Peter Luccin wants FC Dallas to finish their season on a high when they play their final MLS match of 2024 against Sporting Kansas City on Saturday.
Dallas can only finish as high as 10th in the Western Conference but have won just one of their last seven MLS matches, losing the last two on the bounce.
Despite not reaching the playoffs, Luccin is already looking at the positives they can carry into next season, though he still expects his team to show their best form against Sporting KC.
"Our duty is to give all we've got," he said. "The attitude of the team against Portland was positive and that's the least we can do for the fans.
"At the same time, we need to think about next year. The attitude of the players has been great, but we didn't lose games because of that. It came down to qualities or specific details, not mentality.
"It's good, we are growing up as a team, so we need to see how they do against Kansas."
Kansas City, meanwhile, are guaranteed to finish 13th no matter the result.
They are on a three-match losing streak in MLS and head coach Peter Vermes wants to make sure his team finish on a high after that poor run of form.
"Every week, no matter where you are in the season, you're always working, thinking, preparing to make sure your team is ready for the challenge, and not just from the soccer perspective," he said.
"You're trying to get the mentality right. It's much more challenging in a situation like this, but I think it will say a lot about the players that go on the field about how serious they take it."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
FC Dallas – Petar Musa
Petar Musa has scored 15 goals this season, 10 more than any other Dallas player.
That is the second-largest gap between a team's top goalscorer and second in MLS this season, behind only Christian Benteke, who has scored 17 more goals than any other D.C. United player in 2024.
Sporting Kansas City – Daniel Salloi
Daniel Salloi has scored eight regular-season goals against Dallas, three more than against any other opponent in his MLS career.
No player has scored more goals against Dallas since Salloi made his MLS debut in 2017.
MATCH PREDICTION: FC DALLAS WIN
Dallas have won only one of their last seven regular-season matches (D2 L4). They have conceded three goals in all four losses in that time but conceded just one in the other three matches.
Kansas City have won three straight meetings with FC Dallas in all competitions for the first time since 2017. Only once before has either team managed a four-match streak (Sporting KC in 2004), and Dallas will be keen to ensure they do not manage the same feat on Sunday.
Sporting KC, meanwhile, have just 31 points coming into the final match of the season, and will finish with fewer than 35 points for the first time since 2009 (33). Sporting hasverecorded fewer than 32 points only once before, totalling 20 points in the 1999 campaign.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
FC Dallas – 46.6%
Draw – 26.5%
Sporting Kansas City – 26.9%
Steve Cherundolo stated his pride in Los Angeles FC's defence and hopes they can put in another big performance against Sporting Kansas City on Saturday.
LAFC have won their last three games in all competitions, starting with their US Open Cup win over Sporting KC before getting back on track in MLS.
They are second in the Western Conference with three games left, with their 1-0 win over St. Louis City, in which they did not concede a single shot on target, closing the gap to LA Galaxy.
Cherundolo lauded his defenders for that performance and is pleased to see their training sessions paying off.
"It's great to see we're growing and learning in certain situations and putting all the pieces together," Cherundolo said.
"The defensive side of the game is something we train a lot and take pride in. When our defenders have enough minutes together and continuity, we're quite good.
"They've done extremely well and adapted amazingly by applying their lessons from training into the matches."
Meanwhile, Kansas City will not be playing in the postseason as they sit 13th after just one win in their last five, losing 3-1 to St. Louis last time out.
However, head coach Peter Vermes has challenged his side to finish the regular season on a high.
"I'd like to win both games. This isn't like handing out free passes to go and play," Vermes said.
"Being in this spot isn't normal for our club, but I'm not changing the way I pick the team. We've still got two games to play, and we'll give it everything we have to make it tough."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sporting Kansas City – Stephen Afrifa
Despite dominating against St. Louis last time out, Kansas City failed to get a win, though Stephen Afrifa ensured they did not fire a blank.
He scored their only goal after having six shots, four of which were on target, while also having nine touches in the opposition box, more than anyone else on the pitch.
