Sporting KC at Portland Timbers
Saturday, October 3, 2015 – 9:30 p.m. CT
Providence Park | Portland, Oregon
English TV: KMCI-TV & SKCTV
English Radio: 99.3 FM
Spanish Radio: La Grande 1340 AM
Game Notes | Media Guide | Game On | Social Media | MatchCenter | By the Numbers
Sporting Kansas City returns to MLS play on Saturday night after claiming the club’s third Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title on Wednesday. This weekend's match against the Portland Timbers at Providence Park marks the second road match in four days for Sporting KC on opposite sides of the country and holds massive implications on the race toward the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Live match coverage will be available on KMCI-TV’s 38 the Spot locally or on SKCTV affiliates across the Midwest beginning at 9 p.m. CT. In addition, radio broadcasts will be available on 99.3 FM (English) and 1340 AM (Spanish).
Sporting KC currently sits in fifth place in the Western Conference with 45 points, just five points behind first place LA Galaxy, whom Sporting KC hosts on October 25 in their final match of the MLS regular season. The Timbers trail the visitors by just one point and currently occupy the final playoff spot with four games to go.
Portland earned a 2-1 victory in their last outing against Columbus Crew SC after going winless in four consecutives matches, including a 0-0 draw against Sporting Kansas City on Sept. 9. Fanendo Adi scored both goals for Portland in the victory and leads the team with 12 goals this season. Behind Adi are Maximillano Urruti, Nat Borchers and Jack Jewsbury who have each scored three times in 2015.
Sporting Kansas City boasts two double-digit goal scorers in 2015 in Dom Dwyer (11) and Benny Feilhaber (10), while Krisztian Nemeth -- who notched the equalizer in the U.S. Open Cup Final -- has nine goals during the 2015 MLS regular season. The trio have combined for 30 of Sporting KC's 45 regular season goals this season and 42 of the club's 59 goals in all competitions.
Portland is unbeaten in 14 straight home games against Western Conference foes (6-0-8) since September 2014. Meanwhile, Sporting KC only has three MLS victories on the road in 2015, but is undefeated at Providence Park since April 2012 and secured a scoreless draw there last month.
Sporting Kansas City Manager Peter Vermes will be without veteran midfielder Paulo Nagamura on Saturday due to a mandatory one-game suspension for caution accumulation. For the Timbers, captain Will Johnson is expected to miss the match after undergoing mid-week surgery on his leg.
In-game updates will be available online at SportingKC.com/GameOn, via Twitter at @SKCGameday and through the Sporting Club Uphoria mobile app. The Final Whistle: Sporting KC Postgame Show will be available on Sports Radio WHB immediately afterward and fans can join the conversation by calling 913-3-810-810.