The US men's national team call ups for the upcoming internationals in Europe against the Netherlands and Germany were announced today during half time of the New York Red Bulls vs Seattle Sounders game. Not included in the team list were any Sporting KC players. National team regulars over the last couple years, Matt Besler and Graham Zsui were not included in the list. Neither absence from the team is overly surprising. Zusi is just coming back from his concussion and hasn't been in the greatest form so far this season, although a one goal, two assist performance from him against Dallas could certainly be a turn in the right direction. As for Besler, while the KC defense has improved since Tim Melia stepped into goal (.6 goals against average in the five games since he took over in goal), Besler hasn't hit the form that got him call ups last year. And with a busy summer schedule for the US that includes the Gold Cup, Jurgen Klinsmann could have decided to let Besler (and Omar Gonzalez) stay with their clubs now, ahead of that tournament this summer.
The surprise that wasn't really a surprise, is the fact that Benny Feilhaber continues to have a brick wall seemingly keeping him from getting back into the US national team picture. Feilhaber has arguably been the best American player in the world over the last year plus, he's completely bought into Peter Vermes' system and has shown he's more than just a playmaker, filling roles all over the field, he's even played some center back over the last season plus for KC. Yet he still can get no call up to Klinsmann's camps. He's proven to be a midfielder that can play both ways, and provide that bit of creativity that at times has really lacked for the US team.
At the very least you can compare him to a similar midfielder that was called into this camp, Mix Diskerud of New York City FC. Just looking at statistics, Feilhaber is miles ahead of his counterpart this year with four goals and seven assists compared to Diskerud's single goal and zero assists. But even in the intangibles, Feilhaber has shown an ability to really take a game over for KC when they've needed it this year, and while I haven't seen every minute of NYCFC's games this year, of the games I have seen, Diskerud has really yet to impose himself on the game.
Even with Feilhaber's age it's foolish to think that Feilhaber can't help the US team in the Gold Cup or qualifying ahead of the 2018 World Cup. It really just seems to be an issue of Klinsmann just personally not rating the Sporting KC player. But as long as he continues not to, each time the US midfield struggles and Feilhaber continues to play well for KC, questions will be asked.
All that said, I'm thrilled that none of the three will be missing KC's game this weekend against the Seattle Sounders at Sporting Park, it means KC's only call up is Hungarian, Krisztian Nemeth. The Sounders only had one player called up, Brad Evans, as Clint Dempsey is awaiting the birth of a child with his wife.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Saturday, May 30, 2015
S.A.S. Saturday After Stats
The win was Peter Vermes' 100th win in all competitions for KC.
Krisztian Nemeth scored the 600th home goal in all competitions for KC.
Graham Zusi's two assists gave him 53 for his career in all competitions, moving him ahead of Chris Klein and into second place all time on that list.
Zusi made his 150th start in all competitions for KC, he's the 12th player to hit that mark.
Zusi's goal was his 25th in all competitions for KC, he broke his tie with Teal Bunbury for 11th on that list.
Zusi's goal was his 14th league goal at home, tying him with Jimmy Conrad for for 10th on that list.
It was his 15th goal in all competitions at home, tying him with Igor Simutenkov for 11th on that list.
Benny Feilhaber's goal was the 150th by KC at Sporting Park in all competitions.
Roger Espinoza made his 123rd league appearance for KC, tying him with Chris Brown and Chance Myers for 16th on that list.
Krisztian Nemeth scored the 600th home goal in all competitions for KC.
Graham Zusi's two assists gave him 53 for his career in all competitions, moving him ahead of Chris Klein and into second place all time on that list.
Zusi made his 150th start in all competitions for KC, he's the 12th player to hit that mark.
Zusi's goal was his 25th in all competitions for KC, he broke his tie with Teal Bunbury for 11th on that list.
Zusi's goal was his 14th league goal at home, tying him with Jimmy Conrad for for 10th on that list.
It was his 15th goal in all competitions at home, tying him with Igor Simutenkov for 11th on that list.
Benny Feilhaber's goal was the 150th by KC at Sporting Park in all competitions.
Roger Espinoza made his 123rd league appearance for KC, tying him with Chris Brown and Chance Myers for 16th on that list.
Sporting Roll Past Dallas
Sporting KC may have learned a thing or two about playing short handed after all the issues last season and over the past few weeks, because they were firing on all cylinders last night against FC Dallas. They were helped by a first half red card to Dallas' Zach Loyd, but KC completely controlled their Western Conference rival and moved into a tie for second place.
Even before they went up a man though KC was controlling the game, in the 4th minute they should have grabbed the lead when a Graham Zusi corner was headed back into the middle by Jalil Anibaba. The cushioned header was met by Benny Feilhaber, but he couldn't keep his volley down as it skied over the bar. All the early pressure from KC paid off in the 19th minute. From a free kick outside the box, Zusi played a nice ball to the back post where Kevin Ellis beat Ryan Hollingshead to the ball, heading the ball back across goal where Krisztian Nemeth met it heading the ball in from a yard out to make it 1-0 KC. Like one of Dallas' goals in the first meeting it appeared that Nemeth was offside when Ellis headed the ball back across goal, but like the Dallas game, no call was made. KC should have doubled the lead in the 24th minute, as Feilhaber made a great move to get around his defender and 1v1 with Dan Kennedy in goal Feilhaber pushed his effort just wide. Nemeth was causing all sorts of problems for Dallas' back line, posting up and turning when he received the ball. In the 32nd he earned KC a dangerous free kick just outside the box and the first yellow card for Loyd. Unfortunately Feilhaber couldn't capitalize on the free kick as he tried to go under the wall, but it didn't jump. Another turn by Nemeth in the 39th, this time on Matt Hedges created another scoring chance, but Nemeth pulled just shot just wide of the post. In the 43rd minute, Loyd got him marching orders after bringing down Nemeth after he had poked the ball away from him near the side line and was starting to race past him. Loyd tackled Nemeth, bringing him down and David Gantar immediately pulled out the second yellow.
KC couldn't take advantage of the man advantage in the final minutes of the first half, and early in the second almost gave Dallas a way back into the game. Hollingshead played a nice ball into the box for Tesho Akindele, but Tim Melia was quickly off his line and blocked the shot out for a corner. KC though quickly re-established possession and in the 51st doubled their lead. After receiving the ball in the corner, Jalil Anibaba played a ball on the ground into Nemeth in the box. As he'd been doing all game, Nemeth turned on Hedges to face goal and proceeded to lay a ball off to Feilhaber who was running into the box. Feilhaber made no mistake slotting the ball into the far corner to make it 2-0. Six minutes later, KC made it 3-0. Off a Zusi corner, Ellis got open and ran free into the box heading it into the corner to make it three for Kansas City. Dallas tried to respond immediately off a free kick. Melia came and punched the free kick out of the box, but the cross was recollected and played wide for Kyle Bekker who played a nice cross into the box for Hollingshead, but he couldn't get his header on goal. Eventually it was cleared out for a corner. On the ensuing corner Dallas had another chance, but again couldn't get a shot on goal in the sequence. KC finished off the scoring in the 64th minute after a long ball down field was collected b Connor Hallisey, he cut inside and started dribbling across the face of goal. Zusi made a run the opposite direction and as Zusi passed him, Hallisey backheeled the ball to him. Zusi took a touch and finished past Kennedy to make it 4-0. Shortly after that the air really started to go out of the game as the likes of Mauro Diaz, Akindele, Hallisey, and Roger Espinoza were all subbed out of the game as both teams seemed content with the result the way it was. There were some half chances late on by David Texeira and Saad Abdul-Salaam but the game ended at 4-0 with KC having a dominate performance.
Wizards Man of the Match - Kevin Ellis - Really there's a number of people this could go to for last night's game, from Ellis, to Nemeth, to Zusi, to Feilhaber, to one name I hadn't mentioned yet, Soni Mustivar who did a great job of shutting down Dallas' Diaz. But I'm going with Ellis who was all over the place last night, did a great job of shutting down Dallas' attack along with getting his first MLS goal and an assist.
Honorable Mention - Krisztian Nemeth, Benny Feilhaber
Player Ratings - Melia 6, Anibaba 6, Ellis 8, Besler 7, Dia 5, Mustivar 7, Espinoza 6, Feilhaber 7, Zusi 7, Nemeth 8, Hallisey 6. Subs de Jong 6, Carrasco 5, Abdul-Salaam NR.
Even before they went up a man though KC was controlling the game, in the 4th minute they should have grabbed the lead when a Graham Zusi corner was headed back into the middle by Jalil Anibaba. The cushioned header was met by Benny Feilhaber, but he couldn't keep his volley down as it skied over the bar. All the early pressure from KC paid off in the 19th minute. From a free kick outside the box, Zusi played a nice ball to the back post where Kevin Ellis beat Ryan Hollingshead to the ball, heading the ball back across goal where Krisztian Nemeth met it heading the ball in from a yard out to make it 1-0 KC. Like one of Dallas' goals in the first meeting it appeared that Nemeth was offside when Ellis headed the ball back across goal, but like the Dallas game, no call was made. KC should have doubled the lead in the 24th minute, as Feilhaber made a great move to get around his defender and 1v1 with Dan Kennedy in goal Feilhaber pushed his effort just wide. Nemeth was causing all sorts of problems for Dallas' back line, posting up and turning when he received the ball. In the 32nd he earned KC a dangerous free kick just outside the box and the first yellow card for Loyd. Unfortunately Feilhaber couldn't capitalize on the free kick as he tried to go under the wall, but it didn't jump. Another turn by Nemeth in the 39th, this time on Matt Hedges created another scoring chance, but Nemeth pulled just shot just wide of the post. In the 43rd minute, Loyd got him marching orders after bringing down Nemeth after he had poked the ball away from him near the side line and was starting to race past him. Loyd tackled Nemeth, bringing him down and David Gantar immediately pulled out the second yellow.
KC couldn't take advantage of the man advantage in the final minutes of the first half, and early in the second almost gave Dallas a way back into the game. Hollingshead played a nice ball into the box for Tesho Akindele, but Tim Melia was quickly off his line and blocked the shot out for a corner. KC though quickly re-established possession and in the 51st doubled their lead. After receiving the ball in the corner, Jalil Anibaba played a ball on the ground into Nemeth in the box. As he'd been doing all game, Nemeth turned on Hedges to face goal and proceeded to lay a ball off to Feilhaber who was running into the box. Feilhaber made no mistake slotting the ball into the far corner to make it 2-0. Six minutes later, KC made it 3-0. Off a Zusi corner, Ellis got open and ran free into the box heading it into the corner to make it three for Kansas City. Dallas tried to respond immediately off a free kick. Melia came and punched the free kick out of the box, but the cross was recollected and played wide for Kyle Bekker who played a nice cross into the box for Hollingshead, but he couldn't get his header on goal. Eventually it was cleared out for a corner. On the ensuing corner Dallas had another chance, but again couldn't get a shot on goal in the sequence. KC finished off the scoring in the 64th minute after a long ball down field was collected b Connor Hallisey, he cut inside and started dribbling across the face of goal. Zusi made a run the opposite direction and as Zusi passed him, Hallisey backheeled the ball to him. Zusi took a touch and finished past Kennedy to make it 4-0. Shortly after that the air really started to go out of the game as the likes of Mauro Diaz, Akindele, Hallisey, and Roger Espinoza were all subbed out of the game as both teams seemed content with the result the way it was. There were some half chances late on by David Texeira and Saad Abdul-Salaam but the game ended at 4-0 with KC having a dominate performance.
Wizards Man of the Match - Kevin Ellis - Really there's a number of people this could go to for last night's game, from Ellis, to Nemeth, to Zusi, to Feilhaber, to one name I hadn't mentioned yet, Soni Mustivar who did a great job of shutting down Dallas' Diaz. But I'm going with Ellis who was all over the place last night, did a great job of shutting down Dallas' attack along with getting his first MLS goal and an assist.
Honorable Mention - Krisztian Nemeth, Benny Feilhaber
Player Ratings - Melia 6, Anibaba 6, Ellis 8, Besler 7, Dia 5, Mustivar 7, Espinoza 6, Feilhaber 7, Zusi 7, Nemeth 8, Hallisey 6. Subs de Jong 6, Carrasco 5, Abdul-Salaam NR.
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Match Day 13: Friday Night Lights
Sporting KC welcome FC Dallas to Sporting Park for a Friday night match up, the second meeting of the two this season. This will be the first match up for KC this year against an opponent that they have already faced. KC lost the first match up between the two teams 3-1 at Toyota Park back in March.
Dallas sits just three points clear of KC in second place in the tightly packed Western Conference. FC Dallas welcomed a new player this week, Panamanian Rolando Escobar who was out of contract after playing in Venezuela. He's available for selection tomorrow night and could make his debut. One player that looks like they might not be playing is Fabian Castillo who hasn't been training with the team the last couple days. That'd be a big loss for Dallas as Castillo caused KC a number of headaches in the first match up earlier this year. They will still have Mauro Diaz and Blas Perez available for the game and that's plenty enough to cause KC's defense a number of headaches.
For Kansas City it seems like while they're welcoming some players back from injury are losing others. It sounds like Graham Zusi will play a bigger role than he did against Seattle last weekend, and Roger Espinoza is probable. Meanwhile the team has lost Jacob Peterson who left the Seattle game last week with an injury while Dom Dwyer is set to miss his second game in a row due to a neck injury. So KC's injury issues continue with them just rotating through the team. The big question for the lineup may be who starts on the wing opposite Zusi with Peterson out and Krisztian Nemeth in the center forward position. Last week it was Jimmy Medranda in that position, but the other option that Peter Vermes could opt for is giving rookie Connor Hallisey is first professional start.
Number to Remember - 1 - That's the number of wins Peter Vermes is away from his 100th in all competitions for KC. It's also the number of wins that KC has at Sporting Park against FC Dallas, KC is 1-1-1 at home against Dallas since Sporting Park opened. One is also the number of wins they have in their last five games against Dallas, dating back to Dallas' 2011 trip to KC.
Key Match Up - Soni Mustivar vs Mauro Diaz - Diaz is the cog for Dallas' offense, especially with Castillo seemingly not playing tomorrow. Keeping him contained and not giving away cheap free kicks for him to play into the box is key. It's going to be a tough task for Mustivar to handle.
PREDICTION - Even without Castillo, Dallas still has a number of attacking options that will cause problems for KC's back line. The defense showed a lot better against Seattle last week, but at home one would hope that KC will provide a bit more going forward and in possession than they did in Seattle. Dallas does allow goals, they have just one shutout in their last eight games, so there should be some chances for Kansas City. This looks like it could be a case of which team scores last. I'm not sure either team walks out with a win tomorrow though.
SKC - 2 (Nemeth, Feilhaber)
FCD - 2 (Diaz, Perez)
Dallas sits just three points clear of KC in second place in the tightly packed Western Conference. FC Dallas welcomed a new player this week, Panamanian Rolando Escobar who was out of contract after playing in Venezuela. He's available for selection tomorrow night and could make his debut. One player that looks like they might not be playing is Fabian Castillo who hasn't been training with the team the last couple days. That'd be a big loss for Dallas as Castillo caused KC a number of headaches in the first match up earlier this year. They will still have Mauro Diaz and Blas Perez available for the game and that's plenty enough to cause KC's defense a number of headaches.
For Kansas City it seems like while they're welcoming some players back from injury are losing others. It sounds like Graham Zusi will play a bigger role than he did against Seattle last weekend, and Roger Espinoza is probable. Meanwhile the team has lost Jacob Peterson who left the Seattle game last week with an injury while Dom Dwyer is set to miss his second game in a row due to a neck injury. So KC's injury issues continue with them just rotating through the team. The big question for the lineup may be who starts on the wing opposite Zusi with Peterson out and Krisztian Nemeth in the center forward position. Last week it was Jimmy Medranda in that position, but the other option that Peter Vermes could opt for is giving rookie Connor Hallisey is first professional start.
Melia
Anibaba - Ellis - Besler - Dia
Mustivar
Espinoza - Feilhaber
Zusi - Nemeth - Medranda
Number to Remember - 1 - That's the number of wins Peter Vermes is away from his 100th in all competitions for KC. It's also the number of wins that KC has at Sporting Park against FC Dallas, KC is 1-1-1 at home against Dallas since Sporting Park opened. One is also the number of wins they have in their last five games against Dallas, dating back to Dallas' 2011 trip to KC.
Key Match Up - Soni Mustivar vs Mauro Diaz - Diaz is the cog for Dallas' offense, especially with Castillo seemingly not playing tomorrow. Keeping him contained and not giving away cheap free kicks for him to play into the box is key. It's going to be a tough task for Mustivar to handle.
PREDICTION - Even without Castillo, Dallas still has a number of attacking options that will cause problems for KC's back line. The defense showed a lot better against Seattle last week, but at home one would hope that KC will provide a bit more going forward and in possession than they did in Seattle. Dallas does allow goals, they have just one shutout in their last eight games, so there should be some chances for Kansas City. This looks like it could be a case of which team scores last. I'm not sure either team walks out with a win tomorrow though.
SKC - 2 (Nemeth, Feilhaber)
FCD - 2 (Diaz, Perez)
#TBT KC Goes to the Movies (Commercials)
This week's throw back Thursday, I'm going back to 2008, the KC Wizards first season at Community America Ballpark. And just for fun, the club's commercials that they made involving three members of the then Starting Eleven Girls talking about dreams that they had about movies from the 80's that involved KC Wizards players, from Kevin Hartman in 16 Candles to Kerry Zavagnin in Say Anything, to Jimmy Conrad and Sasha Victorine as Maverick and Goose singing "You've Lost that Loving Feeling" from Top Gun.
There's certainly a corniness and cringe factor involving these videos.
Kansas City Wizards: Top Gun from The Offside Rules on Vimeo.