LAFC – Denis Bouanga
There is no doubt who has been one of the star performers for LAFC this season, with Denis Bouanga scoring 19 goals in MLS so far.
He does not just score goals though, as he can also dictate play – his five chances created against St. Louis last time out were the most of any player in the game.
MATCH PREDICTION: LOS ANGELES FC WIN
Kansas City have failed to win any of the six meetings with LAFC since September 2021 in MLS regular season and have only won four of their 12 matches overall against the club.
This will be the third meeting between the sides this season, with their previous MLS meeting ending in a 0-0 draw, before LAFC beat them 3-1 in extra time to clinch the US Open Cup final last month.
That win over Sporting in the final started a three-match winning streak for LAFC, who were winless in their five games prior to that run.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Sporting Kansas City – 28.8%
Draw – 24.5%
LAFC – 46.8%
John Hackworth believes St. Louis City's derby with Sporting Kansas City is key to MLS as they resume their rivalry on Saturday.
The last two meetings between the sides have finished level, with both ending in dramatic fashion.
St. Louis City come into the latest edition having lost just one of their last six outings, though that was their last home match.
They sit 13th in the Eastern Conference, level on points with Sporting above them, and Hackworth is now keen to build on the momentum from their win over San Jose Earthquakes last Saturday.
"We talked about trying to finish these last five games with a lot of momentum, showing our fans what we were capable of," Hackworth said.
"We knew we had to go on the road in one of these three games and be successful, and now we just need to build on that.
"This rivalry is really important to our league. It's two teams who are going to go after it and play by their principles, leaving it all out there to see what happens - two dramatic draws set us up for this contest."
Meanwhile, Kansas City have won just one of their last five matches in all competitions and suffered a 3-1 defeat to Los Angeles FC in the US Open Cup final on Wednesday.
Head coach Peter Vermes was left disappointed by the result but believes there are positives to take from the performance.
"I give the guys a lot of credit. I'm very proud of the effort that the guys put into that game," Vermes said.
"It never feels good to lose. But I also think that the group did themselves proud in the way they performed. We had good responses in that game, but in the end, we fell short."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
St. Louis City – Cedric Teuchert
Cedric Teuchert scored in the fourth minute in each of St. Louis City's last two matches.
Teuchert is one of six players to score more than one goal in the opening four minutes of matches this season and the second to do so in consecutive matches (Mikael Uhre).
Sporting Kansas City – Tim Melia
Both goals Sporting Kansas City conceded in their loss to Minnesota United on Saturday came in the final 30 minutes.
Sporting have allowed 31 goals in the final 30 minutes of matches this season, only San Jose (33) has allowed more, and Tim Melia will be hoping his concentration levels can improve ahead of Saturday's match.
MATCH PREDICTION: ST. LOUIS CITY WIN
St. Louis City have lost only two of their last 10 matches in all competitions (W4 D4), including picking up a 2-1 win at San Jose on Saturday. St. Louis have not won two straight matches in all competitions since wins over Minnesota United and Sporting Kansas City last September.
Sporting have lost 10 of their last 12 regular-season away matches, including a 2-0 loss in Seattle in their last league road match. Only league-worst San Jose (11) have lost more away matches this season than Sporting (10).
However, Kansas City are unbeaten in four straight meetings with St. Louis (W2 D2) after St. Louis won two of the first three encounters. This will be the eighth meeting between St. Louis and Kansas City, totaling 10.4 % (8/77) of all of St. Louis' games in all competitions up to this point.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
St. Louis City – 43.4%
Draw – 26.7%
Sporting Kansas City – 29.9%
Olivier Giroud said his move to Los Angeles FC was in a quest to win trophies after he helped guide his side to a 3-1 win over Sporting Kansas City in the US Open Cup final.
LAFC exorcised the demons from four consecutive final defeats, including in the Leagues Cup showpiece against Columbus Crew last month, to prevail at the BMO Stadium in extra-time.
