KANSAS CITY, Kan. ā Daniel Salloiās emergence with Sporting Kansas City could not come at a better time for the depleted club.
Sporting will be without five starters for Thursdayās home match against Philadelphia (8:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE), thanks to a triple whammy of international duty, injury, and suspension. Still, Salloiās first MLS goal ā a 60th-minute equalizer in Saturdayās 1-1 home draw with Portland ā raises hopes that the 20-year-old forward, who now has two goals across all competitions in recent weeks, can pick up the slack.
āI donāt feel like it is a pressure. I feel like it is a great opportunity since so many players are gone,ā said Salloi, who came on in the 35th minute after winger Gerso had to leave the match with a separated shoulder. āUnfortunately Gerso got hurt, I feel bad for him, but itās an opportunity for me to show myself and play well and score goals and be a part of the team. So I donāt feel pressure. Iām happy that I could score and that we got the point and weāll keep working.ā
Sporting are likely to call heavily upon Salloi in coming matches. That's not just because of Gersoās injury, which is expected to keep him out for 2-3 weeks, but because of striker Dom Dwyerās absence with the US national team for the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
āāHe knows, and weāve been talking about this, his progression has been very good,ā manager Peter Vermes said. āThereās always aspects that a player needs to continue to get better at, but if thereās one thing that Iāve said about him, and Iāll keep repeating it, is that anytime heās in or around the box, heās deadly.
"He has a good goalscorerās mentality. He wants to score, but not at the detriment to the team. Not where heās selfish at times but he picks and chooses the right moments. But the movement that he had off the ball for that goal was world class. It was an excellent finish.ā
On the play, Salloi slipped to the post to take a perfectly placed ball from midfielder Roger Espinoza, settled it quickly and fired past Portland keeper Jake Gleeson.
āHeās been training very well and working hard,ā Vermes said. āThereās a reason that weāve been sending him, when thereās a chance that doesnāt affect us, to Swope Park Rangers to make sure he keeps getting fit so he can play. That wasnāt even a question in regards to the game. Itās not like, āIs he going to be okay to play all these minutes,ā but he was great.
āHe understands everything weāre trying to do. Itās just repetition for him.ā