There's certainly a corniness and cringe factor involving these videos.
Kansas City Wizards: Top Gun from The Offside Rules on Vimeo.
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Sapong Scores in Return - Former SKC Wizards Update
CJ Sapong was cleared to return to the Philadelphia Union this week after being suspended for his DUI arrest earlier this season. And he made the most of his return. Coming on in the second half, Sapong finished off the game with a goal in the 62nd minute to help Philadelphia to a 2-0 win over the New York Red Bulls.
Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Scott Angevine
Federico Bessone
Bobby Convey
Will John
Michael Kafari
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Carlos Marinelli
Nelson Pizarro
Ivan Trujillo
Konrad Warzycha
MLS
Davy Arnaud - DC - Started and played 90 minutes in DC's 1-1 draw with New England.
Teal Bunbury - New England - Came off the bench and played 36 minutes in New England's 4-2 loss to KC. Started and played 89 minutes in New England's 1-1 draw with DC.
Aurelien Collin - Orlando City - Did not dress in Orlando's 1-1 draw with San Jose.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Stared and played 90 minutes in RSL's 2-0 win over NYC.
Michael Harrington - Colorado - Dressed but did not play in Colorado's 1-0 win over Vancouver.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 1-0 loss to Toronto.
Eddie Johnson - DC - Out on leave.
Kei Kamara - Columbus - Started and played 89 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Columbus' 2-2 draw with Chicago.
Chris Konopka - Toronto - Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 1-0 win over Portland.
Eric Kronberg - Montreal - Dressed but did not play in Montreal's 2-1 win over Dallas.
CJ Sapong - Philadelphia - Came off the bench and played 36 minutes, scoring a goal in Philadelphia's 2-0 win over New York.
Khari Stephenson - San Jose - Came off the bench and played 22 minutes in San Jose's 1-1 draw with Orlando.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 2-2 draw with Chicago.
Sal Zizzo - New York - Out injured.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Tampa Bay - No game this week.
James Marcelin - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 loss to Carolina.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 4-2 loss to Edmonton.
Kyle Miller - Atlanta - Started and played 84 minutes in Atlanta's 4-2 loss to Edmonton.
USL
Christian Duke - Oklahoma City - Did not play in either of OKC's games.
Brian Fekete - Austin - Started and played 90 minutes, getting a goal and an assist in Austin's 2-0 win over Laredo. Came off the bench and played 21 mintues in Austin's 1-0 loss to Tulsa.
Adnan Gabeljic - Sacramento - Started and played 90 minutes in Sacramento's 4-2 win over Sonoma County. Came off the bench and played 36 minutes, scoring a goal in Sacramento's 2-1 loss to OKC.
Cyprian Hedrick - Oklahoma City - Started and played 90 minutes in OKC's 3-1 win over Midland. Came off the bench and played 1 minutes in OKC's 2-1 win over Sacramento.
Mechack Jerome - Charlotte - Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 4-1 win over Upward Stars. Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 1-1 draw with Chaleston.
Alex Martinez - Charlotte - Did not play in Charlotte's 4-1 win over Upward Stars. Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 1-1 draw with Charleston.
Victor Munoz - Arizona - Did play in either of Arizona's games.
Tony Rocha - Austin - Did not play in either of Austin's games.
Michael Thomas - Oklahoma City - Did not play in OKC's 3-1 win over Midland. Started and played 90 minutes in OKC's 2-1 win over Sacramento.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 2-0 win over Virginia Beach. Did not dress in Richmond's 2-1 loss to Pittsburgh.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Ontario - Offseason.
Adnan Gabeljic - St. Louis - Offseason.
Josh Gardner - Missouri - Offseason.
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason.
Mike Jones - Dallas - Offseason.
Michal Mravec - Tacoma - Offseason.
Boris Pardo - Wichita - Offseason.
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - Auerbach - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes in Auerbach's 4-1 loss to Carl Zeiss Jena.
Vicente Arze - Blooming - Bolivia - Offseason.
Claudio Bieler - Quilmes - Argentina - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring two goals in Quilmes' 3-2 loss to Gimnasia La Plata.
Omar Bravo - Chivas - Mexico - Started and played 68 minutes in Chivas' 0-0 draw with Santos. Started and played 90 minutes in Chivas' 3-0 loss to Santos.
Reinaldo Brenes - Saprissa - Costa Rica - No game this week.
Mitchell Cardenas - Atlético Coatzacoalcos - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Bengaluru - India - Started and played 45 minutes in Bengaluru's 1-1 draw with Dempo. Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Bengaluru's 2-0 loss to South China.
Jorge Claros - Qingdao Jonoon - China - Started and played 90 minutes in Qingdao's 2-1 win over Jiangxi Liansheng.
Eloy Colombano - AD Berazategui - Defeated Argentino Merlo 1-0.
Daneil Cyrus - Ha Noi T&T (W Connection) - Vietnam (Trinidad) - No game until 6/20.
Toni Dovale - CD Lugo - Spain - Started and played 83 minutes in Lugo's 1-1 draw with Numancia. Started and played 90 minutes in Lugo's 1-0 loss to Ponferradina.
Pablo Escobar - Cúcuta Deportivo - Colombia - No game this week.
Herculez Gomez - Puebla - Mexico - Offseason.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Boavista - Brazil - Offseason.
Peterson Joseph - Azam FC - Tanzania - Offseason.
Igor Juliao - ABC (Fluminense) - Brazil - Did not dress in ABC's 1-1 draw with Luverdense.
Igor Kostrov - FK Kyzyl-Zhar - Kazakhstan - Defeated Lashyn 3-0.
Neven Markovic - Servette FC - Switzerland - Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 2-1 loss to FC Schaffhausen. Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 2-1 loss to Le Mont.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 2-1 loss to UFA.
Lawrence Olum - Kedah FA - Malaysia - No game until 6/19.
Akeem Priestley - Sheikh Russel KC - Bangladesh - Offseason.
Pablo Punyed - Stjarnan - Iceland - Started and played 60 minutes in Stjarnan's 2-2 draw with Vikingur Reykjavik. Came off the bench and played 30 minutes in Stjarnan's 1-1 draw with FH.
Oriol Rosell - Sporting Club de Portugal - Portugal - Started and played 90 minutes in Sporting's 1-0 win over Rio Ave.
Soony Saad - BCC Tero (loaned from BEC Tero Sasana FC) - Thailand - Defeated North Bangkok College 1-0.
Peter Schmetz - Wuppertaler SV - Germany - Defeated FC Bocholt 2-0. Tied Hilden 1-1.
Yann Songo'o - Blackburn - England - Offseason.
Martin Steuble - Ceres-La Salle - Philippines - Defeatd Green Archers 4-1.
Milos Stojcev - FK Sarajevo - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Sarajevo's 3-0 win over Vitez.
Matt Taylor - Saarbrücken - Germany - Dressed but did not play in Saarbrucken's 3-0 loss to Wormatia Worms.
Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Scott Angevine
Federico Bessone
Bobby Convey
Will John
Michael Kafari
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Carlos Marinelli
Nelson Pizarro
Ivan Trujillo
Konrad Warzycha
MLS
Davy Arnaud - DC - Started and played 90 minutes in DC's 1-1 draw with New England.
Teal Bunbury - New England - Came off the bench and played 36 minutes in New England's 4-2 loss to KC. Started and played 89 minutes in New England's 1-1 draw with DC.
Aurelien Collin - Orlando City - Did not dress in Orlando's 1-1 draw with San Jose.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Stared and played 90 minutes in RSL's 2-0 win over NYC.
Michael Harrington - Colorado - Dressed but did not play in Colorado's 1-0 win over Vancouver.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 1-0 loss to Toronto.
Eddie Johnson - DC - Out on leave.
Kei Kamara - Columbus - Started and played 89 minutes, scoring 2 goals in Columbus' 2-2 draw with Chicago.
Chris Konopka - Toronto - Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 1-0 win over Portland.
Eric Kronberg - Montreal - Dressed but did not play in Montreal's 2-1 win over Dallas.
CJ Sapong - Philadelphia - Came off the bench and played 36 minutes, scoring a goal in Philadelphia's 2-0 win over New York.
Khari Stephenson - San Jose - Came off the bench and played 22 minutes in San Jose's 1-1 draw with Orlando.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 2-2 draw with Chicago.
Sal Zizzo - New York - Out injured.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Tampa Bay - No game this week.
James Marcelin - Fort Lauderdale - Started and played 90 minutes in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 loss to Carolina.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 4-2 loss to Edmonton.
Kyle Miller - Atlanta - Started and played 84 minutes in Atlanta's 4-2 loss to Edmonton.
USL
Christian Duke - Oklahoma City - Did not play in either of OKC's games.
Brian Fekete - Austin - Started and played 90 minutes, getting a goal and an assist in Austin's 2-0 win over Laredo. Came off the bench and played 21 mintues in Austin's 1-0 loss to Tulsa.
Adnan Gabeljic - Sacramento - Started and played 90 minutes in Sacramento's 4-2 win over Sonoma County. Came off the bench and played 36 minutes, scoring a goal in Sacramento's 2-1 loss to OKC.
Cyprian Hedrick - Oklahoma City - Started and played 90 minutes in OKC's 3-1 win over Midland. Came off the bench and played 1 minutes in OKC's 2-1 win over Sacramento.
Mechack Jerome - Charlotte - Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 4-1 win over Upward Stars. Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 1-1 draw with Chaleston.
Alex Martinez - Charlotte - Did not play in Charlotte's 4-1 win over Upward Stars. Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 1-1 draw with Charleston.
Victor Munoz - Arizona - Did play in either of Arizona's games.
Tony Rocha - Austin - Did not play in either of Austin's games.
Michael Thomas - Oklahoma City - Did not play in OKC's 3-1 win over Midland. Started and played 90 minutes in OKC's 2-1 win over Sacramento.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 2-0 win over Virginia Beach. Did not dress in Richmond's 2-1 loss to Pittsburgh.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Ontario - Offseason.
Adnan Gabeljic - St. Louis - Offseason.
Josh Gardner - Missouri - Offseason.
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason.
Mike Jones - Dallas - Offseason.
Michal Mravec - Tacoma - Offseason.
Boris Pardo - Wichita - Offseason.
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - Auerbach - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes in Auerbach's 4-1 loss to Carl Zeiss Jena.
Vicente Arze - Blooming - Bolivia - Offseason.
Claudio Bieler - Quilmes - Argentina - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring two goals in Quilmes' 3-2 loss to Gimnasia La Plata.
Omar Bravo - Chivas - Mexico - Started and played 68 minutes in Chivas' 0-0 draw with Santos. Started and played 90 minutes in Chivas' 3-0 loss to Santos.
Reinaldo Brenes - Saprissa - Costa Rica - No game this week.
Mitchell Cardenas - Atlético Coatzacoalcos - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Bengaluru - India - Started and played 45 minutes in Bengaluru's 1-1 draw with Dempo. Came off the bench and played 45 minutes in Bengaluru's 2-0 loss to South China.
Jorge Claros - Qingdao Jonoon - China - Started and played 90 minutes in Qingdao's 2-1 win over Jiangxi Liansheng.
Eloy Colombano - AD Berazategui - Defeated Argentino Merlo 1-0.
Daneil Cyrus - Ha Noi T&T (W Connection) - Vietnam (Trinidad) - No game until 6/20.
Toni Dovale - CD Lugo - Spain - Started and played 83 minutes in Lugo's 1-1 draw with Numancia. Started and played 90 minutes in Lugo's 1-0 loss to Ponferradina.
Pablo Escobar - Cúcuta Deportivo - Colombia - No game this week.
Herculez Gomez - Puebla - Mexico - Offseason.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Boavista - Brazil - Offseason.
Peterson Joseph - Azam FC - Tanzania - Offseason.
Igor Juliao - ABC (Fluminense) - Brazil - Did not dress in ABC's 1-1 draw with Luverdense.
Igor Kostrov - FK Kyzyl-Zhar - Kazakhstan - Defeated Lashyn 3-0.
Neven Markovic - Servette FC - Switzerland - Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 2-1 loss to FC Schaffhausen. Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 2-1 loss to Le Mont.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 2-1 loss to UFA.
Lawrence Olum - Kedah FA - Malaysia - No game until 6/19.
Akeem Priestley - Sheikh Russel KC - Bangladesh - Offseason.
Pablo Punyed - Stjarnan - Iceland - Started and played 60 minutes in Stjarnan's 2-2 draw with Vikingur Reykjavik. Came off the bench and played 30 minutes in Stjarnan's 1-1 draw with FH.
Oriol Rosell - Sporting Club de Portugal - Portugal - Started and played 90 minutes in Sporting's 1-0 win over Rio Ave.
Soony Saad - BCC Tero (loaned from BEC Tero Sasana FC) - Thailand - Defeated North Bangkok College 1-0.
Peter Schmetz - Wuppertaler SV - Germany - Defeated FC Bocholt 2-0. Tied Hilden 1-1.
Yann Songo'o - Blackburn - England - Offseason.
Martin Steuble - Ceres-La Salle - Philippines - Defeatd Green Archers 4-1.
Milos Stojcev - FK Sarajevo - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Sarajevo's 3-0 win over Vitez.
Matt Taylor - Saarbrücken - Germany - Dressed but did not play in Saarbrucken's 3-0 loss to Wormatia Worms.
Sporting KC to Face St. Louis FC in the US Open Cup
Sporting Kansas City will have an I-70 Derby for the fourth round of the US Open Cup at Sporting Park. St. Louis FC topped Minnesota United 1-1 (3-1) on penalty kicks to advance to take on KC.
Minnesota started the game on the front foot, pinning St. Louis back in their own end but were unable to take advantage of the early possession. From there though St. Louis controlled things, occasionally testing Mitch Hildebrandt. They also scored in the first half, but the goal was called back for some sort of foul inside the box. The teams went into the half time break level at 0-0.
The second half saw St. Louis continue to dominate play forcing Hildebrandt to make some good saves to keep the score 0-0. St. Louis had some good opportunities, including a cross that was missed at the near post, not collected by Hildebrandt and pinballed in the box before finally being cleared away. Then in the 53rd against the run of play United countered the other way and Geison Moura fired a shot off the post, the rebound fell to JC Banks to knocked the ball into the open net to put Minnesota on top 1-0.
After the goal St. Louis picked up the pressure and for much of the next 20 minutes kept Minnesota pinned back in their own end. Still St. Louis struggled with their shooting and couldn't find the net. Then in the 71st minute, Charles Renken cut around Minnesota's Tyler Polak and into the box, Polak made a lunging tackle, but got Renken bringing him down leading to a penalty kick for St. Louis. Bryan Gaul stepped up for St. Louis and slotted the ball into the corner to make it 1-1. St. Louis controlled the rest of regulation, but were unable to find a winner.
In extra time Minnesota was able to get the ball forward more than they had in second half, but Mark Pais was rarely tested in terms of shots, but did well collecting crosses into the box. In the second period of extra time, both teams played tight with neither side creating much in the way of chances. Things looked to take a big turn in the 114th minute when Gaul was fouled by Ibson near midfield. As Gaul came down after the tackle, Ibson caught his legs in a scissor and didn't let go as Gaul tried to get up to chase the ball. Gaul kicked out out Ibson and was promptly sent off by the referee for the kick, while Ibson got away with a yellow. Even down a man St. Louis pushed for a winner but the two teams went to penalty kicks.
Minnesota shot first, but Daniel Mendes had his shot saved by Pais. Brandon Barklage slotted his shot into the corner to put St. Louis on top. In the second round, Minnesota's Ibson skied his shot over the bar while Patrick Doody slotted his shot into the same corner as Barklage. Up third for Minnesota was US national teamer, Miguel Ibarra, who blasted his shot into the net to get Minnesota on the board at 2-1. Oskar Gasecki equaled Ibarra's effort with a third shot to the same corner to make it 3-1. Needing a goal to extend the shootout though Christian Ramirez fired his shot into the bar and the celebrations were on in St. Louis.
It should make for a fun game on June 16th at Sporting Park, St. Louis fans should travel fairly well and make for a good game.
Minnesota started the game on the front foot, pinning St. Louis back in their own end but were unable to take advantage of the early possession. From there though St. Louis controlled things, occasionally testing Mitch Hildebrandt. They also scored in the first half, but the goal was called back for some sort of foul inside the box. The teams went into the half time break level at 0-0.
The second half saw St. Louis continue to dominate play forcing Hildebrandt to make some good saves to keep the score 0-0. St. Louis had some good opportunities, including a cross that was missed at the near post, not collected by Hildebrandt and pinballed in the box before finally being cleared away. Then in the 53rd against the run of play United countered the other way and Geison Moura fired a shot off the post, the rebound fell to JC Banks to knocked the ball into the open net to put Minnesota on top 1-0.
After the goal St. Louis picked up the pressure and for much of the next 20 minutes kept Minnesota pinned back in their own end. Still St. Louis struggled with their shooting and couldn't find the net. Then in the 71st minute, Charles Renken cut around Minnesota's Tyler Polak and into the box, Polak made a lunging tackle, but got Renken bringing him down leading to a penalty kick for St. Louis. Bryan Gaul stepped up for St. Louis and slotted the ball into the corner to make it 1-1. St. Louis controlled the rest of regulation, but were unable to find a winner.
In extra time Minnesota was able to get the ball forward more than they had in second half, but Mark Pais was rarely tested in terms of shots, but did well collecting crosses into the box. In the second period of extra time, both teams played tight with neither side creating much in the way of chances. Things looked to take a big turn in the 114th minute when Gaul was fouled by Ibson near midfield. As Gaul came down after the tackle, Ibson caught his legs in a scissor and didn't let go as Gaul tried to get up to chase the ball. Gaul kicked out out Ibson and was promptly sent off by the referee for the kick, while Ibson got away with a yellow. Even down a man St. Louis pushed for a winner but the two teams went to penalty kicks.