Giroud, who made the move to the MLS after leaving Milan last season, opened the scoring in the 53rd minute, turning home Mateusz Bogusz's cross from close range.
Sporting KC responded seven minutes later when Erik Thommy fired Daniel Salloi's cutback beyond Hugo Lloris' at his near post to send the game to extra-time.
Substitute Omar Campos curled home a fine finish in the 102nd minute to give the Black and Gold the lead before Kei Kamara headed home to seal LAFC's maiden triumph in the competition.
"I came here to win trophies and to play that kind of final," said Giroud.
"I was really sad and disappointed for the team regarding the Leagues Cup.
"We've been in a difficult run these last weeks, but we stuck together, and we really wanted to win this trophy for the fans, for the club.
"It does matter for me, for the boys, and I'm so happy to score in this final and to help the team."
LAFC return to MLS action this weekend when they travel to the TQL Stadium to face FC Cincinnati.
Olivier Giroud said his move to Los Angeles FC was in a quest to win trophies after he helped guide his side to a 3-1 win over Sporting Kansas City in the US Open Cup final.
LAFC exorcised the demons from four consecutive final defeats, including in the Leagues Cup showpiece against Columbus Crew last month, to prevail at the BMO Stadium in extra-time.
Giroud, who made the move to the MLS after leaving Milan last season, opened the scoring in the 53rd minute, turning home Mateusz Bogusz's cross from close range.
Sporting KC responded seven minutes later when Erik Thommy fired Daniel Salloi's cutback beyond Hugo Lloris' at his near post to send the game to extra-time.
Substitute Omar Campos curled home a fine finish in the 102nd minute to give the Black and Gold the lead before Kei Kamara headed home to seal LAFC's maiden triumph in the competition.
"I came here to win trophies and to play that kind of final," said Giroud.
"I was really sad and disappointed for the team regarding the Leagues Cup.
"We've been in a difficult run these last weeks, but we stuck together, and we really wanted to win this trophy for the fans, for the club.
"It does matter for me, for the boys, and I'm so happy to score in this final and to help the team."
LAFC return to MLS action this weekend when they travel to the TQL Stadium to face FC Cincinnati.
Eric Ramsay is hopeful Minnesota United's latest defeat has not dented their momentum as they prepare to travel to Sporting Kansas City in MLS.
Minnesota have won two and lost two of their last four MLS matches, with those two victories both coming on the road.
They are ninth in the Western Conference after losing to FC Cincinnati in their last outing, failing to mount a comeback after two first-half goals from their visitors.
Ramsay was slightly disappointed by the result but is determined to take the positives from that game as they continue their playoff push.
"We showed some naivety [against Cincinnati] with the goals we conceded, but the game as a whole was largely very good," he said.
"We went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the whole division. We have to take that as a positive and use that as a step forward, as a continuation of the momentum that we've built so far and not let it dent what we've already done."
Meanwhile, Sporting are 12th in the league, having lost just one of their last five league matches.
They beat Colorado Rapids 4-1 last time out, with Alan Pulido netting a brace, and head coach Peter Vermes was delighted to see him getting in on the goals.
"Alan has this level in him and has great form over the past two months, but we're playing him in better places on the field," Vermes said. "We haven't found enough chances to get him in on goal, and we need to keep improving that.
"The good thing is that we have options, we're not stuck. We're limitless right now, we have a lot of different ways in which we can put different combinations of players on the field."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sporting KC – Alan Pulido
Pulido scored twice in Kansas City's win over Colorado on Wednesday, his seventh multi-goal game for Sporting.
The only two players in club history with more multi-goal regular season games are Dom Dwyer (10) and Digital Takawira (eight).
Minnesota United – Kelvin Yeboah
Kelvin Yeboah scored from the penalty spot on Wednesday, with three of his four goals this season have been via penalty kicks.
Yeboah is the fourth player to have 3+ penalty kick goals in a season for Minnesota, with Darwin Quintero being the only Loons player with more (four in 2019).
