Ahead of Sunday's nationally televised match at Children's Mercy Park, SportingKC.com caught up with Fox Sports broadcaster John Strong to preview #SKCvCLB. Live coverage of Sunday's match starts at 6 p.m. CT on FS1, Fox Deportes, 810 WHB, and 1340 AM.
Sporting KC players Matt Besler and Graham Zusi recently returned to the club after being with the USMNT for Copa America Centenario. What are your overall thoughts looking back at the tournament and the USMNT’s performance?
You have to remember that all tournaments are a snap-shot in time, and as a result it's a little dicey to draw larger conclusions based on what happens in the span of three or four weeks. So, speaking strictly from a results standpoint, it was a successful tournament for the US: they reached the semifinals, grinded out wins against Paraguay with 10 men, against an underrated Ecuador team, and only went out to the best team in the world with the best player in the world, all while playing without three suspended starters. As for the SKC players, Zusi showed he's back to full fitness and back to being Jurgen's first guy off the bench, and Besler showed that Jurgen wants very much to find a place for him on the field with this LB experiment, given that Brooks and Cameron have cemented themselves--for the moment--as the CB pairing.
What are your thoughts on Columbus’ season?
I'll be phrasing it on-air as The Curious Case of the Columbus Crew: how does a team finish second in the east, beat the Supporters' Shield winners to get to MLS Cup, all with a widely admired style of play, then bring the entire team back...and have three wins in 15 games? Some of it is injuries (Shawn Mitchell of the Columbus Dispatch calculated that they've lost three times the player-games to injury this year than this time last year), some of it is losing Kei Kamara (even though Ola Kamara has scored goals, Kei was such a focal point and constant threat), some of it is teams figuring out ways to beat you (look at NYRB's struggles early this year, even SKC's over the last two years, teams with very distinct styles eventually have to adapt and evolve some), and there's always luck thrown in as well. And let's not forget this is what MLS does, with enforced parity throwing teams for a loop--up or down--year over year! Curious to see what they do in the transfer market to help figure things out, they've had almost two months to think about striker options, and received a reported "record amount" of allocation money for Kamara.
After struggling in April and May, Sporting KC was unbeaten during in June during league play. What are your thoughts on Sporting KC’s current form and their ability to continue that momentum?
It's tough to figure out momentum right now because of the Copa America break, and for that matter only Sunday does Sporting have Besler and Zusi back for MLS action. That being said, a more encouraging two games: Benny Feilhaber looking like Benny of last year v Dallas, Dom Dwyer looking like Dom of two years ago at Montreal. But it's only added up to one point gained on the playoff line so far, so it's about continuing on Sunday. But getting Nuno Coelho back soon will help, he's been a fantastic signing. Getting a goal from Diego Rubio and extending his loan is encouraging. Can Brad Davis (no assists this year! Crazy!) and Justin Mapp become bigger factors in the weeks to come? Can Peter Vermes have his full team available and each individually playing closer to their best? Because eventually the music will stop come late October, and someone surprising (either a "big name" club or a team that's had a hot start) will be left without a chair, to borrow one of Alexi's favorite metaphors.
What players and match-ups will you be focusing on for Sunday’s match?
As ever, Columbus' style leaves their CBs exposed as the outside backs push forward in possession. Can Feilhaber and Zusi put Dwyer into good goalscoring positions, and can he finish? He might get plenty of looks like his second goal in Montreal, running at the defenders and letting fly from outside the box.
For Columbus, without Federico Higuain, can Ethan Finlay and Justin Meram be dangerous in the more open, transition moments that always come in games involving Sporting KC, and remind everyone why the Crew were so dangerous (and fun to watch) offensively in 2015?
You’ve called several matches during your broadcasting career at Children’s Mercy Park. What to you makes it one of the top atmospheres and environments in MLS?
Some of it is the building, the design of the stadium, how compact it is, the roof holding sound in, the feeling like the fans are right on top of you. But atmospheres are always about people more than architecture: what sets this fan base apart in MLS is, like Portland and Seattle, the team is a big deal in Kansas City. Sporting games are a big deal. And the entire stadium, not just the supporters, but even the folks in the fancy seats, are engaged, are proud of their team and the impact they can have as fans, and feel a real sense of ownership to what happens. Does that mean they get vocally frustrated when times are tough? Of course. But more-so than bad results or bad coaching or bad player acquisitions, civic apathy is the biggest challenge MLS teams have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. That does not apply in Kansas City.