Minnesota shot first, but Daniel Mendes had his shot saved by Pais. Brandon Barklage slotted his shot into the corner to put St. Louis on top. In the second round, Minnesota's Ibson skied his shot over the bar while Patrick Doody slotted his shot into the same corner as Barklage. Up third for Minnesota was US national teamer, Miguel Ibarra, who blasted his shot into the net to get Minnesota on the board at 2-1. Oskar Gasecki equaled Ibarra's effort with a third shot to the same corner to make it 3-1. Needing a goal to extend the shootout though Christian Ramirez fired his shot into the bar and the celebrations were on in St. Louis.
It should make for a fun game on June 16th at Sporting Park, St. Louis fans should travel fairly well and make for a good game.
Sporting KC Moving Towards Deal with Ledesma?
Back in February, Robb Heineman made a trip to Europe to visit both Frankfurt and Milan. The big news out of that had been the chase for Hamburg midfielder Rafael van der Vaart and attempting to get him to come to KC. While that target appears that it has fallen through and won't happen, a lesser known name that came up at the same time has reemerged as a target for Sporting KC. Cristian Ledesma, an Argentine midfielder who holds Italian citizenship and has played once for the Italian national team.
The 32 year old is a midfielder who after growing up in the Boca Juniors youth system has spent his entire pro career in Italy playing for Lecce and Lazio, appearing 400 times in all competitions for the two teams, including over 300 for Lazio. This year though Ledesma has seen a drop in playing time, appearing only 12 times, starting seven of those for the Roman club.
He will be out of contract this summer, which is something that has been a big point for not just KC, but most MLS teams who are unlikely to want to pay a transfer fee for most players. According to the article, KC is very confident that a deal will be wrapped up soon for the midfielder.
Unlike prior target, van der Vaart, Ledesma plays a deeper role in the midfield, which makes a little more sense for KC with a very in form Benny Feilhaber playing extremely well in the attacking midfield position. With the talent in KC's midfield, Ledesma would likely be expected to come in and take Soni Mustivar's spot as a deep lying midfielder in KC's current 4-3-3 system.
If he comes this summer, it would fill a spot that KC fans have been hoping to address since the departure of Oriol Rosell, and while Mustivar has done a decent job there, upgrading shouldn't be out of the question. The earliest he'd be available would be July 8th when the secondary transfer window opens up for MLS. It's hopefully the first of a couple additions this summer, with the now open roster spot from the departure of Luis Marin, KC should also be looking to add a goalkeeper, and with Ike Opara on IR, his roster spot is open as well for KC to look at adding a center back that would be an upgrade over Kevin Ellis.
Sporting KC, Marin Agree to Terminate Contract, Kempin Recalled
While the rest of the world was focused on the Department of Justice press conference about the charges in the FIFA corruption investigation, Sporting KC made a roster move that while surprising isn't wholly unexpected. The team announced today that they had come to terms with Luis Marin to mutually terminate his contract with the club.
Marin had started the team's first eight games of the season, going 2-2-4 as the starter, allowing 12 goals, a 1.5 goals against average. After the team's 4-4 draw in Houston, where Marin looked less than confident and gave up a bad goal from distance by Giles Barnes, Marin was replaced in goal by back up, Tim Melia. In the four games since then, Melia has gone 2-0-2, allowing just three goals, including a man of the match performance against the Seattle Sounders last weekend.
As I said, it's a surprising move simply because I thought Marin would get more time to settle into the league and lock down the starting position, but it seems Peter Vermes didn't have the patience to wait this one out. And to be fair, it's hard to blame him, Marin looked hesitant and indecisive on coming off his line, especially for crosses on set pieces, six of the goals allowed by KC with Marin in goal came from set pieces, while zero have been scored since Melia stepped into net.
So with Marin gone, the starting spot is now Melia's. He's the fifth goalkeeper to start in goal for KC over the past two years, the same number of starting goalkeepers as the much maligned Philadelphia Union who are made fun of for all their goalkeeping issues. His departure does open up an international slot for KC and at the same time probably opens up some decent cap space for the club as well to utilize in the upcoming summer transfer window.
With the release of Marin, KC has also recalled goalkeeper, Jon Kempin from his loan with the San Antonio Scorpions of the NASL. Kempin had started the first two games of the season for San Antonio, a 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay and 2-1 loss to Indy Eleven, after that he had left for US U23 camp in California. Upon his return, Kempin has been the back up as the Scorpions have gone 2-0-3. Recalling him now keeps Kempin from being cap-tied to the Scorpions for this year's US Open Cup, as they open play tonight against the Austin Aztex.
As long as KC sees Melia as the starter, KC will likely look to fill the third goalkeeper slot with a young, cheap prospect who can be the club's third goalkeeper.
Sunday, May 24, 2015
Sunday After Stats
Not much stat wise from last night, but here they are.
The draw was the 50th in league play for Peter Vermes, he's now just one behind Bob Gansler for the most in KC history.
The draw was the 50th in league play for Peter Vermes, he's now just one behind Bob Gansler for the most in KC history.
KC Escape Seattle with a Point
It certainly wasn't pretty, and at times it was down right ugly, but for just the third time in the regular season, Sporting KC picked up points against the Seattle Sounders. With another undermanned line up that saw KC forced to scratch Dom Dwyer during warm ups due to a neck injury KC played an ugly, but walked out of Century Link Field with a point. Joining Dwyer on the bench from Wednesday's game was Paulo Nagamura who was replaced by Servando Carrasco, although Graham Zusi made the bench and came on as KC's third substitute of the game. It wasn't all good for KC though as they suffered another injury they didn't need as Jacob Peterson left with a hamstring injury in the second half.
Seattle came out and controlled the game from the start, but an issue that plagued them all game was an ability to get shots on goal with all that possession. KC really looked to be the more dangerous of the two sides against the run of play. In the 9th minute off a Matt Besler long throw, KC almost grabbed the lead as the ball made it all the way to Krisztian Nemeth at the back post, but Nemeth seemed a little surprised the ball made it all the way through and didn't get enough power on his shot and it was easily collected by Stefan Frei.
While Seattle wasn't creating a lot of shots on target, Sporting KC goalkeeper Tim Melia was busy having to come off his line to catch, punch and collect crosses by the Sounders. In the 32nd on a cross into the box Melia got just enough on a cross to knock it away from the head of Chad Marshall and away from the area. Seattle recollected the ball on the opposite side of the field and the ball was crossed back in for Lamar Neagle who put his header of the post. As the half wore on Seattle got more and more of the possession, but they still couldn't put a shot on goal in the 36th minute, Brad Evans picked off a pass and raced the opposite direction leading a 4 on 3, but as he got closer to goal Evans fired a shot from about 30 yards out that missed the frame keeping the game scoreless. As the first half ended Seattle had 70% of the possession, much of the early part of it no where near the goal, but near the end of the half they had started to push the game more. Some more possession in the second half was going to be needed for KC to hold off Seattle's attack.
The second half saw Kansas City come out and get forward a bit more, while they still played a more defensive approach, they did get forward at times. In the 51st minute KC had another good opportunity to score after Amadou Dia did a good job of getting space against his defender before playing a cross into the box for Jacob Peterson, but his shot was right at Frei. KC kept trying to hit on the counter, with Jimmy Medranda firing a shot wide of goal. Seattle controlled play, but it took until the 82nd minute for them to record a shot on goal. After a free kick was partially cleared, the all was bicycle-kicked towards goal by Brad Evans. On its way through, Chad Barrett redirected the shot, but Melia was well positioned to make the save and keep the game scoreless. In stoppage time in the second half, Sporting almost Seattle'd Seattle as Feilhaber received the ball about 25 yards from goal, took a touch and fired a shot that was curling towards the far post. Frei though made a great save, knocking the ball over the bar to preserve the tie late for Seattle.
Wizards Man of the Match - Tim Melia - While he only had to make one save all night, Melia did a great job of controlling his area. He was decisive when coming off his line, did well when knowing when to catch and punch the ball. Was well positioned all night.
Honorable Mention - Kevin Ellis - Matt Besler
Player Ratings - Melia 8, Anibaba 7, Ellis 8, Besler 8, Dia 7, Mustivar 7, Carrasco 5, Feilhaber 5, Peterson 5, Nemeth 4, Medranda 5. Subs Hallisey 5, Abdul-Salaam 5, Zusi 6.
Seattle came out and controlled the game from the start, but an issue that plagued them all game was an ability to get shots on goal with all that possession. KC really looked to be the more dangerous of the two sides against the run of play. In the 9th minute off a Matt Besler long throw, KC almost grabbed the lead as the ball made it all the way to Krisztian Nemeth at the back post, but Nemeth seemed a little surprised the ball made it all the way through and didn't get enough power on his shot and it was easily collected by Stefan Frei.
While Seattle wasn't creating a lot of shots on target, Sporting KC goalkeeper Tim Melia was busy having to come off his line to catch, punch and collect crosses by the Sounders. In the 32nd on a cross into the box Melia got just enough on a cross to knock it away from the head of Chad Marshall and away from the area. Seattle recollected the ball on the opposite side of the field and the ball was crossed back in for Lamar Neagle who put his header of the post. As the half wore on Seattle got more and more of the possession, but they still couldn't put a shot on goal in the 36th minute, Brad Evans picked off a pass and raced the opposite direction leading a 4 on 3, but as he got closer to goal Evans fired a shot from about 30 yards out that missed the frame keeping the game scoreless. As the first half ended Seattle had 70% of the possession, much of the early part of it no where near the goal, but near the end of the half they had started to push the game more. Some more possession in the second half was going to be needed for KC to hold off Seattle's attack.
The second half saw Kansas City come out and get forward a bit more, while they still played a more defensive approach, they did get forward at times. In the 51st minute KC had another good opportunity to score after Amadou Dia did a good job of getting space against his defender before playing a cross into the box for Jacob Peterson, but his shot was right at Frei. KC kept trying to hit on the counter, with Jimmy Medranda firing a shot wide of goal. Seattle controlled play, but it took until the 82nd minute for them to record a shot on goal. After a free kick was partially cleared, the all was bicycle-kicked towards goal by Brad Evans. On its way through, Chad Barrett redirected the shot, but Melia was well positioned to make the save and keep the game scoreless. In stoppage time in the second half, Sporting almost Seattle'd Seattle as Feilhaber received the ball about 25 yards from goal, took a touch and fired a shot that was curling towards the far post. Frei though made a great save, knocking the ball over the bar to preserve the tie late for Seattle.
Wizards Man of the Match - Tim Melia - While he only had to make one save all night, Melia did a great job of controlling his area. He was decisive when coming off his line, did well when knowing when to catch and punch the ball. Was well positioned all night.
Honorable Mention - Kevin Ellis - Matt Besler
Player Ratings - Melia 8, Anibaba 7, Ellis 8, Besler 8, Dia 7, Mustivar 7, Carrasco 5, Feilhaber 5, Peterson 5, Nemeth 4, Medranda 5. Subs Hallisey 5, Abdul-Salaam 5, Zusi 6.
Friday, May 22, 2015
Match Day 12: Sporting Visit Their Bogey Team
Sporting KC come off a short week headed into Seattle to take on the Sounders at Century Link Field. After KC's 4-2 win over New England, KC headed to Seattle to take on a team that KC has beaten just one time since the Sounders began playing in the league. KC is 1-7-1 in league play and 1-8-2 in all competitions against the Sounders. KC has gone eight games in league play and now 10 in all competitions without a win against Seattle since taking the first ever meeting between the teams 1-0. That's the longest streak without a win against a team in club history.
Part of the reason that KC has always struggled with Seattle is that they're just consistently a good team, the defending Supporters' Shield champions have a front line that can cause any back line fits with the likes of Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins. And even with Martins set to miss out on the game this weekend due to injury, it doesn't make Seattle any less dangerous. They're also a strong defensive team with Chad Marshall enjoying a resurgence here after struggling his last year or two in Columbus. The Sounders are all around a solid team that will cause KC plenty of issues all over the field.
That'll be especially true of a KC team that is still short on players and coming off a midweek game.It appears that KC could get Graham Zusi back in the lineup this week as he has traveled with the team after missing Wednesday's game while recovering from a concussion. KC though will still likely be missing Marcel de Jong, Roger Espinoza, and Seth Sinovic all are still recovering from injury at this point. If Zusi can't start, and I'm not sure he will be able to, KC looks set to likely start the same lineup that started against the Revolution on Wednesday, simply because of a lack of options.
Number to Remember - 0 - That's the number of games in this series decided by more than one goal. Every game in this series has seen either a one goal win or a draw.
Bonus Number - 5 - That's the number of game winners that Seattle has against KC in stoppage time since 2010. There's a reason that KC fans always dread the final minutes of the game against Seattle.
Key Match Up - Benny Feilhaber vs Osvaldo Alonso - Alonso has been one of the best defensive midfielders in the league since coming in with the Sounders. Doing so has earned him a designated player contract with the Sounders. He'll be matching up against arguably one of the league favorites in the early season for MVP in Feilhaber.
PREDICTION - KC has been playing better as of late, especially offensively, but with the short rest and the shorter bench right now, I'm just not sure that Sporting has the legs to go with Seattle over the course of 90 minutes tomorrow night. The Sounders, even without Martins are going to cause KC's back line a lot of problems tomorrow night. Going the other way, KC will get their chances, I just don't think the defense is strong enough right now to win this for KC.
SKC - 1 (Nemeth)
SEA - 2 (Dempsey, Barrett)
Part of the reason that KC has always struggled with Seattle is that they're just consistently a good team, the defending Supporters' Shield champions have a front line that can cause any back line fits with the likes of Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins. And even with Martins set to miss out on the game this weekend due to injury, it doesn't make Seattle any less dangerous. They're also a strong defensive team with Chad Marshall enjoying a resurgence here after struggling his last year or two in Columbus. The Sounders are all around a solid team that will cause KC plenty of issues all over the field.
That'll be especially true of a KC team that is still short on players and coming off a midweek game.It appears that KC could get Graham Zusi back in the lineup this week as he has traveled with the team after missing Wednesday's game while recovering from a concussion. KC though will still likely be missing Marcel de Jong, Roger Espinoza, and Seth Sinovic all are still recovering from injury at this point. If Zusi can't start, and I'm not sure he will be able to, KC looks set to likely start the same lineup that started against the Revolution on Wednesday, simply because of a lack of options.
Melia
Anibaba - Ellis - Besler - Dia
Mustivar
Nagamura - Feilhaber
Peterson - Dwyer - Nemeth
Number to Remember - 0 - That's the number of games in this series decided by more than one goal. Every game in this series has seen either a one goal win or a draw.
Bonus Number - 5 - That's the number of game winners that Seattle has against KC in stoppage time since 2010. There's a reason that KC fans always dread the final minutes of the game against Seattle.
Key Match Up - Benny Feilhaber vs Osvaldo Alonso - Alonso has been one of the best defensive midfielders in the league since coming in with the Sounders. Doing so has earned him a designated player contract with the Sounders. He'll be matching up against arguably one of the league favorites in the early season for MVP in Feilhaber.
PREDICTION - KC has been playing better as of late, especially offensively, but with the short rest and the shorter bench right now, I'm just not sure that Sporting has the legs to go with Seattle over the course of 90 minutes tomorrow night. The Sounders, even without Martins are going to cause KC's back line a lot of problems tomorrow night. Going the other way, KC will get their chances, I just don't think the defense is strong enough right now to win this for KC.
SKC - 1 (Nemeth)
SEA - 2 (Dempsey, Barrett)
Nemeth Called Up by Hungary
Sporting KC is struggling with numbers heading into this weekend's game against the Seattle Sounders in Seattle. In two weeks' time when Seattle comes to KC, Sporting could be struggling with numbers again for another reason. The game falls right at the beginning on the FIFA international window for national team games.
Sporting will already be down Erik Palmer-Brown for the U20 World Cup, but there's the potential for Matt Besler, Roger Espinoza, Soni Mustivar, Graham Zusi (unlikely), and Benny Feilhaber (won't but absolutely should). One new name to add to that list has already been announced. Hungarian coach, Pal Dardai has named his team for a pair of upcoming games. Included in that roster is Sporting KC's leading scorer, Krisztian Nemeth.
Nemeth, whose two goals on Wednesday night gave him five on the season, would miss out on the game against Seattle at Sporting Park on June 6th as Hungary has a friendly the day before in Debrecen against Lithuania. A little over a week later, they have a Euro 2016 qualifier in Helsinki against Finland on the 13th. Currently Hungary sits third in their qualifying group on eight points, four behind Northern Ireland, who sit in a qualification spot and four points clear of fourth place Finland.
Nemeth, who confirmed the call up on his Twitter account, has not appeared for the Hungarian national team in over a year and a half. His last cap came on October 15th of 2013 when Hungary defeated Andorra 2-0 in Budapest. He'd also been part of the Hungarian team that got thrashed by the Netherlands four days earlier 8-1.
It'll be a big blow for KC as Nemeth is playing extremely well for KC right now, but it's good to see him work his way back to the national team.
Thursday, May 21, 2015
#TBT Vermes First Win
While yesterday's game didn't turn out to be Sporting KC's Peter Vermes' 100th win in all competitions like I'd originally said, I thought this would be a good thing to look at in this week's Throw Back Thursday. With Vermes just one win away I thought we'd take a look at Vermes' first win as head coach of the then KC Wizards.
It's funny and would have been amazingly poetic if last night had been Vermes' 100th win as Sporting played the exact same opponent, the New England Revolution, that Vermes got his first win against back in 2009. Not only was it the same opponent, but the game finished with the same score as last night's game, 4-2 in favor of KC.
