Sporting KC (11-7-4, 37 pts) at New England Revolution (6-10-5, 23 pts)
Saturday, August 4, 2012 - 6:30 p.m. CT
Gillette Stadium | Foxborough, MA
English TV: KSMO, KMTW, WIBW
Spanish Radio: La Gran D 1340 AM
Watch Party | Game Notes | Soundbytes | Media Guide | MLS MatchCenter
Sporting Kansas City will return to the road to take on the New England Revolution at 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday at Gillette Stadium for the third and final meeting between the two sides during the 2012 MLS regular season. The game will air live on KSMO-TV (Kansas City), KMTW (Wichita) and WIBW (Topeka), with radio coverage also available for Spanish listeners on La Gran D 1340 AM.
Sporting Kansas City supporters are invited to attend the team's official Watch Party in the LIVESTRONG Sporting Park Members' Club, with parking available in Lot D and doors opening at 5:30 p.m. CT on Saturday. Food and drink will be available to purchase, including the $3 pick special which comes with chips and the choice of a hamburger, hot dog or bratwurst, and all home Sporting Kansas City jerseys will be discounted 25% off.
Having faced the Revolution twice at home in 2012, Sporting Kansas City has earned four points thus far in the season series and held New England scoreless in both matches. Sporting Kansas City leads the all-time series 21-13-10, including a 10-7-5 road record against the Revolution, but fell 3-2 at Gillette Stadium last season in New England’s only win in the last 11 meetings between the two sides.
Saturday’s match marks the third time in the past month that Sporting Kansas City will face the same opponent twice within a two-week span, having played to a scoreless draw versus New England on July 21. Tomorrow’s Eastern Conference clash is Sporting KC’s 15th game in all competition during a grueling 50-day stretch and comes four days before Manager Peter Vermes’ squad plays in the 2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park.
Sporting Kansas City, winners of three of their last four on the road in all competition, is the only team in the East to have a winning record on the road this season (5-4-2) and a positive goal differential away from home. Forward Kei Kamara leads the team with eight goals, including three in his last six games, and leads the League in shots (86) and shots on goal (36).
The visitors may be shorthanded for the match-up due to injuries to forwards Jacob Peterson (R shoulder sprain) and C.J. Sapong (R hip flexor strain), as well as defender Chance Myers (groin strain). Midfielder Roger Espinoza and New England Designated Player Jerry Bengtson are both unavailable for their respective teams while with the Honduras Olympic Team at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Honduras takes on Brazil on Saturday in the quarterfinals after finishing runners-up in Group D.
Sporting Kansas City suffered a 2-1 setback in their last MLS match, falling at home to the Columbus Crew. The team remains level with the Houston Dynamo in second place in the East, one point back of New York for the top spot. The Dynamo and Red Bulls will meet at 7 p.m. CT tonight, live on the NBC Sports Network, at BBVA Compass Stadium.
New England, under first-year head coach Jay Heaps, have 23 points from 21 games and sit in eighth place in the East. The team enters Saturday's contest winless in their last four and coming off a 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Union after conceding the game-winning goal in the 90th minute.
The Revolution traded eight-time MLS All-Star Shalrie Joseph on Wednesday to Chivas USA in exchange for fellow midfielder Blair Gavin, a former first round pick in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft out of Akron, as well as allocation money and second-round selection in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft.
Like their opposition, New England may have to shuffle the first-choice lineup as a result of midseason injuries. A.J. Soares has started every game for the Revolution this season and leads all New England players in minutes played, but was listed as out on Tuesday's injury report with a hamstring strain. Fellow defender Kevin Alston has made 19 of 21 starts, including each of the team’s last five games, but was listed as questionable with hamstring soreness.