12 Takeaways from Sporting KC versus Real Salt Lake

On Saturday night, Sporting Kansas City hosted Real Salt on short rest and fought back for a 1-1 draw, despite playing down a man late. Many things happened over the 90 minutes on the field and events off the pitch colored the evening as well. Here are 12 major takeaways.

1. Bartlett continues to mature in his role as a 6  

Jacob Bartlett once again showed why he has been Kerry Zavagnin’s preferred option in midfield. With a debutant behind him in Ian James, Bartlett adjusted seamlessly, dropping deeper in possession during the first half to support the backline. His patience and positional awareness allowed SKC to maintain composure when building out of the back. Under pressure, he displayed improved poise, avoiding turnovers and helping control the tempo. Most impressively, he played the second 45 on a yellow card without picking up a another one.   

2. Ian James showed that the moment was not too big.  

Ian James became the 2nd youngest player to ever start for Sporting KC at 17 years old (beating Erik Palmer-Brown by two days). Throughout the first half of the game, he showed no signs of the moment being too big. James was called on in the first five minutes to make a tackle on a 50/50 ball on the left-hand side of the field and did so at ease. Along with making the necessary tackles, James was poised in possession.   

The same story continued in the second 45 for James, as he made the necessary tackles for SKC when called upon and did well not to turn the ball over in tight areas under pressure. His biggest moment was in the 83rd minute when he denied Gozo the opportunity to cross the ball, then proceeded to stare down Gozo as he lay on the floor. 

3. Sporting KC fails to close the first half.  

With little to no time left in the first half, Sporting KC allowed former player Johnny Russell to score a header on the back post. This has been a common theme for SKC throughout the season, even with the half being mostly quiet for both sides. SKC’s inability to put together a full 90 minutes, is what cost them all three points at home again.  

4. Cards were on full display, 8 yellows, and 1 red.   

Cards were on full display in this match-up as SKC collected seven of the nine cards handed out, all but one being a yellow card. SKC were the only ones to pick up cards in the first half of the match, with three yellow cards going to Salloi, Leibold, and Bartlett. This is the main reason Salloi and Leibold came off at halftime, for the likes of Ndenbe and Shapi.  

It was in the second half that we saw six cards given out, including a red card to Jake Davis in the 82nd minute of the match. Davis picked up what looked to be a soft second yellow card that led to him being sent off. While Gozo might have gotten away with a yellow card, that looked like it could have been red for violent conduct.   

Just watched the #SportingKC game this morning. Kickout by Gozo, studs to the knee, somehow escapes a red… Unbelievable. #SKCvRSL

— Chad Smith (@chadcsmith.bsky.social) 2025-06-29T16:19:45.602Z

In this match-up, it felt like Sporting Kansas City saw the worst side of the bookings, which led to a change of on-the-field personnel and momentum.    

5. Logan Ndenbe should be the first choice left-back  

Logan Ndenbe featured in this match-up as a substitute at halftime for German left-back Tim Leibold, after he received a caution in the first half, but that may not be the full reason. Leibold at times showed why SKC brought him in, but in this game, his best performance was not on display. He showed his tendency to get caught in transition and lose marks. This may have been the case on the RSL goal when Johnny Russell heads the ball home, after being found open on Leibold’s side of the field.   

But Logan Ndenbe looked like his old self — the one who dominated STL in the 2023 playoffs. He has brought a dynamic to the attack that none of SKC’s other backs bring, along with being able to rely on his speed when tracking back defensively. It also cannot be understated how well he has been when defending one on one, and once again that was on full display in the second half versus RSL.  

6. Erik Thommy still has the clutch factor in him.  

Erik Thommy scored the game’s tying goal in the 59th minute from outside the 18-yard box. The shot curled into the back post after taking a deflection off the Real Salt Lake defender. Thommy in his time with Sporting KC has not been one shy of the spotlight when it came to goals, but at times this season Thommy has struggled to apply the finishing touch, but when called upon tonight he showed he can still show up in big moments for SKC.  