Vermes had been in charge of the Wizards for three games heading into a game at Gillette Stadium to take on the New England Revolution on September 5th, 2009, having taken over as the head coach after firing Curt Onalfo after the 6-0 thrashing in Dallas on August 1st of that year. In the three games he'd been in charge KC was 0-3 and had yet to score a goal. In fact, KC had not won in seven league games since a 3-1 win at home against the same Revolution on June 13th. Add in three SuperLiga games where KC went 0-1-2 and two US Open Cup games where KC went 0-1-1 (advancing on PKs over Minnesota) KC was actually 12 games without a win. KC had scored just one goal since that win over the Revolution, a midfield blast from Claudio Lopez in a 1-1 draw with the Galaxy. Heading into the game against the Revolution, KC had gone 424 minutes without scoring a goal. The team record for a single season was 427 set in 2000, so if KC didn't score in the first three minutes they'd set a new team record. (You can read more of the stats from that horrible winless run in my old entry.)
Two players that started that game in 2009 actually started the game last night in KC, as Matt Besler started at center back with Jimmy Conrad and Brad Knighton started in goal for New England during his first stint with the Revs. Vermes' counterpart last night, Jay Heaps also played a role in the game, starting in the Revolution defense.
I'd mentioned that KC needed to score in the first three minutes to avoid setting a new single season scoreless record, well in the third minute, Josh Wolff muscled Darius Barnes off the ball as KC raced towards goal, Wolff tried to touch the ball away but it deflected into the middle for Lopez who made no mistake scoring to put KC on top in just the third minute and see the team only tie the record for longest single season goalless streak. KC caused plenty of early problems for New England, but the Revs withstood the early push and were able to create chances of their own. KC though caught a break in the 23rd minute when a heavy touch by Sharlie Joseph saw the ball get away from him and Jack Jewsbury step in to try to win it. Joseph came into the challenge with his studs showing and was sent off for his effort as KC was going to get to finish the game with a man advantage. It didn't take long for KC to take advantage of the man advantage, in the 29th, Wolff did a great job of dribbling through two Revolution defenders and before the ball crossed the end line played the ball back into the middle towards Davy Arnaud, but the ball was knocked into the Revolution's own net by their current coach, Heaps. KC went into the break up 2-0.
In the second half it was the Revolution who were able to cut into the lead first, with Edgaras Jankauskas hitting a fantastic volley from outside the box, over Kevin Hartman and into the net to make it 2-1 in the 64th minute. KC almost had the quick response as Lopez got in behind the Revolution defense, but Knighton came off his line well and blocked Lopez's effort. KC made it 3-2 in the 73rd, with Wolff again being involved and this time getting the goal that he deserved for his work on the night as Lopez played him into the box. Knighton was off his line well, but couldn't hold onto the ball and Wolff turned and fired the ball into the net to make it 3-1. The Revolution refused to go away though and in the 81st again brought the game within a goal as Sanna Nyassi played a good cross into the box where Kheli Dube beat Conrad to the ball and headed it past Hartman to make it 3-2. While New England pushed for the equalizer, it was KC that struck again to close the game off as Chance Myers received the ball out wide and played a curling ball to the back post that Wolff fired into the net to make it 4-2 in second half stoppage time as Vermes finally got his first win for KC.
It wouldn't be a pretty end to the season after that win though. KC would win just two of their remaining eight games and finish with just 33 points and ahead of only New York in the conference standings.
Here's how the lineup looked for the team that date and the highlights are below that.
Kevin Hartman, Matt Besler, Lance Watson, Michael Harrington, Jimmy Conrad, Herculez Gomez (Chance Myers 63), Santiago Hirsig, Jack Jewsbury, Claudio Lopez (Graham Zusi 89), Davy Arnaud, Josh Wolff (Zoltan Hercegfalvi 93+).
It's funny and would have been amazingly poetic if last night had been Vermes' 100th win as Sporting played the exact same opponent, the New England Revolution, that Vermes got his first win against back in 2009. Not only was it the same opponent, but the game finished with the same score as last night's game, 4-2 in favor of KC.
Vermes had been in charge of the Wizards for three games heading into a game at Gillette Stadium to take on the New England Revolution on September 5th, 2009, having taken over as the head coach after firing Curt Onalfo after the 6-0 thrashing in Dallas on August 1st of that year. In the three games he'd been in charge KC was 0-3 and had yet to score a goal. In fact, KC had not won in seven league games since a 3-1 win at home against the same Revolution on June 13th. Add in three SuperLiga games where KC went 0-1-2 and two US Open Cup games where KC went 0-1-1 (advancing on PKs over Minnesota) KC was actually 12 games without a win. KC had scored just one goal since that win over the Revolution, a midfield blast from Claudio Lopez in a 1-1 draw with the Galaxy. Heading into the game against the Revolution, KC had gone 424 minutes without scoring a goal. The team record for a single season was 427 set in 2000, so if KC didn't score in the first three minutes they'd set a new team record. (You can read more of the stats from that horrible winless run in my old entry.)
Two players that started that game in 2009 actually started the game last night in KC, as Matt Besler started at center back with Jimmy Conrad and Brad Knighton started in goal for New England during his first stint with the Revs. Vermes' counterpart last night, Jay Heaps also played a role in the game, starting in the Revolution defense.
I'd mentioned that KC needed to score in the first three minutes to avoid setting a new single season scoreless record, well in the third minute, Josh Wolff muscled Darius Barnes off the ball as KC raced towards goal, Wolff tried to touch the ball away but it deflected into the middle for Lopez who made no mistake scoring to put KC on top in just the third minute and see the team only tie the record for longest single season goalless streak. KC caused plenty of early problems for New England, but the Revs withstood the early push and were able to create chances of their own. KC though caught a break in the 23rd minute when a heavy touch by Sharlie Joseph saw the ball get away from him and Jack Jewsbury step in to try to win it. Joseph came into the challenge with his studs showing and was sent off for his effort as KC was going to get to finish the game with a man advantage. It didn't take long for KC to take advantage of the man advantage, in the 29th, Wolff did a great job of dribbling through two Revolution defenders and before the ball crossed the end line played the ball back into the middle towards Davy Arnaud, but the ball was knocked into the Revolution's own net by their current coach, Heaps. KC went into the break up 2-0.
In the second half it was the Revolution who were able to cut into the lead first, with Edgaras Jankauskas hitting a fantastic volley from outside the box, over Kevin Hartman and into the net to make it 2-1 in the 64th minute. KC almost had the quick response as Lopez got in behind the Revolution defense, but Knighton came off his line well and blocked Lopez's effort. KC made it 3-2 in the 73rd, with Wolff again being involved and this time getting the goal that he deserved for his work on the night as Lopez played him into the box. Knighton was off his line well, but couldn't hold onto the ball and Wolff turned and fired the ball into the net to make it 3-1. The Revolution refused to go away though and in the 81st again brought the game within a goal as Sanna Nyassi played a good cross into the box where Kheli Dube beat Conrad to the ball and headed it past Hartman to make it 3-2. While New England pushed for the equalizer, it was KC that struck again to close the game off as Chance Myers received the ball out wide and played a curling ball to the back post that Wolff fired into the net to make it 4-2 in second half stoppage time as Vermes finally got his first win for KC.
It wouldn't be a pretty end to the season after that win though. KC would win just two of their remaining eight games and finish with just 33 points and ahead of only New York in the conference standings.
Here's how the lineup looked for the team that date and the highlights are below that.
Kevin Hartman, Matt Besler, Lance Watson, Michael Harrington, Jimmy Conrad, Herculez Gomez (Chance Myers 63), Santiago Hirsig, Jack Jewsbury, Claudio Lopez (Graham Zusi 89), Davy Arnaud, Josh Wolff (Zoltan Hercegfalvi 93+).
Movsisyan Linked with a Move Back to MLS - Former SKC Wizards Update
Yura Movsisyan has created a solid career for himself in Europe after leaving MLS after the 2009 MLS season. After a success move to Denmark, Movsisyan moved to Russia and eventually joined Spartak Moscow. Movsisyan had success originally at Spartak, but this has been hampered by a knee injury that required surgery. Since his return, Movsisyan has struggled to get consistent time. This has led to speculation of an exit, and that speculation has led to questions about whether he could return to the US. Movsisyan sounds like he'd be receptive to the move, but he currently still has two years left on his deal and there certainly would be interest in Europe still for his services.
Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Scott Angevine
Federico Bessone
Bobby Convey
Will John
Michael Kafari
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Carlos Marinelli
Nelson Pizarro
Ivan Trujillo
Konrad Warzycha
MLS
Davy Arnaud - DC - Started and played 90 minutes in DC's 2-1 win over Orlando. Came off the bench and played 10 minutes in DC's 1-0 loss to Philadelphia.
Teal Bunbury - New England - Started and played 90 minutes in New England's 1-1 draw with Toronto.
Aurelien Collin - Orlando City - Started and played 67 minutes, recording an assist in Orlando's 2-1 loss to DC. Did not dress in Orlando's 4-0 win over LA.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 90 minutes in RSL's 4-1 loss to Montreal.
Michael Harrington - Colorado - Game postponed due to weather.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 3-1 loss to Houston.
Eddie Johnson - DC - Out on leave.
Kei Kamara - Columbus - Started and played 83 minutes in Columbus' 2-0 loss to San Jose.
Chris Konopka - Toronto - Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 3-2 win over Montreal. Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 1-1 draw with New England.
Eric Kronberg - Montreal - Started and played 90 minutes in Montreal's 3-2 loss to Toronto. Dressed but did not play in Montreal's 4-1 win over RSL.
CJ Sapong - Philadelphia - Suspended.
Khari Stephenson - San Jose - Came off the bench and played 9 minutes in San Jose's 2-0 win over Columbus.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 2-0 loss to San Jose.
Sal Zizzo - New York - Out injured.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Tampa Bay - Started and played 90 minutes in Tampa's 1-0 win over Fort Lauderdale.
James Marcelin - Fort Lauderdale - Dressed but did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 loss to Tampa Bay.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 1-1 draw with Jacksonville.
Kyle Miller - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 1-1 draw with Jacksonville.
USL
Christian Duke - Oklahoma City - Did not play in OKC's 3-1 loss to Seattle. Did not play in OKC's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Brian Fekete - Austin - Came off the bench and played 55 minutes in Austin's 3-2 loss to Arizona.
Adnan Gabeljic - Sacramento - Did not play in Sacramento's 1-0 win over LA.
Cyprian Hedrick - Oklahoma City - Did not play in OKC's 3-1 loss to Seattle. Did not play in OKC's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Mechack Jerome - Charlotte - Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 2-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Alex Martinez - Charlotte - Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 2-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Victor Munoz - Arizona - Did not play in Arizona's 3-2 win over Austin.
Tony Rocha - Austin - Did not play in Austin's 3-2 los to Arizona.
Michael Thomas - Oklahoma City - Started and played 90 minutes in OKC's 3-1 loss to Seattle. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in OKC's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 68 minutes in Richmond's 1-1 draw with Pittsburgh.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Ontario - Offseason.
Adnan Gabeljic - St. Louis - Offseason.
Josh Gardner - Missouri - Offseason.
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason.
Mike Jones - Dallas - Offseason.
Michal Mravec - Tacoma - Offseason.
Boris Pardo - Wichita - Offseason.
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - Auerbach - Germany - Did not play in either of Auerbach's games.
Vicente Arze - Blooming - Bolivia - Did not play in Blooming's 2-0 win over Nacional Potosi.
Claudio Bieler - Quilmes - Argentina - No game this week.
Omar Bravo - Chivas - Mexico - Started and played 90 minutes in Chivas' 0-0 draw with Atlas. Started and played 89 minutes, scoring a goal in Chivas' 4-1 win over Atlas.
Reinaldo Brenes - Saprissa - Costa Rica - Did not dress in either of Saprissa's games.
Mitchell Cardenas - Atlético Coatzacoalcos - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Bengaluru - India - Started and played 90 minutes in Bengaluru's 3-1 win over Salgaocar.
Jorge Claros - Qingdao Jonoon - China - Started and played 61 minutes in Qingdao's 1-0 win over Changchun Yatai. Defeated Xinjiang Tianshan Leopard 2-1.
Eloy Colombano - AD Berazategui - No game this week.
Daneil Cyrus - Ha Noi T&T (W Connection) - Vietnam (Trinidad) - No game until 6/20.
Toni Dovale - CD Lugo - Spain - Started and played 63 minutes in Lugo's 5-1 loss to Real Betis.
Pablo Escobar - Cúcuta Deportivo - Colombia - Started and played 90 minutes in Cucuta's 2-2 draw with Atletico Nacional.
Herculez Gomez - Puebla - Mexico - Offseason.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Boavista - Brazil - Offseason.
Peterson Joseph - Azam FC - Tanzania - Offseason.
Igor Juliao - ABC (Fluminense) - Brazil - Did not dress in either of ABC's games.
Igor Kostrov - FK Kyzyl-Zhar - Kazakhstan - Lost 1-0 to Spartak Semey.
Neven Markovic - Servette FC - Switzerland - Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 3-1 win over Wohlen.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 4-0 loss to CSKA Moscow.
Lawrence Olum - Kedah FA - Malaysia - No game until 6/19.
Akeem Priestley - Sheikh Russel KC - Bangladesh - Offseason.
Pablo Punyed - Stjarnan - Iceland - Started and played 90 minutes in Stjarnan's 1-1 draw with Leiknir Reykjavik.
Oriol Rosell - Sporting Club de Portugal - Portugal - Did not dress in Sporting's 4-1 win over Sporting Braga.
Soony Saad - BCC Tero (loaned from BEC Tero Sasana FC) - Thailand - Defeated Kasem Bundit University 1-0.
Peter Schmetz - Wuppertaler SV - Germany - Tied Germania Ratingen 0-0.
Yann Songo'o - Blackburn - England - Offseason.
Martin Steuble - Ceres-La Salle - Philippines - No game this week.
Milos Stojcev - FK Sarajevo - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Sarajevo's 2-0 win over Radnik Bijeljina. Started and played 82 minutes in Sarajevo's 0-0 draw with Zeljeznicar.
Matt Taylor - Saarbrücken - Germany - Started and played 45 minutes in Saarbrucken's 2-0 win over Neckarelz.
Here's the rest of this week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Scott Angevine
Federico Bessone
Bobby Convey
Will John
Michael Kafari
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Carlos Marinelli
Nelson Pizarro
Ivan Trujillo
Konrad Warzycha
MLS
Davy Arnaud - DC - Started and played 90 minutes in DC's 2-1 win over Orlando. Came off the bench and played 10 minutes in DC's 1-0 loss to Philadelphia.
Teal Bunbury - New England - Started and played 90 minutes in New England's 1-1 draw with Toronto.
Aurelien Collin - Orlando City - Started and played 67 minutes, recording an assist in Orlando's 2-1 loss to DC. Did not dress in Orlando's 4-0 win over LA.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 90 minutes in RSL's 4-1 loss to Montreal.
Michael Harrington - Colorado - Game postponed due to weather.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 3-1 loss to Houston.
Eddie Johnson - DC - Out on leave.
Kei Kamara - Columbus - Started and played 83 minutes in Columbus' 2-0 loss to San Jose.
Chris Konopka - Toronto - Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 3-2 win over Montreal. Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 1-1 draw with New England.
Eric Kronberg - Montreal - Started and played 90 minutes in Montreal's 3-2 loss to Toronto. Dressed but did not play in Montreal's 4-1 win over RSL.
CJ Sapong - Philadelphia - Suspended.
Khari Stephenson - San Jose - Came off the bench and played 9 minutes in San Jose's 2-0 win over Columbus.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Dressed but did not play in Columbus' 2-0 loss to San Jose.
Sal Zizzo - New York - Out injured.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Tampa Bay - Started and played 90 minutes in Tampa's 1-0 win over Fort Lauderdale.
James Marcelin - Fort Lauderdale - Dressed but did not play in Fort Lauderdale's 1-0 loss to Tampa Bay.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 1-1 draw with Jacksonville.
Kyle Miller - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 1-1 draw with Jacksonville.
USL
Christian Duke - Oklahoma City - Did not play in OKC's 3-1 loss to Seattle. Did not play in OKC's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Brian Fekete - Austin - Came off the bench and played 55 minutes in Austin's 3-2 loss to Arizona.
Adnan Gabeljic - Sacramento - Did not play in Sacramento's 1-0 win over LA.
Cyprian Hedrick - Oklahoma City - Did not play in OKC's 3-1 loss to Seattle. Did not play in OKC's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Mechack Jerome - Charlotte - Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 2-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Alex Martinez - Charlotte - Started and played 90 minutes in Charlotte's 2-0 loss to Harrisburg.
Victor Munoz - Arizona - Did not play in Arizona's 3-2 win over Austin.
Tony Rocha - Austin - Did not play in Austin's 3-2 los to Arizona.
Michael Thomas - Oklahoma City - Started and played 90 minutes in OKC's 3-1 loss to Seattle. Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in OKC's 2-2 draw with Vancouver.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 68 minutes in Richmond's 1-1 draw with Pittsburgh.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Ontario - Offseason.
Adnan Gabeljic - St. Louis - Offseason.
Josh Gardner - Missouri - Offseason.
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason.
Mike Jones - Dallas - Offseason.
Michal Mravec - Tacoma - Offseason.
Boris Pardo - Wichita - Offseason.
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - Auerbach - Germany - Did not play in either of Auerbach's games.
Vicente Arze - Blooming - Bolivia - Did not play in Blooming's 2-0 win over Nacional Potosi.
Claudio Bieler - Quilmes - Argentina - No game this week.
Omar Bravo - Chivas - Mexico - Started and played 90 minutes in Chivas' 0-0 draw with Atlas. Started and played 89 minutes, scoring a goal in Chivas' 4-1 win over Atlas.
Reinaldo Brenes - Saprissa - Costa Rica - Did not dress in either of Saprissa's games.
Mitchell Cardenas - Atlético Coatzacoalcos - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Bengaluru - India - Started and played 90 minutes in Bengaluru's 3-1 win over Salgaocar.
