Sporting Kansas City at Seattle Sounders FC
Audi 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs
Western Conference Knockout Round
Thursday, Oct. 27 — 9 p.m. CT
CenturyLink Field | Seattle, WA
Broadcast Schedule:
English TV | FS1
Spanish TV | UniMas
English Radio | Sports Radio 810 WHB
Spanish Radio | La Grande 1340 AM
Game Notes | Postseason Guide | Uphoria App | Social Media
Game On | Media Guide | MatchCenter | By The Numbers
Sporting Kansas City begins its journey in the Audi 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs on Thursday, visiting Seattle Sounders FC in the Western Conference Knockout Round at CenturyLink Field. FS1 and UniMas will televise the match nationally with kickoff slated for 9 p.m. CT, while local radio broadcasts will air on Sports Radio 810 WHB and La Grande 1340 AM. Additional in-game updates will be available on the SportingKC.com MatchCenter and through the club's official mobile app Sporting KC Uphoria.
No Other Pub in the Kansas City Power & Light District (1370 Grand Blvd.) will host an official watch party for the marquee playoff match, presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City.
For the third straight year, Sporting Kansas City (13-13-8, 47 points) opens its postseason campaign away from home in the single-elimination knockout round. Manager Peter Vermes' men enter the contest on the heels of consecutive shutouts, drawing Real Salt Lake 0-0 on Oct. 16 before sinking the San Jose Earthquakes 2-0 on Decision Day to secure a club-record sixth straight playoff berth. The club also posted its sixth straight 13-win regular season, joining Seattle and LA Galaxy as the only MLS sides to accomplish the feat.
The Sounders have reached the MLS Cup Playoffs in all eight years of their existence — an impressive accomplishment considering Seattle's grim position just three months ago. A 3-0 defeat to Sporting Kansas City on July 24 left Sounders FC languishing in ninth place in the West, but a twofold transformation saved their season. Interim head coach Brian Schmetzer replaced longtime boss Sigi Schmid and Uruguayan international midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro joined the club. Seattle would finish 8-2-4, roaring up to fourth in the West to clinch home field advantage in the knockout round.
The winner of Thursday's showdown will advance to host the first leg of the Western Conference semifinals on Sunday against FC Dallas, the 2016 MLS Supporters' Shield and Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup champions. Tickets are now on sale for Sporting Kansas City's potential home playoff match at Children's Mercy Park via Ticketmaster.com.
Decision Day saw both clubs earn victories on home turf. Midfield talisman Benny Feilhaber led the way for Sporting Kansas City, netting a penalty kick in the 27th minute and setting up Graham Zusi in the 88th minute to tally his team-best 13th assist of the MLS campaign. Feilhaber has nine assists in his last 11 league appearances, the most in MLS since the All-Star Game on July 28. Dom Dwyer has provided another source of firepower for Vermes' side, netting 16 goals to become the first player in club history to notch 12 goals in three straight regular seasons.
Seattle sunk Real Salt Lake 2-1 on Sunday, ensuring a fourth-place finish above Sporting KC and sixth-place RSL. Alvaro Fernandez and Cristian Roldan struck in the first half as the Sounders extended their home unbeaten run to eight games.
Lodeiro has played an integral role in Seattle's renaissance, tallying four goals and eight assists since debuting on July 31. His target man in the attacking half is forward Jordan Morris, who has set an MLS record among American rookies with 12 goals in 2016. The U.S. international leads the team in scoring and has appeared in all 34 league games this year, starting 32. The Sounders' spine is comprised of Osvaldo Alonso — a dogged midfielder who tops MLS in passes, duels won and tackles won — and veteran center backs Chad Marshall and Brad Evans.
Sporting Kansas City swept Seattle during the 2016 regular season with a pair of shutout wins, including a 1-0 opening-day triumph on March 6 at CenturyLink Field. Nuno Coelho decided the contest in his MLS debut with a long-range skipper that beat goalkeeper Stefan Frei in the 73rd minute. Seattle suffered its heaviest defeat of 2016 in the return trip to Children's Mercy Park on July 24. Dwyer scored twice, Jacob Peterson added a sensational third, and Sporting KC held the Sounders to an MLS record-low one shot attempt.
Dating back to 2015, Sporting Kansas City owns a five-game unbeaten run against Seattle with four clean sheets. Goalkeeper Tim Melia has featured between the posts in each shutout effort, going 3-0-1 versus the Rave Green with zero goals conceded. Prior to this five-game surge, Kansas City had just one win in its first nine league meetings with the Sounders.
Statistics suggest that Sporting Kansas City is fighting an uphill battle Thursday night. In 14 knockout round games since 2011, the road team has prevailed just twice. Furthermore, the club is just 2-15-5 all-time in road playoff matches — including a last-gasp 2-1 defeat at the New York Red Bulls in 2014 and a stunning setback to the Portland Timbers in the longest penalty kick shootout in MLS postseason history one year ago.
Thursday's hosts have experienced their fair share of playoff anguish, as well. Despite punching a playoff ticket every year since 2009, Seattle has yet to reach an MLS Cup Final. The Sounders are 2-0 in the knockout round but have fallen in the conference semifinals five times, including last season's exit versus FC Dallas.
Forward Diego Rubio (torn ACL) remains the only certain absentee for Sporting Kansas City, while Brad Davis (calf), Justin Mapp (calf) and Chance Myers (thigh) are questionable. Forward Jacob Peterson (thigh) has regained full fitness and will be available for selection after scoring an MLS career-high six goals in 2016.
Seattle has blossomed into one of the league's hottest teams despite the absence of U.S. international star Clint Dempsey. The forward has been sidelined since late August with an irregular heartbeat and will not return in 2016. Another injured contributor is midfielder Andreas Ivanschitz, who will miss Thursday's game with a knee sprain. Ivanschitz finished tied for the team lead with eight assists and added three goals in 28 MLS appearances.
