Goals in the 94th and 96th minutes gave Sporting Kansas City (5-10-4, 19 points) the latest start to a comeback win in club regular season history as Mason Toye and Dejan Joveljic scored stoppage-time goals to secure a remarkable 2-1 victory over Charlotte FC (8-10-1, 25 points) in the inaugural meeting between the clubs on Wednesday night at Children’s Mercy Park.
Idan Toklomati lifted Charlotte ahead with an impressive backheel finish in the 34th minute, putting the visitors in prime position to take three points back to North Carolina, but Sporting’s late attacking onslaught was rewarded with Toye coming off the bench to tuck home an equalizer and Joveljic finishing on the doorstep two minutes later as Kansas City sealed its most dramatic triumph of the season.
Wednesday marked just the third time in the MLS regular season that Sporting has scored the game-tying and game-winning goals in second-half stoppage time, and the first time SKC has won after trailing as late as the 93rd minute. The result gives interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin’s side palpable momentum ahead of Saturday’s home fixture against a Real Salt Lake outfit that features former Kansas City captain Johnny Russell and fellow forward William Agada. The Western Conference clash—which will see hometown hero and longtime defender Matt Besler inducted into the Sporting Legends hall of honor at halftime—will kick off at 7:30 p.m. CT with tickets available at SeatGeek and live coverage on MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.
Zavagnin made one change to Sporting’s starting XI from a 4-2 home loss to FC Dallas on June 14 as Daniel Salloi returns to the lineup. With defender Khiry Shelton serving a one-game suspension, Jake Davis shifted from the midfield to right back, captain Erik Thommy moved from left wing into Davis’ midfield spot, and Salloi started at left wing.
Charlotte entered the night having lost seven of nine games but began brightly in a midweek tilt that saw both teams combine for 39 shot attempts. English Premier League veteran Wilfried Zaha curled wide and forward Liel Abada hammered high inside the first seven minutes before Abada forced a save from Sporting goalkeeper John Pulskamp at the quarter-hour juncture. Spanish playmaker Pep Biel was next to threaten in the 20th minute, doing well to shake free only to see his 20-yard bomb corralled by Pulskamp.
At the opposite end, Salloi broke free down the left side and sent a low cross to the opposite post for Shapi Suleymanov, who was unable to put his sliding attempt on target. Thommy then dragged a left-footed strike inches wide in the 26th minute and Suleymanov—who buried a brilliant long-range goal in Sporting’s last match against Dallas—uncorked a bending effort that smacked off the left post three minutes later.
Charlotte drew first blood 11 minutes before halftime as Zaha played Souleyman Doumbia into space for a cross from the left side. Toklomati latched onto the delivery on the edge of the six-yard area with an excellent backheel finish to tally his second goal of the season.
Joveljic had a pair of half-chances go begging on the stroke of intermission. His floating header off Jansen Miller’s lofted diagonal ball was saved by Kristijan Kahlina, as was his speculative shot from distance.
A frantic start to the second half saw Abada race in behind the Sporting defense but fail to beat Pulskamp as he pushed his breakaway shot wide of the near post. Salloi then went close by receiving a pass from Logan Ndenbe, swiveling at the corner of the box to create space and sending a curler just wide of the far post. Shortly thereafter, Davis spurned a good look by misfiring off an Ndenbe cutback pass.
Salloi had another opportunity go begging in the 61st minute, rounding Kahlina but failing to get off a shot at a tight angle and instead picking out Joveljic for a blast that was blocked through traffic.
The game was nothing short of breathless from the 80th minute onward. High-impact substitute Santiago Munoz almost restored parity with what would have been the goal of the year, pulling off an admirable scorpion kick from Davis’ cross that missed by only a few yards. With Kansas City pushing numbers forward in search of a leveler, Charlotte then had a flurry of counter-attacking chances wasted as Biel and Kerwin Vargas both failed to hit the target at close range and Pulskamp produced a phenomenal save to thwart Vargas.
Munoz had scored in two of Sporting’s previous three matches and almost bagged his third goal of the season in the 89th minute. Memo Rodriguez’s free kick into the box was headed back across the face of the six-yard area by Miller and fell to the 22-year-old Munoz, whose lunging strike was blocked behind for a corner kick.
Sporting’s latest start to a comeback win began with 94 minutes on the clock. Playmaking midfielder Manu Garcia brandished an inch-perfect long ball over the top for Toye, who coolly opened his hips and slotted a side-footed finish under Kahlina for his first Kansas City goal and his first MLS tally since April 20, 2024.
With Children’s Mercy Park buzzing, Sporting sensed blood in the water and went for the proverbial kill. In the 96th minute, Garcia pinged another high-arching ball into the path of Munoz, who did well to shoulder off his defender on the right side of the box before sliding the ball across to an unmarked Joveljic, who applied the simplest of finishes for his team-leading 11th goal of the campaign, tied for third most in MLS. Munoz now has a goal contribution in three of his last four appearances, while Garcia’s eight assists this season are also tied for third most on the MLS charts.
Wednesday saw Sporting win after trailing at halftime in an MLS match for the first time since June 2021 against LAFC, breaking a streak of 51 games without a win when trailing at the break. Charlotte, meanwhile, were unbeaten in their previous 22 MLS matches when leading at halftime (18-0-4) dating back to April 8, 2023.
2025 MLS Regular Season | Match 19
Children's Mercy Park | Kansas City, Kansas
Attendance: 16,223
Weather: 87 degrees and sunny
Score | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
Sporting Kansas City (5-10-4, 19 points) | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Charlotte FC (8-10-1, 25 points) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Sporting Kansas City: John Pulskamp; Jake Davis, Jansen Miller, Joaquin Fernandez, Logan Ndenbe; Jacob Bartlett, Erik Thommy (C) (Memo Rodriguez 69'), Manu Garcia; Shapi Suleymanov (Santiago Munoz 69'), Dejan Joveljic (Ian James 90+8'), Daniel Salloi (Mason Toye 85')
Subs Not Used: Ryan Schewe, Andrew Brody, Tim Leibold, Stephen Afrifa
Charlotte FC: Kristijan Kahlina; Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, Adilson Malanda, Andrew Privett, Souleyman Doumbia (Djibril Diani 88'); Ashley Westwood (C), Eryk Williamson (Brandt Bronico 66'); Liel Abada (Nick Scardina 88'), Pep Biel, Wilfried Zaha (Kerwin Vargas 78'); Idan Toklomati (Tyger Smalls 66')
Subs Not Used: David Bingham, Bill Tuiloma, Nikola Petkovic, Iuri Tavares
Scoring Summary:
CLT -- Idan Toklomati 2 (Souleyman Doumbia 1, Wilfried Zaha 4) 34'
SKC -- Mason Toye 1 (Manu Garcia 7) 90+4'
SKC -- Dejan Joveljic 11 (Santiago Munoz 1, Manu Garcia 8) 90+6'
Misconduct Summary:
CLT -- Eryk Williamson (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 55'
CLT -- Wilfried Zaha (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 63'
SKC -- Joaquin Fernandez (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 66'
STAT | SKC | CLT |
|---|---|---|
Shots | x | x |
Shots on Goal | x | x |
Saves | x | x |
Fouls | x | x |
Offsides | x | x |
Corner Kicks | x | x |
Referee: Rubiel Vazquez
Assistant Referee: Jason White
Assistant Referee: John Krill
Fourth Official: JC Griggs
VAR: Sorin Stoica
AVAR: Tom Supple
