KANSAS CITY, KANSAS – Playing a lineup without five of its key contributors, Sounders FC (8-4-2, 26 points) fell 1-0 on the road to Sporting Kansas City (6-2-6, 24 points) Saturday night in front of a crowd of 21,505 at Sporting Park. Benny Feilhaber netted a late penalty kick to clinch the win, handing Seattle its first-ever loss at Sporting and ending a nine-match unbeaten streak (7-0-2) against SKC in MLS regular season play. Sounders FC is tied for first place in the Western Conference with Vancouver Whitecaps FC, but Seattle has two games in-hand over its Cascadia rival. The Rave Green sit just two points behind D.C. United in the Supporters’ Shield Standings with two games in-hand and lead MLS with 1.86 points per match.
After over 80 minutes of scoreless play, Sporting Kansas City was awarded a penalty kick in the 82nd minute following a collision in the box between SKC forward Dom Dwyer and Seattle goalkeeper Stefan Frei. Feilhaber converted the ensuing penalty to the bottom right corner, marking Sporting’s first goal against Seattle in MLS regular season play since June 20, 2012.
Sounders FC was without all three of its Designated Players, with Clint Dempsey remaining in Seattle after the birth of his fourth child, Obafemi Martins recovering from surgery to repair a broken nose earlier this week and Osvaldo Alonso serving a one-game suspension for a foul last weekend against the New York Red Bulls. Additionally, captain Brad Evans is away with the U.S. National Team and forward Chad Barrett was out of the 18-man lineup due to a hamstring injury.
The Rave Green return to action next Saturday, June 13 with a home clash against FC Dallas. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. PT on JOEtv, with pre-match coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. PT.
MATCH SUMMARY
Seattle Sounders FC 0 – Sporting Kansas City 1
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Venue: Sporting Park
Referee: Ismail Elfath
Assistants: Corey Parker, Chris Strickland
Fourth Official: Fotis Bazakos
Attendance: 21,505
Weather: Partly cloudy and 84 degrees
SCORING SUMMARY
SKC – Benny Feilhaber (PK) 84’
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
SEA – Stefan Frei (caution) 82’
LINEUPS & STATS
Seattle Sounders FC – Stefan Frei; Tyrone Mears, Chad Marshall, Zach Scott, Dylan Remick; Micheal Azira (Darwin Jones 86’), Gonzalo Pineda, Cristian Roldan (Leo Gonzalez 77’), Andy Rose, Marco Pappa (Thomás 80’); Lamar Neagle
Substitutes not used: Troy Perkins, Damion Lowe, Oniel Fisher, Aaron Kovar
Total shots: 6 (3 players, 2)
Shots on goal: 6 (3 players, 2)
Fouls: 9 (Pineda, 2)
Offside: 3 (Neagle, 2)
Corner-kicks: 5 (Pappa, 5)
Saves: 3 (Frei, 3
Sporting Kansas City – Tim Melia; Jalil Anibaba, Kevin Ellis, Matt Besler, Amadou Dia; Soni Mustivar, Benny Feilhaber, Roger Espinoza; Marcel de Jong (Dom Dwyer 58’), Graham Zusi, Connor Hallisey (Saad Abdul-Salaam 85’)
Substitutes not used: Jon Kempin, Servando Carrasco, Jimmy Medranda, Chance Myers, James Rogers
Total shots: 16 (de Jong, 5)
Shots on goal: 4 (4 players, 1
Fouls: 7 (Espinoza, 3)
Offside: 1 (de Jong, 1)
Corner-kicks: 3 (Zusi, 3)
Saves: 6 (Melia, 6)
MATCH NOTES
- The loss ended a four-match unbeaten streak (3-0-1) for Sounders FC, but the Rave Green remain in first place in the Western Conference, tied with Vancouver Whitecaps FC with two games in-hand. Seattle sits just two points behind D.C. United in the Supporters’ Shield standings and leads MLS with 1.86 points per match.
- The result marked Seattle’s first loss in five all-time MLS regular-season meetings at Sporting Park (4-1-0) and snapped a nine-match unbeaten streak (7-0-2) against SKC in MLS regular season play.
- Missing five of its key contributors, Sounders FC came out in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Lamar Neagle as the lone striker and Micheal Azira and Gonzalo Pineda sitting back as defensive midfielders. Zach Scott filled in for Evans at centerback and wore the captain’s armband.
- Newly-signed midfielder Thomás made his Sounders FC debut when he came on as a substitute in the 80th minute. The 22-year-old Brazilian was added to the club’s roster on Monday, June 1.
- Each of Seattle’s six shots were put on target, the second such instance in club history. Sounders FC previously put all three of its shots on goal on April 10, 2010 in a 2-2 draw at Real Salt Lake.
- Sporting Park’s crowd of 21,505 marked the largest attendance in the history of the venue.
