Five Questions on Sporting KC With Dan Sperry of the Kansas City Star

Commerce City, CO – Colorado Rapids host Sporting KC for 4th Fest, their annual 4th of July home game. It’s the 28th time they’ll play on Independence Day, having played on Sunday, July 3rd in 2011 and not at all in 2020. I reached out to my longtime colleague and friend Daniel Sperry to get caught up on all things SKC. Dan covers Sporting and KC Current for the Kansas City Star.

Sporting’s last game was a 1-1 draw against RSL with Johny Russell scoring against his former club. How do you rate that performance? What needs to improve on Friday?

I’d give it a 6/10. The opening 20 minutes of each half were promising, but the team lost its way slightly after that and became a bit too tentative. The last two games have provided better chance creation, and I think the result may have ended up better for Sporting in the final 10 without Jake Davis’ red card. They need to make the moments in rest defense less pressure-filled and find a way to control the game without the ball for stretches, as they’re not a heavy possession-based team like past Sporting teams.

This will be Colorado’s first match against KC without Peter Vermes as head coach in 16 years. How different are they under interim coach Kerry Zavagnin? What has he done well?

The biggest thing Kerry has done is find a way to give the players some confidence again. He’s allowed younger or inexperienced players to play through “learning” mistakes, and they’ve benefited from it in short-term development. Additionally, Vermes had the team trying to play wide most of the time, and they were consistently pumping crosses in. Kerry has gone a bit more vertical through the middle lately and found success through Manu Garcia’s playmaking, and the team relies less on crosses from out wide versus trying to find opportunities for cut-backs or through balls. They need to find a way to create more chances, though.

If this team has a strength, it seems to be the front three of Joveljic, Salloi, and Thommy. Am I right on that? What can we expect from them?

Joveljic is, of course, a strength. He’s been clinical all year and has one of the best conversion rates in the league. But I’d place the engine of the attack and creativity in the hands of Garcia, who has nine “MLS Assists”. The league’s inflated assist stat includes secondary assists. He has seven primary assists, which ranks him fourth in MLS. He might be the most skilled player Sporting KC has ever had. If Colorado allows him time and space to pick out a pass to Joveljic or either of the wingers, it’s a recipe for danger.

The offense for Colorado has done well the last two games. Sporting have conceded 37 goals, only LA Galaxy and D.C. United are worse. What are the strengths and weaknesses of Big Bear John Pulskamp and the back line?

I’d say the backline has its issues in moments. Here’s what’s been their biggest issue: They don’t give up a ton of chances, but when they do, they’re mostly punished. They are susceptible to giving up cutbacks and crosses because their fullbacks push up too high, or don’t chase down the service. Pulskamp himself has been rock solid of late, and single-handedly kept Sporting in games to earn points. Four goalkeepers in MLS have faced more than 30 Post Shot Expected Goals (PSxG) cumulatively this season. Only one GK is in the positive for PSxG-GA, and Pulskamp is next best with a -0.05 in that stat, a near wash.

John’s biggest strengths are in shot-stopping and 1v1s. He does struggle at times with set-piece services, but has improved that in recent weeks. As for the rest of the backline, rookie draft pick Jansen Miller is an excellent 1v1 defender and a surprisingly good athlete. Logan Ndenbe on his day can be locked down on the left, but the inconsistency in pairing with Miller and at right back has been a struggle for Sporting.

Prediction: What’s the score? Who scores the goals? 

I say Colorado wins 2-1. This is largely an inexperienced and young group making its way to the Mile High for the first time. We’ll say Daniel Salloi scores for Sporting but Djordje Mihailović and Rafael Navarro get the goals for the Pids.

Bonus NWSL Question: There’s so much hype around Denver NWSL launching next year. As someone who’s covered KC Current closely, got any advice for the club and the fans?

The club should avoid making the same mistakes as Utah in their roster build. Get the coaching hire right, and the roster build right, to ensure the proper setup is in place around them. What they can’t do is make themselves a “toxic” destination for players. Investing in the players to have as close to the best setup around them as possible will create success and help the environment around the club feel right. For fans, expect quirks in the NWSL (I mean, this is American soccer. It will always have quirks), but also know it’s the best women’s league product in the world from top to bottom. Every game is worth going to.

Photo Credit: Mark Shaiken

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