Make no mistake about it: last week was a massive one for Sporting Kansas City.
Comfortable league wins over the New England Revolution and LA Galaxy bookended a 2-1 defeat of the New York Red Bulls in the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final, giving Manager Peter Vermes’ men another piece of silverware while staying within touching distance of first place in the Western Conference.
But now is not the time for the club to bathe in its own glory — especially with first-place Vancouver Whitecaps FC visiting Children’s Mercy Park on Saturday night (8 p.m. CT, FSKC Plus, FS Midwest Plus).
“They’re probably the hottest team in MLS — in the run that they’ve been having and the way they’ve been climbing the ladder to the top,” Vermes said Tuesday. “It’s obviously a place they deserve because they’ve been playing so well.”
Vancouver is 5-0-2 in its last seven games, tied for the longest active unbeaten run in MLS. The seven-game stretch has coincided with the breakout of midfielder Yordy Reina — who has four goals and three assists over the last month — as well as the rediscovered form of forward Fredy Montero, who has four goals and four assists to his name since Aug. 19.
Saturday’s fixture is likely to feature a clash of styles. While Sporting KC ranks second in MLS in possession, Vancouver ranks last, preferring quick counter-attacks as a primary means of chance creation.
“They’re just a very explosive team with the players that they have,” Vermes said. “They’re very good defensively, very good on set pieces and they can counter you with some incredible speed.”
If any team is well-positioned to halt Vancouver’s late-season surge in its tracks, it is Sporting KC. The side has rattled off three straight wins in the friendly confines of Children’s Mercy Park, where the club is amidst a 24-game home unbeaten run — the third-longest streak in MLS history. Counting all competitions, Sporting KC has gone 22 consecutive games without a home loss dating back to last September.
“We need to take this advantage of playing at home and go with everything from the start,” Sporting KC striker Diego Rubio said. “We need to make (Vancouver) feel like they are playing in our home.”
Rubio has played a key role in Sporting KC’s success over the past week, scoring twice against New England on Sept. 16 before adding a goal and an assist in Sunday’s 2-1 win versus LA. The Chilean has five goals in seven MLS starts this season, having missed the first three months of the year with an ACL injury.
Another forward finding his form of late is 21-year-old Daniel Salloi, who struck what became the match-winner in Wednesday’s Open Cup Final before opening the scoring on Sunday.
“One of the things this past week has really displayed is that we’ve had incredible movement in the final third as a team,” Vermes said.
Rubio agrees, alluding to his goal in Sunday’s contest as a prime example. A flowing move saw Ilie play an incisive through ball to Seth Sinovic, who provided a square ball to Rubio for an easy finish.
“The movement is very important in our play and our model,” Rubio said. “Everything we (create) in the game is about movement.”
That commitment to motion off the ball has yielded rewards not only for Rubio, but for Salloi as well. The homegrown Sporting KC Academy product has tallied six goals since the start of June as an increasingly important piece of his team’s attack.
Like Rubio, Salloi has earned increased playing time over the last few months. He came off the bench in 10 of his first 11 MLS matches this season, but has started each of his last seven league appearances since.
“It’s good that I can score goals in important games and be part of a winning team,” Salloi said “It’s a very exciting year for me and I want to finish it strong.”
