With the 2020 MLS season on temporary hold, SportingKC.com is taking daily strolls down memory lane with an "On This Day" web series that celebrates memorable moments in team history. As one of Major League Soccer's proud charter members, Sporting has a decorated past full of thrilling victories, amazing goals, momentous off-the-field developments and more. "On This Day" pays tribute to these specific instances, turning back the clocks while treating fans to nostalgia and club history lessons. To catch up on the series as it unfolds, visit SportingKC.com/OnThisDay.
Five years ago today, Sporting Kansas City staged one of the unlikeliest comebacks in club history.
On April 5, 2015, Manager Peter Vermes' men entered second-half stoppage time trailing the Philadelphia Union by a 2-1 scoreline at Children's Mercy Park. The visitors had scored twice inside the first 20 minutes, bookending an early equalizer from Dom Dwyer, and appeared well on their way to three road points on Easter Sunday.
Shame on anyone who counted Sporting out.
Staging their own resurrection in a nationally televised showdown on FS1, Sporting leveled terms in the 91st minute when Jalil Anibaba's header amidst a slew of bodies found the far corner of the net. The Children's Mercy Park faithful erupted with cathartic joy, but the hosts weren't done yet.
With 94 minutes on the clock, Hungarian forward Krisztian Nemeth met Matt Besler's deft flick-on—following a Benny Feilhaber corner kick—and poked low past Philadelphia goalkeeper Rais Mbolhi to blow the proverbial roof off the stadium and complete the stunning fightback.
Nemeth's close-range strike was Sporting's 1,000th goal in all competitions and, more significantly, marked the first time since 2007 that Kansas City had scored twice in stoppage time to reverse a deficit and win a game.
