Beyond The Box Score: Graham Zusi's flawless distribution makes history

In an otherwise forgettable afternoon at sun-drenched BC Place, one Sporting Kansas City player delivered a shrewdly efficient performance during Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Right back Graham Zusi passed with unforeseen precision and served as Sporting Kansas City’s most effective chance creator on Saturday afternoon, accomplishing a feat rarely seen in the history of Major League Soccer’s Opta era (2010-present).

Zusi completed all 35 of his passes against Vancouver, becoming the second player this season to record a perfect 100 percent passing accuracy with a minimum of 30 attempted passes. Coincidentally, Seattle defender Chad Marshall completed all 68 of his passes in Saturday’s 1-0 home win over Real Salt Lake.

But Zusi’s contributions didn’t stop there. Even more remarkably, he finished with a game-high five chances created, thus becoming just the second MLS player since 2010 to create at least five chances and finish with 100 percent passing accuracy in the same game. The other was Real Salt Lake’s Ned Grabavoy, who happened to do so at BC Place nearly four years ago.

100% passing accuracy and 5 chances created in same game
MLS regular season, 2010-present

The passing map to the right illustrates Zusi’s flawless distribution on Saturday. The green lines represent passes, while the yellow ones represent chances created. The performance comes just a week after Zusi became one of nine Sporting KC players to complete more than 96 percent of their passes in an MLS match during the Opta era (minimum 30 passes).

Despite the loss, Sporting Kansas City remains atop the Western Conference standings heading into Week 13. Manager Peter Vermes' men will return to the pitch next Saturday to face the Colorado Rapids at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. CT on FOX Sports Kansas City.