Jorge Claros - Qingdao Jonoon - China - Started and played 61 minutes in Qingdao's 1-0 win over Changchun Yatai. Defeated Xinjiang Tianshan Leopard 2-1.
Eloy Colombano - AD Berazategui - No game this week.
Daneil Cyrus - Ha Noi T&T (W Connection) - Vietnam (Trinidad) - No game until 6/20.
Toni Dovale - CD Lugo - Spain - Started and played 63 minutes in Lugo's 5-1 loss to Real Betis.
Pablo Escobar - Cúcuta Deportivo - Colombia - Started and played 90 minutes in Cucuta's 2-2 draw with Atletico Nacional.
Herculez Gomez - Puebla - Mexico - Offseason.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Boavista - Brazil - Offseason.
Peterson Joseph - Azam FC - Tanzania - Offseason.
Igor Juliao - ABC (Fluminense) - Brazil - Did not dress in either of ABC's games.
Igor Kostrov - FK Kyzyl-Zhar - Kazakhstan - Lost 1-0 to Spartak Semey.
Neven Markovic - Servette FC - Switzerland - Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 3-1 win over Wohlen.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Did not dress in Spartak's 4-0 loss to CSKA Moscow.
Lawrence Olum - Kedah FA - Malaysia - No game until 6/19.
Akeem Priestley - Sheikh Russel KC - Bangladesh - Offseason.
Pablo Punyed - Stjarnan - Iceland - Started and played 90 minutes in Stjarnan's 1-1 draw with Leiknir Reykjavik.
Oriol Rosell - Sporting Club de Portugal - Portugal - Did not dress in Sporting's 4-1 win over Sporting Braga.
Soony Saad - BCC Tero (loaned from BEC Tero Sasana FC) - Thailand - Defeated Kasem Bundit University 1-0.
Peter Schmetz - Wuppertaler SV - Germany - Tied Germania Ratingen 0-0.
Yann Songo'o - Blackburn - England - Offseason.
Martin Steuble - Ceres-La Salle - Philippines - No game this week.
Milos Stojcev - FK Sarajevo - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Sarajevo's 2-0 win over Radnik Bijeljina. Started and played 82 minutes in Sarajevo's 0-0 draw with Zeljeznicar.
Matt Taylor - Saarbrücken - Germany - Started and played 45 minutes in Saarbrucken's 2-0 win over Neckarelz.
Sporting KC to Host US Open Cup Fourth Round
For the fifth straight year, Sporting KC will host a US Open Cup game at Sporting Park, tonight was the draw to see which teams KC could be matched up with when KC enters the tournament in its fourth round.
As most fans expected, Sporting KC will match up against the winner of USL side St. Louis FC and NASL side, Minnesota United. Those two teams play next week in St. Louis at St. Louis Soccer Park. The winner will travel to play at Sporting Park on June 16th.
It could be the second straight year that KC and Minnesota meet in the Open Cup as KC won the match up last year 2-0 with two second half goals in a game that saw Sporting switch to their training jerseys at half time due to color conflicts with the visitors. It'll actually be the fourth time that KC will play a team from Minnesota, KC lost to the Minnesota Thunder in 2005, then defeated the Thunder in 2009 on penalty kicks 4-2 after a 3-3 draw before last year's game.
A match up against St. Louis FC would see KC play their first competitive game against a team from the opposite side of the state of Missouri. Sporting back when they were the Wizards played a home and away friendly series against then US Soccer D2 side, AC St. Louis in 2010 winning the two games 2-0 and 2-1 is the last time KC has played against a team from St. Louis.
It is a little disappointing with the regional set up of the tournament that KC could see themselves matched up with the team they played last year, but it's an understandable one. Sorry to my Minnesota friends, but I'm cheering for a match up against St. Louis FC.
As most fans expected, Sporting KC will match up against the winner of USL side St. Louis FC and NASL side, Minnesota United. Those two teams play next week in St. Louis at St. Louis Soccer Park. The winner will travel to play at Sporting Park on June 16th.
It could be the second straight year that KC and Minnesota meet in the Open Cup as KC won the match up last year 2-0 with two second half goals in a game that saw Sporting switch to their training jerseys at half time due to color conflicts with the visitors. It'll actually be the fourth time that KC will play a team from Minnesota, KC lost to the Minnesota Thunder in 2005, then defeated the Thunder in 2009 on penalty kicks 4-2 after a 3-3 draw before last year's game.
A match up against St. Louis FC would see KC play their first competitive game against a team from the opposite side of the state of Missouri. Sporting back when they were the Wizards played a home and away friendly series against then US Soccer D2 side, AC St. Louis in 2010 winning the two games 2-0 and 2-1 is the last time KC has played against a team from St. Louis.
It is a little disappointing with the regional set up of the tournament that KC could see themselves matched up with the team they played last year, but it's an understandable one. Sorry to my Minnesota friends, but I'm cheering for a match up against St. Louis FC.
S.A.S. Thursday After Stats
Krisztian Nemeth's first goal of the night was the 500th scored at home in league play for Kansas City.
Saad Abdul-Salaam was the 187th player to appear in a league game for KC. In all competitions he was the 193rd player to appear in a game.
The 11 players that have made their debut for KC this season is the most since KC had 13 appear in league play and 14 in all competitions in 2011.
Dom Dwyer's goal was his 28th in league play for KC, tying him with Digital Takawira and Scott Sealy for 7th place on that list.
His goal was his 32nd in all competitions for KC, tying him with Mo Johnston for 6th place on that list.
Dwyer's goal was his 16th at home in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Takawira for 8th place on that list.
It was his 18th in all competitions for KC at home, breaking his tie with CJ Sapong for 8th on that list.
Benny Feilhaber's assist was his 16th in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Claudio Lopez and Chris Henderson for 15th on that list. His second assist gave him 17 in league play, tying him with Matt McKeon and Jose Burciaga for 13th on that list.
It was his 22nd assist in all competitions, breaking his tie with Jack Jewsbury and Kei Kamara for 9th place on that list.
Edit: Previously I'd stated that Peter Vermes got his 100th win in all competitions last night. I had doubled counted a win for him from 2009, he is actually on 99 wins now.
Undermanned Sporting Quell the Revolution
Sporting KC came from a goal down, and then ran over the New England Revolution on their way to a 4-2 win over their Eastern Conference opponent last night at Sporting Park. While Sporting was undermanned for the game due to injury, New England opted to rest a number of starters ahead of a big game this weekend against DC.
New England actually came out as the more aggressive side, taking the game to KC from the opening whistle, Diego Fagundez had a header go off the post in just the third minute, but the Revolution midfielder was judged to have been offside. In the ninth minute, Fagundez had another good chance as he found himself with space running down the middle and latched onto a cross from London Woodberry, but his one timer was wide of Tim Melia's post. The early pressured paid off in the 11th minute when Benny Feilhaber gave the ball away at midfield while trying to thread a pass through. Kelyn Rowe intercepted the pass and immediately played a through ball for Juan Agudelo who got behind Kevin Ellis. Agudelo raced to the top of the box, cut past a sliding Ellis and got a shot off right as Matt Besler challenged him that beat Melia and gave the Revolution the deserved early lead. KC really should have been level in the 18th minute after Besler played Jacob Peterson in with a nice ball over the top. Peterson had Revolution goalkeeper, Brad Knighton come and challenge him, leaving the goal wide open as Peterson played the ball back to an on coming Feilhaber. Instead of shooting, Feilhaber touched the ball off to Dom Dwyer who had his effort blocked, a big missed early chance for KC to tie things up. KC thought they should have had a penalty in the 27th as Paulo Nagamura tried to get onto a loose ball in the box, getting knocked away by Revolution midfielder, Scott Caldwell, but referee Allen Chapman made no call and play continued. A couple minutes later though KC was finally level. Some good possession down the right eventually found the ball at the feet of Krisztian Nemeth near the corner of the box. Nemeth played a nice little chip into the middle of the box for Dwyer who was marked by Jermaine Jones. The American international missed on the header as Dwyer popped the ball up with his chest, turned and fired the ball into the opposite corner to tie the game at 1-1.
With the goal KC continued to press forward, controlling much of the game as they kept the Revolution pinned back in their end. In the 39th KC grabbed the lead off a free kick, as Feilhaber curled a ball right into the box where Nemeth was completely unmarked and his flick header beat Knighton to make it 2-1 KC. Three minutes later, KC won a chance to make it three as they were awarded a penalty kick. Dwyer had run onto a long ball played into the box with Revolution defender, Jose Goncalves on his back, Dwyer reaches the ball, first and cuts it back attempting to get Goncalves to run past him. The Revolution defender pulls back on his shoulder as he does, but Dwyer stays on his feet and dribbles away from goal a bit. As the "advantage" on the play is lost, Chapman calls the play back and gave the penalty for the shoulder tug on Goncalves. Feilhaber stepped up and buried the penalty kick to make it 3-1 ahead of the half time break.
As the second half started KC quickly won the ball off the Revolution and Feilhaber played a ball over the top for Jacob Peterson who raced down the wing, knocking Kevin Alston off the ball and immediately squaring it to an open Nemeth who slotted the ball into the corner to make it 4-1 KC less than 30 seconds into the second half. KC kept working and almost got a fifth in the 55th minute after a quick throw from Nemeth found Feilhaber who dribbled the ball into the box and laid it back for Peterson, but his shot went just wide of the near post. The Revolution got themselves a life line in the 64th minute after a good ball down KC's left side, Charlie Davies played the ball back towards the penalty spot for an unmarked Caldwell who beat Melia and made it 4-2 in KC's favor. No one in the midfield had tracked the run of Caldwell who had plenty of time to get his head up and put the ball away.
With the goal the Revolution started to take momentum back as they won a number of free kicks and corner kicks deep in KC's end. Many of them didn't test Melia in goal, but they gave the Revolution a number of good looks at goal that KC has to avoid. They've given away way too many set pieces and way too many goals from set pieces this year. The Revolution's best of their free kicks came in the 82nd when substitute Chris Tierney curled a free kick that bounced right in front of Melia who had to get down and push it away and out for a corner. KC was able to create a couple chances on the counter, the best coming in the 84th when Nemeth picked out an open Connor Hallisey as he raced down the right side. Getting into the box though Hallisey just couldn't beat Knighton who knocked the ball out for a corner. The goal wasn't needed though as KC was able to cruise to the 4-2 win.
Wizards Man of the Match - Krisztian Nemeth - Two goals and an assist for the Hungarian, a good night at the office, was all over the place, and should have had another assist on the Hallisey chance late on.
Honorable Mention - Benny Feilhaber
Player Ratings - Melia 5, Dia 5, Besler 5, Ellis 5, Anibaba 5, Mustivar 6, Nagamura 6, Feilhaber 8, Peterson 7, Dwyer 7, Nemeth 8. Subs Hallisey 5, Carrasco NR, Abdul-Salaam NR.
New England actually came out as the more aggressive side, taking the game to KC from the opening whistle, Diego Fagundez had a header go off the post in just the third minute, but the Revolution midfielder was judged to have been offside. In the ninth minute, Fagundez had another good chance as he found himself with space running down the middle and latched onto a cross from London Woodberry, but his one timer was wide of Tim Melia's post. The early pressured paid off in the 11th minute when Benny Feilhaber gave the ball away at midfield while trying to thread a pass through. Kelyn Rowe intercepted the pass and immediately played a through ball for Juan Agudelo who got behind Kevin Ellis. Agudelo raced to the top of the box, cut past a sliding Ellis and got a shot off right as Matt Besler challenged him that beat Melia and gave the Revolution the deserved early lead. KC really should have been level in the 18th minute after Besler played Jacob Peterson in with a nice ball over the top. Peterson had Revolution goalkeeper, Brad Knighton come and challenge him, leaving the goal wide open as Peterson played the ball back to an on coming Feilhaber. Instead of shooting, Feilhaber touched the ball off to Dom Dwyer who had his effort blocked, a big missed early chance for KC to tie things up. KC thought they should have had a penalty in the 27th as Paulo Nagamura tried to get onto a loose ball in the box, getting knocked away by Revolution midfielder, Scott Caldwell, but referee Allen Chapman made no call and play continued. A couple minutes later though KC was finally level. Some good possession down the right eventually found the ball at the feet of Krisztian Nemeth near the corner of the box. Nemeth played a nice little chip into the middle of the box for Dwyer who was marked by Jermaine Jones. The American international missed on the header as Dwyer popped the ball up with his chest, turned and fired the ball into the opposite corner to tie the game at 1-1.
With the goal KC continued to press forward, controlling much of the game as they kept the Revolution pinned back in their end. In the 39th KC grabbed the lead off a free kick, as Feilhaber curled a ball right into the box where Nemeth was completely unmarked and his flick header beat Knighton to make it 2-1 KC. Three minutes later, KC won a chance to make it three as they were awarded a penalty kick. Dwyer had run onto a long ball played into the box with Revolution defender, Jose Goncalves on his back, Dwyer reaches the ball, first and cuts it back attempting to get Goncalves to run past him. The Revolution defender pulls back on his shoulder as he does, but Dwyer stays on his feet and dribbles away from goal a bit. As the "advantage" on the play is lost, Chapman calls the play back and gave the penalty for the shoulder tug on Goncalves. Feilhaber stepped up and buried the penalty kick to make it 3-1 ahead of the half time break.
As the second half started KC quickly won the ball off the Revolution and Feilhaber played a ball over the top for Jacob Peterson who raced down the wing, knocking Kevin Alston off the ball and immediately squaring it to an open Nemeth who slotted the ball into the corner to make it 4-1 KC less than 30 seconds into the second half. KC kept working and almost got a fifth in the 55th minute after a quick throw from Nemeth found Feilhaber who dribbled the ball into the box and laid it back for Peterson, but his shot went just wide of the near post. The Revolution got themselves a life line in the 64th minute after a good ball down KC's left side, Charlie Davies played the ball back towards the penalty spot for an unmarked Caldwell who beat Melia and made it 4-2 in KC's favor. No one in the midfield had tracked the run of Caldwell who had plenty of time to get his head up and put the ball away.
With the goal the Revolution started to take momentum back as they won a number of free kicks and corner kicks deep in KC's end. Many of them didn't test Melia in goal, but they gave the Revolution a number of good looks at goal that KC has to avoid. They've given away way too many set pieces and way too many goals from set pieces this year. The Revolution's best of their free kicks came in the 82nd when substitute Chris Tierney curled a free kick that bounced right in front of Melia who had to get down and push it away and out for a corner. KC was able to create a couple chances on the counter, the best coming in the 84th when Nemeth picked out an open Connor Hallisey as he raced down the right side. Getting into the box though Hallisey just couldn't beat Knighton who knocked the ball out for a corner. The goal wasn't needed though as KC was able to cruise to the 4-2 win.
Wizards Man of the Match - Krisztian Nemeth - Two goals and an assist for the Hungarian, a good night at the office, was all over the place, and should have had another assist on the Hallisey chance late on.
Honorable Mention - Benny Feilhaber
Player Ratings - Melia 5, Dia 5, Besler 5, Ellis 5, Anibaba 5, Mustivar 6, Nagamura 6, Feilhaber 8, Peterson 7, Dwyer 7, Nemeth 8. Subs Hallisey 5, Carrasco NR, Abdul-Salaam NR.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
Match Day 11: Cross Conference Game with a Shortened Lineup
After Saturday's game against Colorado was postponed, Sporting KC will try to get their eleventh game of the season in tomorrow night at Sporting Park against the New England Revolution. This will be the only meeting between the two teams this year after they met three times last year, with the Revolution winning all three, including a 3-2 win last year at Sporting Park as KC slumped down the stretch.
New England come into tomorrow's game having drawn their last two league games, 2-2 in Orlando and 1-1 against Toronto, both times blowing leads to allow the opposing team to escape with points. Still, the Revolution are a strong team that will cause KC plenty of problems. Their attack is certainly one that KC can cause KC all sorts of problems with pace. From Charlie Davies and Juan Agudelo up top to Teal Bunbury and Diego Fagundez on the wing to Lee Nguyen and Kelyn Rowe in midfield, the Revolution have a number of ways that they can cause KC problems on defense. Like KC though, they have what could be considered a more important game on the weekend when they're scheduled to host DC United in a battle for first place in the East. So while the Revolution won't lay down in KC, they may rest a couple of guys so that they are fresh for the weekend Conference game.
Right now KC wishes they could have the luxury of resting players for their weekend class against the Seattle Sounders. With all the injury news that came out today and the announcement that Saad Abdul-Salaam was recalled from his loan, KC will be lucky if they'll be able to dress a full 18 for the game tomorrow. With those injuries though, KC should only have to make two changes from the originally submitted lineup for the game against Colorado. Seth Sinovic is out as the team is treating the illness/injury that forced him to be a late scratch against Colorado as a potential concussion and he will miss out. The other is a change not forced by injury, but by national team duty, as Erik Palmer-Brown left for Australia to join the US U20 team in their preparations for this summer's U20 World Cup. Kevin Ellis is the obvious choice to slide back into the starting 11 at center back with Matt Besler.
Number to Remember - 6 - That's how many points over the last two weeks these two teams have left on the table. KC's 1-1 draw with DC, while New England had the 2-2 draw with Orlando and 1-1 draw with Toronto.
Key Match Up - Matt Besler and Kevin Ellis vs Charlie Davies/Juan Agudelo - With the weekend game it's a little hard to predict who will be up top for New England, but both Davies and Agudelo will cause KC's back line plenty of problems. It'll be a big test especially on Ellis who will be looking to reestablish himself at the center back position after being disposed by Palmer-Brown before his departure.