7. SKC made the right decision in bringing in Santiago Munoz and letting go of Agada  

While neither of the two strikers made any goal contribution during the 90 minutes, Santi looked better when called upon to make an impact, having the only real look at goal in the first 45. Agada had little to no activity in front of the goal for RSL through his 65 minutes tonight.   

Outside of tonight’s performance Santi has had the better season with three goal contributions in seven matches. While Agada only has a goal contribution for RSL through nine matches over significantly more minutes, the match against RSL proved that Burns and his staff were right in letting Agada and bringing in Santi.   

8. John Pulskamp continues to prove he was the right choice for GK1 for SKC.  

Once again, Pulskamp proved he deserves the GK1 role, validating Sporting KC’s decision to move on from longtime starter Tim Melia. While Pulskamp had a shaky start to the 2025 campaign, it is safe to say that is no longer the case. Pulskamp tallied seven saves in this match against RSL, including two big saves down the stretch in the second half. This came after having a big one-on-one save on Wednesday night leading to SKC’s comeback win over Charlotte FC.  

If Pulskamp keeps up performances like this it would not be shocking to see his name be on the list of top goalkeepers in the MLS, and in the hunt for United States men’s national team spot. Also, just a friendly reminder he is only 24 years of age, which is young for when most goalkeepers see the starting 11 as a first-choice GK.   

9. Jansen Miller is him.   

Is there even an explanation needed for this takeaway? Jansen has already exceeded the expectations of what any fans, coaches, and media had for him in his rookie season. Against Salt Lake was just another step in what an impressive rookie campaign has been, after being the elder of the two center backs, while making another clutch goal-line clearance at the end of the game again. These goal-line clearances have become a staple of Millers’ season so far, as he continues to make big strides in becoming the guy for SKC.   

THAT'S MLS SUPER DRAFT PICK (and Hank's 🐱 dad ) JANSEN MILLER pic.twitter.com/PpceP49SG7

— Sporting Kansas City (@SportingKC) June 29, 2025

10. Even with the addition of St. Louis City SC, there is still bad blood in the rivalry between SKC and RSL.

Well, if you thought that the bad blood between SKC and RSL has died since the expansion of STL into the MLS then you are wrong. These two teams were at each other’s throats for the full 90, with 25 total fouls and an abundance of cards. Let us also not forget the couple of scruffs we saw whether it was when Shelton and Katranis in the second half, or Ian James standing over Gozo in the box leading to a stoppage as players and referees came together.   

After the game, Jansen Miller talked about how certain players had advised him to talk trash or get into certain players on the RSL side. So even without Benny Feilhaber and Kyle Beckerman’s hatred for each other, this rivalry has not lost any intensity since 2013.   

11. Sporting KC shows resilience once again at home.  

For the second time in a week, SKC was able to come back and grind out the result at home. Even though both comebacks came in vastly different ways, and different results, SKC has shown that they can come back from behind. In this game against RSL, it was a slip-up in the dying moments of the first half that cost SKC three points, when Russell scored a header to give RSL the lead. But SKC was not just able to come back and tie the game with Erik Thommy’s goal, but they also had to bunker down for 18 minutes after stoppage time a man down to get the result.   

12. It is not 2013 anymore.  

While it has been obvious that we are in the year 2025, tonight’s induction of Matt Besler into the Sporting Legends was just another reminder that we are in an era of change in SKC history. Besler joined Benny, his former teammate, and his former manager Peter Vermes in the Sporting Legends, leading to a lot of reflection around Kansas City this week. And for the first time since SKC lifted the coveted MLS Cup in 2013, there was no Besler, Benny, Zusi, and Peter Vermes on the field or technical area for SKC.   

For many, this was just the final reminder of the new age of SKC as there was only one player on the field tonight who played with Besler. So, while we reflect and remember all the trophies Besler and his era brought to KC, it is a reminder of a new era in SKC history as a new set of players look to leave their mark as Besler and company once did.