By The Numbers: Sporting KC vs. New York Red Bulls - March 8, 2015

Major League Soccer’s 20th season opens with a matchup of two charter members as Sporting Kansas City hosts the New York Red Bulls at Sporting Park. Sunday’s match features the top two goal scorers from 2014 as All-Stars Dom Dwyer and Bradley Wright-Phillips go head-to-head in the MLS debut on Fox Sports 1 (6 p.m. CT).

New York won three of four meetings between the clubs in 2014, including a 2-1 victory in the Eastern Conference Knockout Round that eliminated Sporting KC from the playoffs. Wright-Phillips scored six goals in those four games, including three at Sporting Park.

Yet both teams look far different now than when they last met in October. Since then, Sporting KC has acquired 13 new players (headlined by Roger Espinoza) while 15 have left the club. Similarly, the Red Bulls have made 13 signings (headlined by Sacha Kljestan) and parted ways with 14 from last year. We examine the matchup in our By The Numbers preview.

Head-to-head

• Sporting KC is winless in five straight games against New York (0-4-1) including playoffs. Sporting KC last beat the Red Bulls in April 2013.
• New York is undefeated in four straight trips to Sporting Park (2-0-2).
• Bradley Wright-Phillips scored six goals in four games against Sporting KC last year (including postseason).
• Dom Dwyer scored three goals in four games against New York last year (including postseason).
• Graham Zusi has five assists in eight career starts against New York (regular season).
• Sacha Kljestan has one goal and four assists in seven career starts against Sporting KC (regular season), all as a member of Chivas USA (2006-10).
• 2015 preseason records: Sporting KC 3-2-2 (12 GF, 10 GA); New York 4-2-1 (12 GF, 8 GA).
• Sporting KC and New York are two of five teams to make the MLS Cup Playoffs each of the last four seasons.

Sporting KC in 2014 regular season

• Led MLS in average possession at 57.1 percent.
• Led MLS with 68 chances created from set plays.
• Conceded a league-low 10.3 shots per game.
• Dom Dwyer set the single-season club record with 22 goals.
• Graham Zusi led MLS with 70 successful crosses/corners despite missing nine games through international duty.

New York in 2014 regular season

• Led the Eastern Conference with 55 goals scored in the regular season.
• Lloyd Sam led MLS with 44 successful crosses from open play, 10 more than any other player and most in a single season since Opta began tracking the statistic in 2011.
• Bradley Wright-Phillips tied the single-season MLS record with 27 goals.
• Luis Robles finished second in MLS with 115 saves.

Season openers

• Sporting KC is 12-5-2 all-time in regular season openers. No MLS club has more season-opening wins. New York is 7-7-5.
• Sporting KC is 12-2-5 in regular season home openers, with their only losses coming in 1999 and 2009. New York is 6-8-5 in road openers.
• Sporting KC is undefeated (1-0-3) in four MLS home openers at Sporting Park, scoring four goals and conceding just one.

Milestones and miscellany

• If Roger Espinoza starts on Sunday, it will be his 100th MLS start for Sporting KC (including playoffs).
• If Benny Feilhaber plays on Sunday, it will be his 75th appearance for Sporting KC in all competitions.
• If Jacob Peterson plays on Sunday, it will be the 200th regular season appearance in his MLS career.
• Graham Zusi is one assist shy from 50 in all competitions during his Sporting KC career.
• Sporting KC is one win shy of 50 in all competitions at Sporting Park (including penalty shootout wins in the 2012 U.S. Open Cup and 2013 MLS Cup).
• In 2014, Sporting KC was 9-0-1 when leading at halftime and 1-9-0 when trailing at halftime.
• Sporting KC is 9-3-3 in the month of March over the last five seasons, including a 5-0-2 record at home. Sporting KC has outscored their opponents 26-13 during this stretch while posting seven clean sheets and scoring in all but one match themselves.

Team stats (2014 regular season)

Recent regular season meetings