PREDICTION - Both teams have games that more important on the weekend against conference rivals, so both likely will hold back just a little in tomorrow's game. For the game itself though, I just feel like even with an eye towards the weekend, New England just has too much attacking power either in the starting 11 or on the bench for KC's back line to really contain. This is going to have to be another game where the offense is really going to have to show up for KC to take points from this one, and I'm just not fully confident in the offense to do that yet.
SKC - 1 (Nemeth)
NE - 2 (Rowe, Bunbury)
New England come into tomorrow's game having drawn their last two league games, 2-2 in Orlando and 1-1 against Toronto, both times blowing leads to allow the opposing team to escape with points. Still, the Revolution are a strong team that will cause KC plenty of problems. Their attack is certainly one that KC can cause KC all sorts of problems with pace. From Charlie Davies and Juan Agudelo up top to Teal Bunbury and Diego Fagundez on the wing to Lee Nguyen and Kelyn Rowe in midfield, the Revolution have a number of ways that they can cause KC problems on defense. Like KC though, they have what could be considered a more important game on the weekend when they're scheduled to host DC United in a battle for first place in the East. So while the Revolution won't lay down in KC, they may rest a couple of guys so that they are fresh for the weekend Conference game.
Right now KC wishes they could have the luxury of resting players for their weekend class against the Seattle Sounders. With all the injury news that came out today and the announcement that Saad Abdul-Salaam was recalled from his loan, KC will be lucky if they'll be able to dress a full 18 for the game tomorrow. With those injuries though, KC should only have to make two changes from the originally submitted lineup for the game against Colorado. Seth Sinovic is out as the team is treating the illness/injury that forced him to be a late scratch against Colorado as a potential concussion and he will miss out. The other is a change not forced by injury, but by national team duty, as Erik Palmer-Brown left for Australia to join the US U20 team in their preparations for this summer's U20 World Cup. Kevin Ellis is the obvious choice to slide back into the starting 11 at center back with Matt Besler.
Melia
Anibaba - Ellis - Besler - Dia
Mustivar
Feilhaber - Nagamura
Peterson - Dwyer - Nemeth
Number to Remember - 6 - That's how many points over the last two weeks these two teams have left on the table. KC's 1-1 draw with DC, while New England had the 2-2 draw with Orlando and 1-1 draw with Toronto.
Key Match Up - Matt Besler and Kevin Ellis vs Charlie Davies/Juan Agudelo - With the weekend game it's a little hard to predict who will be up top for New England, but both Davies and Agudelo will cause KC's back line plenty of problems. It'll be a big test especially on Ellis who will be looking to reestablish himself at the center back position after being disposed by Palmer-Brown before his departure.
PREDICTION - Both teams have games that more important on the weekend against conference rivals, so both likely will hold back just a little in tomorrow's game. For the game itself though, I just feel like even with an eye towards the weekend, New England just has too much attacking power either in the starting 11 or on the bench for KC's back line to really contain. This is going to have to be another game where the offense is really going to have to show up for KC to take points from this one, and I'm just not fully confident in the offense to do that yet.
SKC - 1 (Nemeth)
NE - 2 (Rowe, Bunbury)
With Injuries Mounting, Sporting Recall Abdul-Salaam
The injury bug is once again hitting Kansas City bad, so bad in fact that Sporting Kansas City has recalled outside back Saad Abdul-Salaam from his loan to NASL side, the San Antonio Scorpions. Abdul-Salaam has started five of San Antonio's six games so far this season, all as a right back for the defending champions.
His recall is forced for KC as they could be down to just 17 players (including Abdul-Salaam) for tomorrow's game against the New England Revolution at Sporting Park. Already down Chance Myers and Ike Opara due to long term injuries and Erik Palmer-Brown to the U20 World Cup, KC is down a number of others as well. Marcel de Jong, Roger Espinoza, and Graham Zusi are all recovering from the injuries that kept them out of the game day 18 for Saturday's scheduled game against Colorado. Joining them is Seth Sinovic who was a late scratch in that game apparently still affected by the head injury he picked up in DC as well as Bernardo Anor who hasn't appeared in the 18 over the past few games for KC as he is injured as well. The injury bug is so bad it's made its way to Oklahoma City where Mikey Lopez, loaned to the Energy is also injured and could not be recalled.
KC's thin roster will definitely be tested over the next few days with KC not only having to face the Revolution who is second in the Eastern Conference, but also having to face the Seattle Sounders in Seattle on Saturday night. A tough stretch for KC to handle with such a thin roster right now, maybe the cancellation of the Colorado game was a godsend.
The number of injuries though does bring up a question, how has KC gotten to this point two years in a row. From the time that Peter Vermes took over in August of 2009 until the end of the 2013 season, KC had been a fairly consistent team in terms of health. They didn't have a lot of players miss a lot of matches. Over the last season plus, KC has had a complete reversal of fortunes with a number of injuries causing all sorts of problems for Vermes and his staff. But what really has changed in that time frame?
One thing that hasn't changed, but at least could be pointed to as an effect last season, was simply the lack of down time players got between seasons for Sporting as KC ended the 2013 season in early December and was back in came a little over a month later. At the same time a number of Sporting players joined the US national team less than a month after the season ended for national team camp. Does that explain all the issues the team has had with injuries? Certainly not, but it does at least give a point to look at for the 2014 season, when the team played 43 games across all competitions, plus a friendly.
But what's caused it to carry over to 2015, when most of the team had about two and a half months off before preseason for 2015 started? It starts to make some question whether it's a practice and work rate issue, similar to the issues that hounded Preki when he was head coach at Chivas USA. After a year or so in charge, Preki's Chivas team always seemed to have issues with injuries with a number of players missing long lengths of time. But Vermes has had a set up in place really since he became the full time head coach in 2010, and that's when fitness coach Mateus Manoel also came on and joined the team. Have training practices changed in the last year or so? Are players getting overworked and is that leading to more injuries?
To be fair, at the same time a couple of the injuries you can't put on the coaching staff, for example the head injuries that both Sinovic and Zusi picked up in DC. While you can argue that the players shouldn't have stayed on the field, you can't specifically blame the training for those injuries, and with Lopez in OKC, you can't really blame Vermes for the injury to a player that is not there. You can also look at the fact that KC is not the only ones that have been suffering from a seemingly larger number of injuries this year, with the likes of Salt Lake and LA also having a number of injury issues.
Still, there has to be some concern about the fact that KC continues to suffer from an injury crisis multiple times over the course of the season for the second straight season.
Sporting KC to Make-Up Rapids Game in October
Sporting Kansas City announced the make-up date for last Saturday's scheduled game against the Colorado Rapids. The game, which had been canceled due to weather on Saturday night, will now be made up on Wednesday October 21st at 7:30pm.
The game now falls between Sporting KC's last road trip of the season and their last home game. Sporting will be on the road Friday, October 16th in San Jose to take on the Earthquakes. After traveling back home and playing the Rapids on the 21st, KC ends the season at home on Sunday the 25th against the LA Galaxy.
The Rapids meanwhile are off the weekend before the game, playing October 10th at home against the Montreal Impact in their last game before the trip to KC. They end their season on the road on the 25th as well with a trip to Portland.
One question after the cancellation of the game would be the roster that had been handed in for the game. Since the game had not officially started but rosters had been handed in, there were questions on whether KC and Colorado would be forced to use the same 18 they had submitted for the game on Saturday. There was confirmation today that the teams will be able to choose a new 18 man roster for the game. That's good news for KC which should be able to count on the list of Graham Zusi and Roger Espinoza being back and available for that game.
Sunday, May 17, 2015
Sporting KC and Colorado Postponed Due to Weather
After an hour delay to the start of last night's game, and a forecast that saw more storms move in later in the evening, last night's Sporting KC game against the Colorado Rapids was postponed to a later date.
MLS rules on game postponements state that games that are delayed have to be restarted before 12am local time and must finish before 1am. With the fact that the game hadn't started and more storms moving into the area, there was no way the team would have been able to kick off before 11:15pm or so to get the full game plus stoppage time in before the 1am deadline.
League rules also state that the game should be replayed today, 5/17. That though was ruled out as an option last night because of Sporting KC's upcoming schedule. The team already has a league game scheduled for Wednesday at home against New England and a game next Saturday scheduled against Seattle so Peter Vermes was probably very adamant about not playing the game today.
The game is actually the third postponement due to weather in KC's history, the second at home. Back in 1998 a game between the Wizards and DC United at Arrowhead on June 20th was canceled in the 53rd minute and was made up in full over two months later on August 26th. KC also had a game against the Chicago Fire in the US Open Cup on August 2nd of 2006 delayed for two weeks until the 14th after thunderstorms postponed the game.
As for the potential make up game, KC and Colorado have two weekends where both teams are off, June 13-14 and September 5-6. If the two teams can't agree to play on either of those dates, the likely date will be some time in the middle of the week.
MLS rules on game postponements state that games that are delayed have to be restarted before 12am local time and must finish before 1am. With the fact that the game hadn't started and more storms moving into the area, there was no way the team would have been able to kick off before 11:15pm or so to get the full game plus stoppage time in before the 1am deadline.
League rules also state that the game should be replayed today, 5/17. That though was ruled out as an option last night because of Sporting KC's upcoming schedule. The team already has a league game scheduled for Wednesday at home against New England and a game next Saturday scheduled against Seattle so Peter Vermes was probably very adamant about not playing the game today.
The game is actually the third postponement due to weather in KC's history, the second at home. Back in 1998 a game between the Wizards and DC United at Arrowhead on June 20th was canceled in the 53rd minute and was made up in full over two months later on August 26th. KC also had a game against the Chicago Fire in the US Open Cup on August 2nd of 2006 delayed for two weeks until the 14th after thunderstorms postponed the game.
As for the potential make up game, KC and Colorado have two weekends where both teams are off, June 13-14 and September 5-6. If the two teams can't agree to play on either of those dates, the likely date will be some time in the middle of the week.
Saturday, May 16, 2015
Fiorentina in on Palmer-Brown Chase?
For well over a year now we've been hearing rumors about teenage center back, Erik Palmer-Brown moving to Juventus in the Italian league. It's become a topic of discussion on a certain Italian writers page every three months or so, without anything new really ever being added to the conversation. With Palmer-Brown having turned 18 now though the restricts that had kept him from moving abroad when he was still a minor are gone and the length of his stay in KC is certainly something that can be questioned. Palmer-Brown himself even played a bit of a troll yesterday on "Jersey Friday" at Sporting KC practice wearing a personalized Juventus jersey in the team photo.
While Juventus has been the primary topic of rumors about Palmer-Brown, it appears another Italian club could be trying to come in and make a deal. Reports out of Italy are that Fiorentina is also after the young center back. Mentioned at the end of the article, Palmer-Brown is one of three Americans in MLS mentioned as potential targets of the Florence club along with Orlando's Amobi Okugo and Chicago's Michael Stephens.
The third of those three names mentioned though does give me a little pause in regards to this rumor, as Stephens only recently returned to MLS from an okay run with Norwegian club Stabaek. He doesn't have the profile of a player I'd see as a target of the Europa League semifinalists.
That said it doesn't surprise me that more clubs would be interested in Palmer-Brown, the article also mentions that Oriol Rosell's new club, Sporting Club of Portugal is also interested in trying to get him. Basically it means that we're likely in for a summer full of plenty of Palmer-Brown to Europe rumors, especially if he has himself a solid U20 World Cup in New Zealand.
While Juventus has been the primary topic of rumors about Palmer-Brown, it appears another Italian club could be trying to come in and make a deal. Reports out of Italy are that Fiorentina is also after the young center back. Mentioned at the end of the article, Palmer-Brown is one of three Americans in MLS mentioned as potential targets of the Florence club along with Orlando's Amobi Okugo and Chicago's Michael Stephens.
The third of those three names mentioned though does give me a little pause in regards to this rumor, as Stephens only recently returned to MLS from an okay run with Norwegian club Stabaek. He doesn't have the profile of a player I'd see as a target of the Europa League semifinalists.
That said it doesn't surprise me that more clubs would be interested in Palmer-Brown, the article also mentions that Oriol Rosell's new club, Sporting Club of Portugal is also interested in trying to get him. Basically it means that we're likely in for a summer full of plenty of Palmer-Brown to Europe rumors, especially if he has himself a solid U20 World Cup in New Zealand.
Friday, May 15, 2015
Match Day 11: A Game KC Should Have
Sporting KC welcome the Colorado Rapids to Kansas City for the first time in two years this weekend when the two renew a rivalry that is the most played across all competitions for Kansas City. Tomorrow's game will be the 67th time in all competitions that KC and Colorado have faced off against each other.
The Rapids come into the game having gone five games without a win, they've drawn their last four games, all by a 1-1 score line, and before that, fell 3-1 to Colorado. The last year or so for the Rapids has been a struggle though for Pablo Mastroeni, as they've won just one of their last 24 league matches, a 4-0 over Dallas earlier this year. Before that, the Rapids had not won a game since July of 2014 when they beat Chivas USA. They are 1-14-9 in that stretch, with seven of those draws coming in their 10 games this season. Even with that record though, Dillon Powers could cause plenty of trouble for KC's midfield and Gabriel Torres and recently acquired forward, Luis Solignac could cause trouble for KC's back line.
For KC, they're going to have to make some lineup adjustments from last week's game against DC. The biggest of those is Graham Zusi who is out this week after suffering a concussion in last week's draw with DC. His logical replacement would be Krisztian Nemeth coming back into the starting 11 after starting the DC game on the bench. On the other wing, Jacob Peterson could keep his spot, or Peter Vermes could opt for a more offense inserting someone like Jimmy Medranda. On defense, it looks like U20 international, Erik Palmer-Brown will get another start at center back, as he delayed joining the US U20 team for training ahead of the U20 World Cup to stay in KC for this game. There is a last minute worry with a report that Roger Espinoza picked up a knock in training, if he can go, KC's midfield looks a lot thinner and Servando Carrasco would seem likely to come into the lineup with Paulo Nagamura also questionable.
Number to Remember - 1 - I already mentioned that Colorado has just one win in their last 24 MLS games. On top of that, Colorado has just one win in KC since 2002. That one win was in a US Open Cup qualifier back in 2010. KC is 10-1-5 at home against the Rapids in that stretch. It's also the number of league losses that KC has at home against the Rapids since the end of the shootout after the 1999 season, that one loss came in 2002.
Key Match Up - Dom Dwyer vs Axel Sjoberg - Despite Dwyer's lack of size, KC has relied a lot on the long ball over the top to the Englishman to attempt to hold up. With the 6'7" Swede in central defense for Colorado tomorrow, that's going to be an even tougher task for Dwyer to deal with.
PREDICTION - With the schedule really picking up for Kansas City after this with games against New England, Dallas, two against Seattle, and an Open Cup game, likely against Minnesota United, this is a chance for KC to pick up points at home against an inferior opponent. While Colorado is unbeaten on the road, it's true, KC is the better team than Colorado, especially at home. The question is whether KC can find the scoring to prove it in the scoreline. Unfortunately I'm not really sure they do, and Colorado plays to their fifth straight draw.
SKC - 1 (Dwyer)
CO - 1 (Torres)
The Rapids come into the game having gone five games without a win, they've drawn their last four games, all by a 1-1 score line, and before that, fell 3-1 to Colorado. The last year or so for the Rapids has been a struggle though for Pablo Mastroeni, as they've won just one of their last 24 league matches, a 4-0 over Dallas earlier this year. Before that, the Rapids had not won a game since July of 2014 when they beat Chivas USA. They are 1-14-9 in that stretch, with seven of those draws coming in their 10 games this season. Even with that record though, Dillon Powers could cause plenty of trouble for KC's midfield and Gabriel Torres and recently acquired forward, Luis Solignac could cause trouble for KC's back line.
For KC, they're going to have to make some lineup adjustments from last week's game against DC. The biggest of those is Graham Zusi who is out this week after suffering a concussion in last week's draw with DC. His logical replacement would be Krisztian Nemeth coming back into the starting 11 after starting the DC game on the bench. On the other wing, Jacob Peterson could keep his spot, or Peter Vermes could opt for a more offense inserting someone like Jimmy Medranda. On defense, it looks like U20 international, Erik Palmer-Brown will get another start at center back, as he delayed joining the US U20 team for training ahead of the U20 World Cup to stay in KC for this game. There is a last minute worry with a report that Roger Espinoza picked up a knock in training, if he can go, KC's midfield looks a lot thinner and Servando Carrasco would seem likely to come into the lineup with Paulo Nagamura also questionable.
Melia
Anibaba - EPB - Besler - Sinovic
Mustivar
Feilhaber - Espinoza
Peterson - Dwyer - Nemeth
Number to Remember - 1 - I already mentioned that Colorado has just one win in their last 24 MLS games. On top of that, Colorado has just one win in KC since 2002. That one win was in a US Open Cup qualifier back in 2010. KC is 10-1-5 at home against the Rapids in that stretch. It's also the number of league losses that KC has at home against the Rapids since the end of the shootout after the 1999 season, that one loss came in 2002.
Key Match Up - Dom Dwyer vs Axel Sjoberg - Despite Dwyer's lack of size, KC has relied a lot on the long ball over the top to the Englishman to attempt to hold up. With the 6'7" Swede in central defense for Colorado tomorrow, that's going to be an even tougher task for Dwyer to deal with.
PREDICTION - With the schedule really picking up for Kansas City after this with games against New England, Dallas, two against Seattle, and an Open Cup game, likely against Minnesota United, this is a chance for KC to pick up points at home against an inferior opponent. While Colorado is unbeaten on the road, it's true, KC is the better team than Colorado, especially at home. The question is whether KC can find the scoring to prove it in the scoreline. Unfortunately I'm not really sure they do, and Colorado plays to their fifth straight draw.
