Sporting Kansas City’s 2018 campaign delivered thrills from beginning to end, packing entertainment, emotion and drama on a weekly basis as Manager Peter Vermes’ side ascended to the top of the Western Conference table and brought the MLS Cup Playoffs back to Children’s Mercy Park.
In a year chalk full of stunning goals, wild wins and momentous developments off the pitch, assembling the top 12 moments of 2018 was no easy task. There simply hasn’t been a dull moment over the last 12 months, which is why this season will be fondly remembered well into the future.
Nevertheless, SportingKC.com has taken its best shot at counting down the dozen moments of 2018 that stood out above the rest. The countdown will run from Dec. 20-31, beginning with No. 12 on Dec. 20 and culminating with the No. 1 moment of 2018 on New Year’s Eve.
The Countdown: #12: Winning in Atlanta |#11: Signing Kalen Ricketson |#10: The comeback vs. Houston |#9: The opening of Pinnacle |#8: Melia silences Zlatan |#7: Fireworks in Vancouver |#6: Johnny Russell's hat-trick | #5: Clinching a home playoff game in Dallas | #4: Peter Vermes' contract extension | #3: Finishing first on Decision Day | #2: Re-signing a veteran quartet
This thrill ride was worth the wait.
Five years had passed since Children’s Mercy Park last hosted a playoff match. That, of course, was the 2013 MLS Cup contested between Sporting KC and Real Salt Lake on a bitingly cold December afternoon.
On Nov. 11, the same two rivals met again in the decisive second leg of the 2018 Western Conference Semifinals. And on this particular Veterans Day, Sporting KC delivered 90 minutes of heart-pounding excitement in one of the most epic games in club history.
Diego Rubio scored early, Ilie Sanchez buried a penalty kick and Daniel Salloi struck twice as Sporting KC won a 4-2 thriller over RSL to claim a 5-3 aggregate victory that vaulted Manager Peter Vermes’ side into the Western Conference Championship.
The six-goal slugfest went down as Sporting KC’s second-highest scoring playoff match and marked just the third time that Kansas City had exploded for four goals in the postseason.
An electric atmosphere inside Children’s Mercy Park set the tone for Sporting KC’s early dominance. Rubio and Salloi scored within the first 20 minutes to give the hosts a 2-0 advantage, but drama was restored when Sebastian Saucedo grabbed a goal back on the hour mark. Sporting KC temporarily regained their two-goal cushion on a 67th-minute penalty from Ilie, only for RSL’s Damir Kreilach to head home five minutes later.
The visitors went remarkably close to equalizing—and taking the series lead via away goals—on two occasions. An 83rd-minute corner kick pin-balled around a crowded box before the ball fell invitingly to Nick Besler, the younger brother of Sporting KC captain Matt Besler, but his low shot fizzed wide and into the side-netting. Seconds later, RSL winger Jefferson Savarino won possession in the penalty area and sent a side-footer inches wide of Melia’s right-hand post.
Salloi made RSL pay with a series-clinching goal in the 97th minute that just might go down as the greatest flashbulb moment of Sporting KC’s 2018 season. The 22-year-old’s no-look finish into an empty net blew the proverbial roof off Children’s Mercy Park and ignited a team celebration we won’t soon forget.