MATCH PREDICTION: SPORTING KANSAS CITY WIN
Sporting KC have won 10 of their 11 all-time home matches against Minnesota, including the last four in a row. Minnesota's lone result at Sporting was a 3-0 victory in the 2020 playoffs.
Indeed, Kansas City have won three straight home matches across all competitions, with all three victories coming by multiple goals. This is the first time Sporting have won three straight home games, all by 2+ goals, since a four-game run to start the 2019 season.
However, after going winless in eight straight on the road (D2 L6), Minnesota have recorded back-to-back wins away from home. The longest road winning streak in club history in all competitions is three matches, achieved in both 2022 and 2023.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Sporting KC – 46.8%
Draw – 26.4%
Minnesota United – 26.8%
Chris Armas has hailed the Colorado Rapids' professionalism as they close in on a playoff spot, ahead of Wednesday's trip to Sporting Kansas City.
The Rapids sit third in the Western Conference amid a fine first campaign under Armas, and they boast an impressive seven-point cushion to those outside the automatic playoff places.
Goals from Jonathan Lewis and Rafael Navarro handed them a 2-1 win over the in-form Portland Timbers last time out, but Armas says there is no chance of his men losing focus after that result.
"It was a big step for our team," Armas said. "The mood in the locker room is one where it's like, 'it's just another day in the office'.
"There's no big celebration but they understand that was a big step for us, to get three points in a decisive game, to put some separation there.
"We have our eye on the prize, which is the playoffs. The mood is good, we've learned, we've grown and when the whistle blows, it's just three points closer."
Kansas City, meanwhile, look destined to miss out on the playoffs, sitting 12th and needing to make up an 11-point gap to the wild-card spots in just five games.
They were beaten 2-0 by the Seattle Sounders last time out, leading coach Peter Vermes to express frustration with their response to conceding first.
"I actually think we started the game really well, we were keeping them in their end, and we really didn't give them anything in our end," Vermes said.
"They got their goal off us being in a position to play forward but we played backwards. We were for sure the better team at the time, but when they scored, it put us back on our heels."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sporting Kansas City – Daniel Salloi
Salloi has scored five goals in nine career matches against the Rapids. The only opponent he has scored more goals against is FC Dallas, netting eight against them.
Colorado Rapids – Djordje Mihailovic
Mihailovic assisted both Rapids goals in their win over Portland last Saturday.
He has 65 goal contributions since the start of the 2020 season (25 goals, 40 assists), and the only American international with more in that time is Jesus Ferreira (69).
MATCH PREDICTION – SPORTING KANSAS CITY WIN
The Rapids have won their last two matches against Kansas City, including a 2-1 home success on July 4. Colorado had won just two of the previous 13 matches between the sides (six draws, five losses) dating back to the start of the 2018 season.
Colorado's 3-2 victory at Dallas on their last road trip, on August 31, meanwhile, was their fifth away win this season. Only in 2021 (eight) and 2011 (six) have they won more on their travels in the post-shootout era.
However, this is a tough test for Armas' men, with Sporting winning six of their last eight home games across all competitions (one draw, one loss), their only defeat in that span coming against Toluca in the Leagues Cup.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Sporting Kansas City – 41.3%
Colorado Rapids – 32%
Draw – 26.7%
Brian Schmetzer was under no illusion that the Seattle Sounders’ upcoming MLS fixture against Sporting Kansas City will be anything but easy.
The Sounders returned to winning ways in style, comfortably dispatching Leagues Cup winners Columbus Crew 4-0 away from home last time out.
Schmetzer’s side find themselves sitting fifth in the Western Conference table, with the advantage of having four of their remaining six MLS fixtures at Lumen Field.
And the Sounders head coach insisted their home form would be critical until the end of the season, but he acknowledged the task awaiting his players in their next game.