SKC - 1 (Dwyer)
CO - 1 (Torres)
Thursday, May 14, 2015
#TBT The US Trip to KC in 2001
With the announcement today that the US U23 team will be coming to Kansas City as part of Olympic qualifying ahead of the 2016 Olympics in Brazil, I thought I'd take a look bad at the second time the US team has played in KC. Back in 2001, the USA made their first trip to Kansas City in almost 33 years on April 25th of that year. The last time the US had been in KC had been for a World Cup qualifier against Bermuda that saw the US win 6-2.
In 2001 it was again a World Cup qualifier, but this time against Costa Rica at Arrowhead Stadium. A crowd of 37,219, the largest soccer crowd in Kansas City history (a record that would last until the KC Wizards played Manchester United in 2010) was on hand to watch the US play. At the time it was the largest midweek qualifier crowd in US Soccer history, and looking back on it now a look into what type of soccer community there could really be in KC.
The US had the better of the possession in the early going of the game, but couldn't really capitalize on it with an early goal. The best early chance for the US came in the 16th minute when Claudio Renya played a nice ball over the top to Josh Wolff who brought the ball down nicely and chipped it over the Costa Rican goalkeeper only to have it cleared off the line by the defense before it could fully cross the line. Wolff was proving to be a menace for the Costa Rican defense throughout the half with his pace. Still the US went into the break level at 0-0.
The second half saw the US continue to be the better side, creating the better opportunities, but Costa Rica started to find some space of their own. Kasey Keller in the US net was called on to make some decent saves. Finally in the 70th minute the US broke through. A corner by Jeff Agoos was only partially cleared back to Agoos who played the ball immediately back into the box towards Clint Mathis. Mathis won the ball off his defender, but as the two were coming down the ball hit off the arm of Mathis right into the path of Wolff, who with an open goal, poked it into the net to give the US the lead. The Costa Ricans were shouting for a hand ball, but no call came. Now chasing the game, Costa Rica were the ones that pushed the game over the final 20 minutes, but the US defense held firm and were able to secure all three points in the third straight game to kick off the Hex as the US would go on to qualify for the 2002 World Cup. The loss would actually be Costa Rica's only loss of the Hex as they would win it with 23 points compared to the 17 points that the US and Mexico both finished with.
Here's the USA's lineup for the game, and highlights are further down.
Keller
Regis
Agoos
Llamosa
Cherundolo
Armas
Stewart
Reyna (c) (Berhalter)
Sanneh
Mathis (Lewis)
Wolff-1 (Razov)
In 2001 it was again a World Cup qualifier, but this time against Costa Rica at Arrowhead Stadium. A crowd of 37,219, the largest soccer crowd in Kansas City history (a record that would last until the KC Wizards played Manchester United in 2010) was on hand to watch the US play. At the time it was the largest midweek qualifier crowd in US Soccer history, and looking back on it now a look into what type of soccer community there could really be in KC.
The US had the better of the possession in the early going of the game, but couldn't really capitalize on it with an early goal. The best early chance for the US came in the 16th minute when Claudio Renya played a nice ball over the top to Josh Wolff who brought the ball down nicely and chipped it over the Costa Rican goalkeeper only to have it cleared off the line by the defense before it could fully cross the line. Wolff was proving to be a menace for the Costa Rican defense throughout the half with his pace. Still the US went into the break level at 0-0.
The second half saw the US continue to be the better side, creating the better opportunities, but Costa Rica started to find some space of their own. Kasey Keller in the US net was called on to make some decent saves. Finally in the 70th minute the US broke through. A corner by Jeff Agoos was only partially cleared back to Agoos who played the ball immediately back into the box towards Clint Mathis. Mathis won the ball off his defender, but as the two were coming down the ball hit off the arm of Mathis right into the path of Wolff, who with an open goal, poked it into the net to give the US the lead. The Costa Ricans were shouting for a hand ball, but no call came. Now chasing the game, Costa Rica were the ones that pushed the game over the final 20 minutes, but the US defense held firm and were able to secure all three points in the third straight game to kick off the Hex as the US would go on to qualify for the 2002 World Cup. The loss would actually be Costa Rica's only loss of the Hex as they would win it with 23 points compared to the 17 points that the US and Mexico both finished with.
Here's the USA's lineup for the game, and highlights are further down.
Keller
Regis
Agoos
Llamosa
Cherundolo
Armas
Stewart
Reyna (c) (Berhalter)
Sanneh
Mathis (Lewis)
Wolff-1 (Razov)
Sporting Park Set to Host Olympic Qualifying
Sporting Park is set again to host international matches. The KC Star is reporting that Sporting Park will be announced today as one of the hosts for this fall's CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament. This would be the second cycle in a row that Sporting Park has hosted qualifying, last time; the stadium hosted the semifinals and the final of the tournament. This year though Rio Tinto Stadium in Salt Lake is supposed to be the host of the semifinals and finals.
The stadium has proven over the years to be a good home to the US team as the full men's team is 3-0 at Sporting Park, while the women are 1-0-1 in their two games here. The event means that Sporting Park will continue its streak of hosting a US team each year the stadium has been open.
It could be a chance for KC fans to see goalkeeper Jon Kempin, who has been in camp with the US U23 team on a number of occasions, even earning a call up to the full national team camp in January this past year with a number of U23 players. With the other likely goalkeeper, Cody Cropper potentially in Europe with his club team during the stretch of the tournament, Kempin could be in for plenty of game time.
I know the last time these games were here it was quite enjoyable, even though the US wasn't there, the El Salvador vs Honduras game was really fun.
Sporting Park though will be guaranteed the US team this time, as the Star reports that Sporting Park will get two double headers for Group A, which will contain the US U23 team. The first doubleheader would take place on October 1st; with the second one would be October 3rd. The other teams that will join Group A won't be known until August when the draw takes place.
The stadium has proven over the years to be a good home to the US team as the full men's team is 3-0 at Sporting Park, while the women are 1-0-1 in their two games here. The event means that Sporting Park will continue its streak of hosting a US team each year the stadium has been open.
It could be a chance for KC fans to see goalkeeper Jon Kempin, who has been in camp with the US U23 team on a number of occasions, even earning a call up to the full national team camp in January this past year with a number of U23 players. With the other likely goalkeeper, Cody Cropper potentially in Europe with his club team during the stretch of the tournament, Kempin could be in for plenty of game time.
I know the last time these games were here it was quite enjoyable, even though the US wasn't there, the El Salvador vs Honduras game was really fun.
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Reports of Johnson's Impending Retirement Continue - Former SKC Wizards Update
Reports that former KC Wizards forward continue to build and while no official word on his announcement has been made, it seems it will be only a matter of time before the 31 year old is officially announced as having retired from soccer.
Here's the rest of his week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Scott Angevine
Federico Bessone
Bobby Convey
Will John
Michael Kafari
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Carlos Marinelli
Nelson Pizarro
Ivan Trujillo
Konrad Warzycha
MLS
Davy Arnaud - DC - Started and played 90 minutes in DC's 1-1 draw with KC.
Teal Bunbury - New England - Started and played 90 minutes in New England's 2-2 draw with Orlando.
Aurelien Collin - Orlando City - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Orlando's 2-2 draw with New England.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 90 minutes in RSL's 0-0 draw with LA. Started and played 90 minutes in RSL's 2-1 win over Chicago.
Michael Harrington - Colorado - Started and played 90 minutes in Colorado's 1-1 draw with San Jose.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 2-1 win over Montreal.
Eddie Johnson - DC - Out on leave.
Kei Kamara - Columbus - Started and played 84 minutes, scoring two goals in Columbus' 3-2 win over Seattle.
Chris Konopka - Toronto - Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 1-0 loss to Montreal. Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 2-1 loss to Houston.
Eric Kronberg - Montreal - Started and played 90 minutes in Montreal's 1-0 win over Toronto. Dressed but did not play in Montreal's 2-1 loss to Portland.
CJ Sapong - Philadelphia - Suspended.
Khari Stephenson - San Jose - Started and played 90 minutes in San Jose's 1-1 draw with Colorado.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Came off the bench and played 27 minutes in Columbus' 3-2 win over Seattle.
Sal Zizzo - New York - Out injured.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Tampa Bay - Started and played 90 minutes in Tampa's 0-0 draw with Ottawa.
James Marcelin - Fort Lauderdale - No game this week.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 1-0 loss to Minnesota.
Kyle Miller - Atlanta - Did not play in Atlanta's 1-0 loss to Minnesota.
USL
Christian Duke - Oklahoma City - No game this week.
Brian Fekete - Austin - Came off the bench and played 22 mintues in Austin's 3-2 win over the Real Monarchs.
Adnan Gabeljic - Sacramento - Came off the bench and played 27 minutes, scoring a goal in Sacramento's 3-0 win over Seattle.
Cyprian Hedrick - Oklahoma City - No game this week.
Mechack Jerome - Charlotte - Did not play in Charlotte's 3-0 win over Richmond.
Alex Martinez - Charlotte - Started and played 63 minutes in Charlotte's 3-0 win over Richmond.
Victor Munoz - Arizona - Started and played 90 minutes in Arizona's 1-1 draw with Tulsa.
Tony Rocha - Austin - Started and played 80 minutes in Austin's 3-2 win over the Real Monarchs.
Michael Thomas - Oklahoma City - No game this week.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 3-0 loss to Charlotte.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Ontario - Offseason.
Adnan Gabeljic - St. Louis - Offseason.
Josh Gardner - Missouri - Offseason.
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason.
Mike Jones - Dallas - Offseason.
Michal Mravec - Tacoma - Offseason.
Boris Pardo - Wichita - Offseason.
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - Auerbach - Germany - Did not dress in Auerbach's 2-1 loss to Budissa Bautzen.
Vicente Arze - Blooming - Bolivia - Did not play in either of Blooming's games.
Claudio Bieler - Quilmes - Argentina - Dressed but did not play in Quilmes' 0-0 draw with Godoy Cruz.
Omar Bravo - Chivas - Mexico - Started and played 90 minutes in Chivas' 3-2 los to Morelia.
Reinaldo Brenes - Saprissa - Costa Rica - Di not dress in either of Saprissa's games.
Mitchell Cardenas - Atlético Coatzacoalcos - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Bengaluru - India - Started and played 90 minutes in Bengaluru's 1-1 draw with Shillong Lajong. Came off the bench and played 12 minutes in Bengaluru's 3-1 loss to Persipura.
Jorge Claros - Qingdao Jonoon - China - Started and played 89 minutes in Qingdao's 1-0 win over Hunan Billows.
Eloy Colombano - AD Berazategui - Defeated General Lamadrid 1-0.
Daneil Cyrus - Ha Noi T&T (W Connection) - Vietnam (Trinidad) - No game until 6/20.
Toni Dovale - CD Lugo - Spain - Started and played 90 minutes in Lugo's 2-1 loss to Sporting Gijon.
Pablo Escobar - Cúcuta Deportivo - Colombia - Started and played 90 minutes in Cucuta's 3-0 loss to Real Santander. Did not playin Cucuta's 1-0 loss to Deportivo Pasto.
Herculez Gomez - Puebla - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 9 minutes in Puebla's 2-2 draw with Santos Laguna.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Boavista - Brazil - No game this week.
Peterson Joseph - Azam FC - Tanzania - Defeated Young Africans 2-1. Tied JKT Mgambo 0-0.
Igor Juliao - ABC (Fluminense) - Brazil - Did not play in either of ABC's games.
Igor Kostrov - FK Kyzyl-Zhar - Kazakhstan - No game this week.
Neven Markovic - Servette FC - Switzerland - Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 2-0 loss to Lugano.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Came off the bench and played 30 minutes in Spartak's 4-2 loss to Terek Grozny.
Lawrence Olum - Kedah FA - Malaysia - No game until 6/19.
Akeem Priestley - Sheikh Russel KC - Bangladesh - Offseason.
Pablo Punyed - Stjarnan - Iceland - Started and played 73 minutes in Stjarnan's 2-0 win over IBV.
Oriol Rosell - Sporting Club de Portugal - Portugal - Dressed but did not play in Sporting's 1-1 draw wtih Estoril.
Soony Saad - BCC Tero (loaned from BEC Tero Sasana FC) - Thailand - Tied Rangsit 1-1.
Peter Schmetz - Wuppertaler SV - Germany - Lost 2-0 to Schwarz-Weiß Essen.
Yann Songo'o - Blackburn - England - Offseason.
Martin Steuble - Ceres-La Salle - Philippines - Scored a goal in Ceres' 14-0 win over Bright Star.
Milos Stojcev - FK Sarajevo - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Sarajevo's 1-0 win over Zrinjski.
Matt Taylor - Saarbrücken - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Saarbrucken's 4-2 win over Pirmasens.
Here's the rest of his week's update.
Active without a club or unknown
Scott Angevine
Federico Bessone
Bobby Convey
Will John
Michael Kafari
Neal Kitson
Jonathan Leathers
Carlos Marinelli
Nelson Pizarro
Ivan Trujillo
Konrad Warzycha
MLS
Davy Arnaud - DC - Started and played 90 minutes in DC's 1-1 draw with KC.
Teal Bunbury - New England - Started and played 90 minutes in New England's 2-2 draw with Orlando.
Aurelien Collin - Orlando City - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Orlando's 2-2 draw with New England.
Luis Gil - Salt Lake - Started and played 90 minutes in RSL's 0-0 draw with LA. Started and played 90 minutes in RSL's 2-1 win over Chicago.
Michael Harrington - Colorado - Started and played 90 minutes in Colorado's 1-1 draw with San Jose.
Jack Jewsbury - Portland - Started and played 90 minutes in Portland's 2-1 win over Montreal.
Eddie Johnson - DC - Out on leave.
Kei Kamara - Columbus - Started and played 84 minutes, scoring two goals in Columbus' 3-2 win over Seattle.
Chris Konopka - Toronto - Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 1-0 loss to Montreal. Started and played 90 minutes in Toronto's 2-1 loss to Houston.
Eric Kronberg - Montreal - Started and played 90 minutes in Montreal's 1-0 win over Toronto. Dressed but did not play in Montreal's 2-1 loss to Portland.
CJ Sapong - Philadelphia - Suspended.
Khari Stephenson - San Jose - Started and played 90 minutes in San Jose's 1-1 draw with Colorado.
Tyson Wahl - Columbus - Came off the bench and played 27 minutes in Columbus' 3-2 win over Seattle.
Sal Zizzo - New York - Out injured.
NASL
Stefan Antonijevic - Tampa Bay - Started and played 90 minutes in Tampa's 0-0 draw with Ottawa.
James Marcelin - Fort Lauderdale - No game this week.
Rauwshan McKenzie - Atlanta - Started and played 90 minutes in Atlanta's 1-0 loss to Minnesota.
Kyle Miller - Atlanta - Did not play in Atlanta's 1-0 loss to Minnesota.
USL
Christian Duke - Oklahoma City - No game this week.
Brian Fekete - Austin - Came off the bench and played 22 mintues in Austin's 3-2 win over the Real Monarchs.
Adnan Gabeljic - Sacramento - Came off the bench and played 27 minutes, scoring a goal in Sacramento's 3-0 win over Seattle.
Cyprian Hedrick - Oklahoma City - No game this week.
Mechack Jerome - Charlotte - Did not play in Charlotte's 3-0 win over Richmond.
Alex Martinez - Charlotte - Started and played 63 minutes in Charlotte's 3-0 win over Richmond.
Victor Munoz - Arizona - Started and played 90 minutes in Arizona's 1-1 draw with Tulsa.
Tony Rocha - Austin - Started and played 80 minutes in Austin's 3-2 win over the Real Monarchs.
Michael Thomas - Oklahoma City - No game this week.
Yomby William - Richmond - Started and played 90 minutes in Richmond's 3-0 loss to Charlotte.
Indoor
Jamar Beasley - Ontario - Offseason.
Adnan Gabeljic - St. Louis - Offseason.
Josh Gardner - Missouri - Offseason.
Pat Healey - Baltimore - Offseason.
Mike Jones - Dallas - Offseason.
Michal Mravec - Tacoma - Offseason.
Boris Pardo - Wichita - Offseason.
International
Korede Aiyegbusi - Auerbach - Germany - Did not dress in Auerbach's 2-1 loss to Budissa Bautzen.
Vicente Arze - Blooming - Bolivia - Did not play in either of Blooming's games.
Claudio Bieler - Quilmes - Argentina - Dressed but did not play in Quilmes' 0-0 draw with Godoy Cruz.
Omar Bravo - Chivas - Mexico - Started and played 90 minutes in Chivas' 3-2 los to Morelia.
Reinaldo Brenes - Saprissa - Costa Rica - Di not dress in either of Saprissa's games.
Mitchell Cardenas - Atlético Coatzacoalcos - Mexico - Offseason.
Sunil Chhetri - Bengaluru - India - Started and played 90 minutes in Bengaluru's 1-1 draw with Shillong Lajong. Came off the bench and played 12 minutes in Bengaluru's 3-1 loss to Persipura.
Jorge Claros - Qingdao Jonoon - China - Started and played 89 minutes in Qingdao's 1-0 win over Hunan Billows.
Eloy Colombano - AD Berazategui - Defeated General Lamadrid 1-0.
Daneil Cyrus - Ha Noi T&T (W Connection) - Vietnam (Trinidad) - No game until 6/20.
Toni Dovale - CD Lugo - Spain - Started and played 90 minutes in Lugo's 2-1 loss to Sporting Gijon.
Pablo Escobar - Cúcuta Deportivo - Colombia - Started and played 90 minutes in Cucuta's 3-0 loss to Real Santander. Did not playin Cucuta's 1-0 loss to Deportivo Pasto.
Herculez Gomez - Puebla - Mexico - Came off the bench and played 9 minutes in Puebla's 2-2 draw with Santos Laguna.
Jermaine Hue - Harbour View - Jamaica - Offseason.
Jeferson - Boavista - Brazil - No game this week.
Peterson Joseph - Azam FC - Tanzania - Defeated Young Africans 2-1. Tied JKT Mgambo 0-0.
