The 2014-15 CONCACAF Champions League kicked off on Tuesday with the first of 48 games during the group stage, but it was Wednesday's night encounter between Real Esteli (Nicaragua) and Deportivo Saprissa (Costa Rica) that mattered most for Sporting Kansas City in the Group 2 standings. A 1-1 draw at Estadio Independencia in Esteli, Nicaragua saw valuable points dropped on matchday one and gave Sporting KC an early glimpse at the team's upcoming opponents.
Uruguayan midfielder Rodrigo Valiente gave Real Esteli a 1-0 advantage in the 10th minute with his shot from 30 yards out, however the home side would see forward Juan Barrera exit in the 24th minute with an ankle injury and would be denied their first ever CCL win when Ariel Rodríguez pulled Saprissa level in the 65th minute.
Wednesday's match-up was the first-ever CCL meeting between Real Esteli and Deportivo Saprissa. The Nicaraguan title holders are participating in their fifth CONCACAF Champions League tournament and are now 0-9-4 all-time in the competition with five goals scored and 18 goals conceded. The Costa Rican representatives returned to CCL play for the first time since reaching the semifinals in 2010/11 and improved to 10-8-5 (30 GF, 29 GA) in their most recent four campaigns.
Sporting Kansas City's CCL journey begins on Aug. 19 with a trip to Esteli in a nationally televised match on FOX Soccer Plus. One year ago today, Sporting KC earned a 2-0 victory inside Estadio Independencia with goals from Ike Opara and Dom Dwyer en route to finishing atop the group standings (2-0-2) during the 2013-14 edition.
Visit SportingKC.com/CCL for complete coverage of Sporting KC's run through the 2014-15 CONCACAF Champions League. Tickets are currently available on Ticketmaster.com for Sporting Kansas City's two group stage home matches on Sept. 18 and Sept. 23 at Sporting Park.
2014/15 CONCACAF Champions League
Group Stage | Group 2
Estadio Independencia | Esteli, Nicaragua
<strong>Stats</strong> |
<strong>EST</strong> |
<strong>SAP</strong> |
<p>Shots</p> |
<p>9</p> |
<p>13</p> |
<p>Recoveries</p> |
<p>31</p> |
<p>46</p> |
<p>Fouls</p> |
<p>15</p> |
<p>14</p> |
<p>Clearances</p> |
<p>35</p> |
<p>8</p> |
<p>Corner Kicks</p> |
<p>1</p> |
<p>12</p> |
Real Esteli (0-0-1, 1 pt): 1-Justo Lorente; 17-Felix Zeledon, 3-Eduardo Praes, 2-Alan Kardek, 7-Manuel Rosas (21-Félix Rodríguez 76); 12-Elmer Mejía, 15-Franklin López, 27-Rodrigo Valiente Baraybar; 10-Samuel Wilson Rostrán, 24-Norfran Lazo Morales (9-Carlos Chavarría 46), 20-Juan Barrera (19-Jefferson de Almeida 24)
Subs Not Used: 29-Roger Sanchez Arias, 13-Francisco Paz, 16-Elvis Figueroa, 18-Daniel Da Silva
Deportivo Saprissa (0-0-1, 1 pt): 1-Danny Carvajal; 2-Jordan Smith, 19-Keylor Soto, 13-Adolfo Machado, 5-Rafael Morales de León; 20-David Guzmán, 23-Juan Bustos (21-Diego Estrada 66), 25-Manfred Russell Russell; 9-Hansell Arauz (26-Daniel Colindres 77), 7-David Ramirez Ruiz, 33-Carlos Saucedo (14-Ariel Rodríguez Aray 62)
Subs Not Used: 18-Kevin Briceño, 29-Michael Barquero Abarca, 31-Gualberto Montenegro, 11-Marvin Angulo Borbón
Misconduct Summary:
SAP - David Guzmán (caution) 21
EST - Franklin López (caution) 36
SAP - Jordan Smith (caution) 84
Scoring Summary:
EST -- Rodrigo Valiente Baraybar 10
SAP -- Ariel Rodríguez Araya 65
Referee: Raul Castro (HON)
Assistant 1: Ronaldo De La Cruz (HON)
Assistant 2: William Torres (SLV)
Fourth official: Joel Aguilar (SLV)