“It is critical. We need to tell the players the importance of home games because last year Sporting KC came here and beat us and it gave them life, while also putting them on a little bit of a run,” Schmetzer said.
“They have an Open Cup final to look forward to, so they are a dangerous opponent. We want to make sure that we get as many points as possible in these home games because we have this advantage.
“They are a similar team to us. It is the MLS, there are ebbs and flows in every season with every team, so we have to be careful.”
Kansas City, meanwhile, are riding the crest of a wave having gone unbeaten in their last three matches in all competitions, including securing a place in the US Open Cup final.
But their latest result saw them concede an 89th-minute equaliser against the New York Red Bulls, taking their total to 22 points dropped from winning positions this season, the joint-most in the MLS.
But despite that late setback, head coach Peter Vermes is relishing the battle against a side right in the thick of the playoff picture.
“We have had a lot of good matches against each other over the years,” Vermes said.
“I always think that if you are a fan, or just an innocent bystander watching the game, it always winds up being something that you enjoy because it’s always a good game to watch.
“Both teams try to play and there is a lot of competition between the two teams. It’s physical but it’s never dirty and all of us enjoy participating in those kind of games.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Seattle Sounders – Albert Rusnak
Rusnak netted his first career MLS hat-trick in Seattle’s 4-0 win over Columbus last time out.
He became the first Slovakian to score an MLS treble, the 51st different country to have at least one of its representatives score a hat-trick in regular season MLS play.
Kansas City – Johnny Russell
Russell has scored a career-best seven regular season goals against the Sounders, including netting one in the meeting between the sides in June.
Only Chris Wondolowski (12), Robbie Keane (nine) and Fanendo Adi (eight) have scored more regular season goals against Seattle than the Scot.
MATCH PREDICTION: SEATTLE SOUNDERS WIN
While Seattle are predicted to emerge victorious according to Opta’s data-led simulations, the Sounders have lost back-to-back home matches, both against Los Angeles FC, in the Leagues Cup and US Open Cup.
Seattle have only lost three of their last 17 matches going back to the beginning of May, with all three defeats coming at the hands of LAFC (W10 D4 L0 vs. all other teams).
Kansas City have enjoyed recent trips to Lumen Field, however, winning four of their last five visits to Seattle (L1) after recording just two wins in their first 11 matches against the Sounders in all competitions (D2, L7).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Seattle Sounders – 53.5%
Draw – 23.8%
Kansas City – 22.6%
New York Red Bulls coach Sandro Schwarz is demanding defensive improvements against Sporting Kansas City after seeing his team's three-month unbeaten run in MLS snapped.
The Red Bulls suffered their first loss since June 8 – when they were beaten 1-0 by the New England Revolution – last week as they went down 2-0 at home to the Philadelphia Union.
The result left the Red Bulls fourth in the Eastern Conference standings but with just a five-point advantage over the teams currently occupying the wild-card spots.
With every point of utmost importance during the run-in, Schwarz wants his team to rediscover their solidity on Saturday.
"We didn't have the best few days after the Philly game, we analysed this and it's very clear we have to improve our defence, especially against Kansas City," Schwarz said.
"It's also necessary that when you lose a game, you change a little bit the atmosphere and now we are looking forward to the game.
"We should see some more players integrated towards the end of the season and the performances every day on the training field will be important, but matchday is when you have to show your quality."
Sporting KC, meanwhile, beat Indy Eleven in the U.S. Open Cup semi-finals last time out, having also beaten Orlando City 3-0 in their last MLS game to keep their own slim playoff hopes alive.
Coach Peter Vermes was glad to have a breather last weekend and expects his team to be reenergised for their trip to Red Bull Arena.
"The week has been good. Having the break after two games in a row was actually really healthy for us," Vermes said.
"I think for the team, having some of the days off has kept the guys hungry and they're ready to go and play a big game. It's been good."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New York Red Bulls – Lewis Morgan
As well as leading all his team-mates in the goalscoring charts with 12 strikes in 23 regular-season games this year, Morgan has been a real creative force for the Red Bulls.