Igor Juliao - ABC (Fluminense) - Brazil - Did not play in either of ABC's games.
Igor Kostrov - FK Kyzyl-Zhar - Kazakhstan - No game this week.
Neven Markovic - Servette FC - Switzerland - Started and played 90 minutes in Servette's 2-0 loss to Lugano.
Yura Movsisyan - Spartak Moscow - Russia - Came off the bench and played 30 minutes in Spartak's 4-2 loss to Terek Grozny.
Lawrence Olum - Kedah FA - Malaysia - No game until 6/19.
Akeem Priestley - Sheikh Russel KC - Bangladesh - Offseason.
Pablo Punyed - Stjarnan - Iceland - Started and played 73 minutes in Stjarnan's 2-0 win over IBV.
Oriol Rosell - Sporting Club de Portugal - Portugal - Dressed but did not play in Sporting's 1-1 draw wtih Estoril.
Soony Saad - BCC Tero (loaned from BEC Tero Sasana FC) - Thailand - Tied Rangsit 1-1.
Peter Schmetz - Wuppertaler SV - Germany - Lost 2-0 to Schwarz-Weiß Essen.
Yann Songo'o - Blackburn - England - Offseason.
Martin Steuble - Ceres-La Salle - Philippines - Scored a goal in Ceres' 14-0 win over Bright Star.
Milos Stojcev - FK Sarajevo - Bosnia - Started and played 90 minutes in Sarajevo's 1-0 win over Zrinjski.
Matt Taylor - Saarbrücken - Germany - Started and played 90 minutes, scoring a goal in Saarbrucken's 4-2 win over Pirmasens.
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Sunday After Stats
Dom Dwyer's goal was his 31st goal in all competitions for KC, tying him with Digital Takawira for 7th all time on that list.
Dwyer's goal was his 12th in league play away from home, breaking his tie with Teal Bunbury and Kei Kamara for 6th place on that list.
It was Dwyer's 14th in all competitions away from home, breaking his tie with Bunbury for 6th on that list.
In the 71st minute, Graham Zusi moved past Tony Meola and into 14th place for minutes played in league play. Zusi finished the game with 11,350 minutes played.
Zusi made his 184th appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Matt McKeon for 9th on that list.
In the 77th minute, Seth Sinovic moved past Josh Wolff and into 14th place for minutes played in all competitions, he finished the game with 12,953 minutes played.
Sinovic made his 147th appearance in all competitions, tying him with Diego Gutierrez for 16th on that list.
Sinovic started his 145th game in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Wolff for 13th on that list.
Dwyer's goal was his 12th in league play away from home, breaking his tie with Teal Bunbury and Kei Kamara for 6th place on that list.
It was Dwyer's 14th in all competitions away from home, breaking his tie with Bunbury for 6th on that list.
In the 71st minute, Graham Zusi moved past Tony Meola and into 14th place for minutes played in league play. Zusi finished the game with 11,350 minutes played.
Zusi made his 184th appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Matt McKeon for 9th on that list.
In the 77th minute, Seth Sinovic moved past Josh Wolff and into 14th place for minutes played in all competitions, he finished the game with 12,953 minutes played.
Sinovic made his 147th appearance in all competitions, tying him with Diego Gutierrez for 16th on that list.
Sinovic started his 145th game in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Wolff for 13th on that list.
Sporting Grab a Point in DC
Sporting KC walked in to RFK Stadium, and while they couldn't come away with all three points, did manage to take one as the two teams played to a 1-1 draw. KC made a couple changes from the team that beat Chicago last week, inserting Jacob Peterson and Erik Palmer-Brown for Krisztian Nemeth and Kevin Ellis. On the other side of the ball, DC United was without one of their main threats, with Fabian Espindola missing out due to injury.
KC actually came out as the better team in the first half, looking the better side and taking the game to DC. KC almost grabbed the lead in the 19th minute as Benny Feilhaber played a free kick wide to Seth Sinovic who found Roger Espinoza a little further back on the field. Espinoza played a cross into the far post where Jacob Peterson met it, but his sliding shot went into the cross bar and bounced clear of goal. KC forced Bill Hamid into a number of saves in the first half, Benny Feilhaber tested him on one occasion, forcing a good save from the US international. Against the run of play in the first half, DC grabbed the lead in the 42nd. A long ball over the top found Chris Rolfe in the KC box, he cut back on Jalil Anibaba and picked out Jairo Arrieta in the box and he fried a shot as Matt Besler slid in beating both Besler and Tim Melia to give DC the 1-0 lead. KC though responded immediately and tied the game with Espinoza receiving the ball in DC's attacking thrid, dribbling into the box before laying it off for Dom Dwyer who beat Hamid and tied the game at 1-1.
The second half saw DC with the better of the chances, in the 51st there were a couple scrambles in front of net as a Role cross made it entirely through the box without touching anyone. Sean Franklin collected the rebound and crossed it to the back post where it was headed into the middle and pinged around by a couple players before it was eventually sent out of bounds. KC thought they'd grabbed the lead 10 minutes later in the 62nd as a great cross into the box found Dwyer who beat Hamid, but Dwyer was just in front of the last defender and offside as the score remained level at 1-1. A very close call as Dwyer just stepped offside on the play. The second half saw DC with the better of play but they couldn't capitalize on all the possession. In second half stoppage time, DC had a great opportunity to win it. A corner by United wasn't cleared well and fell to substitute Amadou Dia. Dia attempted to clear the ball, but only did on the ground right to Michael Farfan who fired a shot from just outside the box that went just wide of KC's net, keeping the score at 1-1.
Wizards Man of the Match - Roger Espinoza - The KC midfield looked quite good tonight breaking up DC's attack and getting forward, Espinoza provided the assist on Dwyer's equalizer and overall was a pest all night for DC.
Player Ratings - Melia 6, Anibaba 5, Besler 6, Palmer-Brown 5, Sinovic 5, Mustivar 5, Espinoza 7, Feilhaber 6, Zusi 5, Dwyer 6, Peterson 5. Subs Nemeth 4, Hallisey NR, Dia NR.
KC actually came out as the better team in the first half, looking the better side and taking the game to DC. KC almost grabbed the lead in the 19th minute as Benny Feilhaber played a free kick wide to Seth Sinovic who found Roger Espinoza a little further back on the field. Espinoza played a cross into the far post where Jacob Peterson met it, but his sliding shot went into the cross bar and bounced clear of goal. KC forced Bill Hamid into a number of saves in the first half, Benny Feilhaber tested him on one occasion, forcing a good save from the US international. Against the run of play in the first half, DC grabbed the lead in the 42nd. A long ball over the top found Chris Rolfe in the KC box, he cut back on Jalil Anibaba and picked out Jairo Arrieta in the box and he fried a shot as Matt Besler slid in beating both Besler and Tim Melia to give DC the 1-0 lead. KC though responded immediately and tied the game with Espinoza receiving the ball in DC's attacking thrid, dribbling into the box before laying it off for Dom Dwyer who beat Hamid and tied the game at 1-1.
The second half saw DC with the better of the chances, in the 51st there were a couple scrambles in front of net as a Role cross made it entirely through the box without touching anyone. Sean Franklin collected the rebound and crossed it to the back post where it was headed into the middle and pinged around by a couple players before it was eventually sent out of bounds. KC thought they'd grabbed the lead 10 minutes later in the 62nd as a great cross into the box found Dwyer who beat Hamid, but Dwyer was just in front of the last defender and offside as the score remained level at 1-1. A very close call as Dwyer just stepped offside on the play. The second half saw DC with the better of play but they couldn't capitalize on all the possession. In second half stoppage time, DC had a great opportunity to win it. A corner by United wasn't cleared well and fell to substitute Amadou Dia. Dia attempted to clear the ball, but only did on the ground right to Michael Farfan who fired a shot from just outside the box that went just wide of KC's net, keeping the score at 1-1.
Wizards Man of the Match - Roger Espinoza - The KC midfield looked quite good tonight breaking up DC's attack and getting forward, Espinoza provided the assist on Dwyer's equalizer and overall was a pest all night for DC.
Player Ratings - Melia 6, Anibaba 5, Besler 6, Palmer-Brown 5, Sinovic 5, Mustivar 5, Espinoza 7, Feilhaber 6, Zusi 5, Dwyer 6, Peterson 5. Subs Nemeth 4, Hallisey NR, Dia NR.
Friday, May 08, 2015
Match Day 10: Sporting visit DC United
For the first time since MLS Cup 2004, Sporting KC and DC United will meet tomorrow without being in the same conference. KC plays another former conference rival this week traveling to DC to take on DC United. Before tonight's MLS game between Orlando and New England, DC was sitting tied with New England atop the Eastern Conference with 17 points.
DC has not lost a game at RFK since June of last year when they lost 1-0 to the Seattle Sounders. They've gone 16 unbeaten in all competitions, including last week when they picked up an impressive 2-0 win over the Columbus Crew. On the season, DC has lost just once, in the second week of the season to New York. Since then, DC has gone six games without a loss, winning four of them. Now DC has forward Fabian Espindola back and he'll provide plenty of issues for KC's back line with his pace. He showed that last week as he was able to get behind the Crew back line a few times. The defense has been doing quite well at the same time, whether Bill Hamid has been in net or not as they've allowed a league low six goals.
KC meanwhile ended a three game winless run with their 1-0 win over the Chicago Fire last week. KC had plenty of decent chances in the game but were unable to find the net more than the one time. The defense looked better, but they'll be facing a better attack in United than the Fire provided. The big question of the week is whether goalkeeper Tim Melia will retain his starting spot from last week or not. Peter Vermes had said Luis Marin had sat because he needed a mental break, but with the way Melia played Vermes will be hard pressed to sit him. Other than that the only other potential change I could see is Vermes handing a start to Paulo Nagamura who won the game for KC, potentially giving Roger Espinoza a break for a week. Seth Sinovic struggled on the left wing against the Fire, but with Marcel de Jong likely out, Sinovic seems likely to start again at left back.
Number to Remember - 353 - That's how many minutes that KC has gone without a goal against DC. United shut KC out in all three games the teams have played last year. The last goal scored by KC was Dom Dwyer in the 7th minute in KC's 1-0 win in October of 2013.
Key Match Up - Kevin Ellis vs Fabian Espindola - The DC forward is going to try to get himself isolated against the less experienced of KC's two center backs. If he can, Espindola could cause KC a ton of problems. Matt Besler and Jalil Anibaba are going to need to watch the match up and pinch in to help Ellis out.
PREDICTION - Honestly I just think that DC is too good for KC at this point. Their team is playing well on both sides of the ball right now, Espinodola and Chris Rolfe are causing issues for opposing back lines, and the defense has been solid even without Steve Birnbaum out of the line up. KC has just struggled with inconsistencies on both sides of the ball too much in the early part of this season to walk out with any points in this game.
SKC - 0
DC - 2 (Espindola x2)
DC has not lost a game at RFK since June of last year when they lost 1-0 to the Seattle Sounders. They've gone 16 unbeaten in all competitions, including last week when they picked up an impressive 2-0 win over the Columbus Crew. On the season, DC has lost just once, in the second week of the season to New York. Since then, DC has gone six games without a loss, winning four of them. Now DC has forward Fabian Espindola back and he'll provide plenty of issues for KC's back line with his pace. He showed that last week as he was able to get behind the Crew back line a few times. The defense has been doing quite well at the same time, whether Bill Hamid has been in net or not as they've allowed a league low six goals.
KC meanwhile ended a three game winless run with their 1-0 win over the Chicago Fire last week. KC had plenty of decent chances in the game but were unable to find the net more than the one time. The defense looked better, but they'll be facing a better attack in United than the Fire provided. The big question of the week is whether goalkeeper Tim Melia will retain his starting spot from last week or not. Peter Vermes had said Luis Marin had sat because he needed a mental break, but with the way Melia played Vermes will be hard pressed to sit him. Other than that the only other potential change I could see is Vermes handing a start to Paulo Nagamura who won the game for KC, potentially giving Roger Espinoza a break for a week. Seth Sinovic struggled on the left wing against the Fire, but with Marcel de Jong likely out, Sinovic seems likely to start again at left back.
Melia
Anibaba - Ellis - Besler - Sinovic
Mustivar
Nagamura - Feilhaber
Zusi - Dwyer - Nemeth
Number to Remember - 353 - That's how many minutes that KC has gone without a goal against DC. United shut KC out in all three games the teams have played last year. The last goal scored by KC was Dom Dwyer in the 7th minute in KC's 1-0 win in October of 2013.
Key Match Up - Kevin Ellis vs Fabian Espindola - The DC forward is going to try to get himself isolated against the less experienced of KC's two center backs. If he can, Espindola could cause KC a ton of problems. Matt Besler and Jalil Anibaba are going to need to watch the match up and pinch in to help Ellis out.
PREDICTION - Honestly I just think that DC is too good for KC at this point. Their team is playing well on both sides of the ball right now, Espinodola and Chris Rolfe are causing issues for opposing back lines, and the defense has been solid even without Steve Birnbaum out of the line up. KC has just struggled with inconsistencies on both sides of the ball too much in the early part of this season to walk out with any points in this game.
SKC - 0
DC - 2 (Espindola x2)
Thursday, May 07, 2015
#TBT Highest Scoring Game in KC History
On May 2nd, 1996, the then KC Wiz played at the time, the highest scoring MLS game in the league's short history. Against the Columbus Crew at Arrowhead Stadium, KC came from behind to top the Crew 6-4.
Played in front of 8,848, KC jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a rocket of a shot by Mark Chung after a patented cut back by Preki drew three defenders to him in the fifth minute. Columbus was ale to find the equalizer in the 20th minute when Brian McBride headed home a corner from Billy Thompson, deflecting off of defender Tommy Reasoner who tried to keep the ball out with his knee. The score would stay at 1-1 headed into the half time break.
The second half started with a bang as KC jumped back out in front in just the 47th minute. Preki received the ball out wide and tried to curl a shot into the net. He succeeded in beating goalkeeper, Bo Oshoniyi, but didn't beat the cross bar. The rebound though fell to Mo Johnston who knocked the rebound home for a goal in his debut for KC. This time the lead lasted only a minute as a long throw in from McBride found Todd Yeagley in the box, he was able to bring the ball down and bury it. Columbus would take the lead for the first time a little after the hour mark as Mike Clark beat Reasoner to a cross by Thompson and headed the ball into the net to make it 3-2.
Only a minute after making it 3-2, Columbus made it 4-2 as McBride crossed the ball into the box looking for Adrian Paz, but Reasoner in an attempt to cleared the ball, fired the ball into his own net. The two goal lead would only last a couple minutes though as KC won a penalty kick as Digtal Takawira tried to dribble around a Crew defender on the ground who hit the ball with his hand. Preki stepped up to take the penalty, pulling a Panenka, softly chipping the ball past Oshoniyi and into the net to make it 4-3. Only a couple minutes after the penalty kick, KC was level with Johnston again the scorer. After a partial clearance out wide, Takawira headed the ball back into the middle where Johnston knocked it home to make it 4-4. KC wasn't done and in the 77th minute, Mike Sorber got in on the act firing a shot from long range that beat Oshoniyi and put KC in front 5-4. With Columbus chasing the game late, KC found a sixth to seal the game on the counter in the 88th minute. Takawira led the counter dribbling against two Crew defenders. At the top of the box, Takawira took a bit of a big touch and Preki pounced on the ball, one timing it into the corner right in front of Takawira.
The game would stand as the highest scoring game in league history for just two years before being surpassed by the LA Galaxy's 7-4 win over the Colorado Rapids in 1998. The game is still the highest scoring in KC history and tied for the record for most goals score in a game.
Played in front of 8,848, KC jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a rocket of a shot by Mark Chung after a patented cut back by Preki drew three defenders to him in the fifth minute. Columbus was ale to find the equalizer in the 20th minute when Brian McBride headed home a corner from Billy Thompson, deflecting off of defender Tommy Reasoner who tried to keep the ball out with his knee. The score would stay at 1-1 headed into the half time break.
The second half started with a bang as KC jumped back out in front in just the 47th minute. Preki received the ball out wide and tried to curl a shot into the net. He succeeded in beating goalkeeper, Bo Oshoniyi, but didn't beat the cross bar. The rebound though fell to Mo Johnston who knocked the rebound home for a goal in his debut for KC. This time the lead lasted only a minute as a long throw in from McBride found Todd Yeagley in the box, he was able to bring the ball down and bury it. Columbus would take the lead for the first time a little after the hour mark as Mike Clark beat Reasoner to a cross by Thompson and headed the ball into the net to make it 3-2.
Only a minute after making it 3-2, Columbus made it 4-2 as McBride crossed the ball into the box looking for Adrian Paz, but Reasoner in an attempt to cleared the ball, fired the ball into his own net. The two goal lead would only last a couple minutes though as KC won a penalty kick as Digtal Takawira tried to dribble around a Crew defender on the ground who hit the ball with his hand. Preki stepped up to take the penalty, pulling a Panenka, softly chipping the ball past Oshoniyi and into the net to make it 4-3. Only a couple minutes after the penalty kick, KC was level with Johnston again the scorer. After a partial clearance out wide, Takawira headed the ball back into the middle where Johnston knocked it home to make it 4-4. KC wasn't done and in the 77th minute, Mike Sorber got in on the act firing a shot from long range that beat Oshoniyi and put KC in front 5-4. With Columbus chasing the game late, KC found a sixth to seal the game on the counter in the 88th minute. Takawira led the counter dribbling against two Crew defenders. At the top of the box, Takawira took a bit of a big touch and Preki pounced on the ball, one timing it into the corner right in front of Takawira.
The game would stand as the highest scoring game in league history for just two years before being surpassed by the LA Galaxy's 7-4 win over the Colorado Rapids in 1998. The game is still the highest scoring in KC history and tied for the record for most goals score in a game.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
