to switch focus to the visiting Real Salt Lake on Saturday.

The biggest question/concern for Sporting fans is the health of leading goal scorer Dejan Joveljic. Joveljic scored the winner on Wednesday but was unable to celebrate as he went down with a leg injury upon scoring.

Following the game, the 25-year-old Bosnian said he felt cramps in both legs and hopes it’s nothing serious.

Joveljic sits tied for third in the MLS Golden Boot race with 11 goals this season. If he is unable to play in a quick turnaround, SKC will need to find goals from somewhere else, perhaps a first start for Santi Muñoz?

Muñoz tallied his first assist of the season on Joveljic’s game-winner and showcased his ability to get behind the defense line. If Joveljic can’t go, it could mean a lion’s share of minutes for the Mexican against RSL.

“I think everyone can see that we don’t have a drop off when he comes in the game,” Zavagnin said about Muñoz after the game. “The competition to be on the first XI is very, very high. The speed in which he’s integrated himself to the League, and especially our team, has been very, very quick, and so he’s knocking on the door, and so I would expect him to play a massive role in the second part of this season.”

The good news for Joveljic is that he didn’t show up on the injury report this week.

RSL are coming off a decisive 2-0 win over DC United two weeks ago and sit one spot behind Sporting in the standings. Though they will definitely have a rest advantage, they may just have an emotional edge this weekend as well.

READ MORE: 2025 Sporting KC Salaries Released

When RSL walk into CMP on Saturday, two of their players will be on the receiving end of thunderous applause: Johnny Russell and William Agada.

Russell may perhaps be the only person who could receive applause for scoring on his old team, but we’ll cross that bridge if we get there.

The Scotsman parted ways with the club at the end of last season and Agada was traded for some GAM back in April.

Russell is coming off scoring the game-winner in last Saturday’s match in his first start for his new club since he joined.

“I made no secret about it, I wanted to stay in KC. I felt that I had done enough there, I had still enough to give to deserve to be there. They wanted to move on and that’s the business we’re in. They wanted to try something different and there’s no hard feelings. I still love it there. It was home for me for seven years but it’s good to get back out there and show that I’ve still got it,” Russell said after the game.

Agada has been a consistent starter for RSL and has scored once this season in eight appearances (six starts).

And if emotions weren’t running high enough for this match, add in the fact that SKC will be inducting another player into the Sporting Legends: Defender Matt Besler.

On Saturday, we'll officially induct @MattBesler as a Sporting Legend 🌟

Re-watch the moment he got the news 👇 pic.twitter.com/sdpSEWzzbv

— Sporting Kansas City (@SportingKC) June 26, 2025

Besler was a member of the team that defeated RSL in the 2013 MLS Cup Championship.

While the focus in this particular game will be on Russell and Agada’s return, RSL will still have to compete without 2025 MLS All-Star Diego Luna, who is away on international duty with the United States Men’s National Team in the Gold Cup.

Luna leads RSL in goals (8) and assists (4) this season. For comparison, the rest of the team only has nine goals combined.

The match with RSL is another opportunity for SKC to continue their fight for a playoff spot. Currently sitting at six points behind current 9th place Colorado Rapids, a win would put them in striking distance as they would follow up Saturday’s game with a visit to the Rapids on the Fourth of July.