Only John Tolkin has matched his 38 chances created for the team in MLS play this season.
Sporting Kansas City – Tim Melia
Sporting have kept clean sheets in back-to-back matches across all competitions, and veteran goalkeeper Melia will be desperate to remain unbeaten again here.
This is the first time they have gone consecutive matches without conceding a goal in all competitions since March 2023, while they last did so in three straight back in 2020.
MATCH PREDICTION – NEW YORK RED BULLS WIN
After meeting nine times in all competitions between 2012 and 2014, Sporting and the Red Bulls have played just eight times in the 10 seasons since Kansas City moved to the Western Conference. Sporting have won four of those eight meetings (two draws, two losses).
They approach Saturday's game in good form, too, winning six of their last 10 matches (one draw, three losses) after only winning six of their first 24 to start 2024 (five draws, 13 losses).
The Red Bulls saw their 11-match unbeaten run in MLS ended by last week's defeat to the Union, having also previously gone 17 home games without defeat – the longest such run in their history. Can they get back to winning ways on Saturday?
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
New York Red Bulls – 58.3%
Sporting Kansas City – 20%
Draw – 21.7%
Oscar Pareja said allowing his Orlando City players to rest after their exit from the Leagues Cup was crucial ahead of resuming their MLS season against Sporting Kansas City this weekend.
The Lions were knocked out by Cruz Azul in the last 32 of the competition, losing in a penalty shootout at the Inter&Co Stadium following a goalless draw in normal time.
They return to league action having gone into the break five games unbeaten, sitting seventh in the Eastern Conference table heading into the final fixtures of the campaign.
And Pareja is confident that their two-week break will have his side fit and firing for the business end of the season.
“We definitely have put in two weeks of hard work, but at the beginning of the first week we tried to rest a couple of our players,” Pareja said.
“After the amount of games we had, it was healthy for us to recover some of our players and then the rest of the time we have dedicated our time to recovering for our next games.”
Kansas City were also knocked out of the Leagues Cup at the last 32 stage, comfortably beaten by Columbus Crew, who play Los Angeles FC in the showpiece match this weekend.
They resume their league season sitting in 12th place in the Western Conference table, triumphing in two of their final four fixtures (D1 L1) before the break and closing the gap to FC Dallas.
Despite their heavy defeat in the Leagues Cup to the Crew, head coach Peter Vermes was able to pinpoint areas in which his side could improve upon their MLS return.
“I thought we did a really good job,” Vermes said of the team’s first period. “I thought tactically and work ethic-wise, we were very good.
"We didn’t provide them with a lot of options to play. A lot of balls went wide, and we forced them backward. I thought we did a great job of that.”
“We over-committed to one side, especially in our midfield,” Vermes said. “We didn’t have any pressure on the ball, and it was an easy run in behind us.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Kansas City – Willy Agada
Kansas’ leading marksman, Willy Agada, has five goals in his last seven appearances in all competitions, and he will be key to breaking Orlando’s winning run.
His strike against St. Louis City last time out was his 20th goal in the MLS since his move from Hapoel Jerusalem in 2022, reaching that tally in 51 appearances.
Orlando City – Martin Ojeda
Ojeda has contributed to a goal in each of his last six MLS appearances, equalling the longest single-season streak by an Orlando player.
This will be the Argentine’s first appearance against Kansas, and he will be looking to add to his 12 goal involvements in all competitions upon his return to league action.
MATCH PREDICTION: ORLANDO WIN
Orlando have won four of their last five regular season matches before the Leagues Cup break, with no team collecting more points than the Lions’ 13 in July, while they also led the MLS in goals scored (14) and were tied for the fewest conceded (three) last month.
Kansas City has won four of their last five home matches against MLS opposition in all competitions (D1), including a 2-1 win over Chicago in the Leagues Cup last month.
The last six meetings between the two sides have been split with each team winning twice and drawing twice. All four wins in that time were by one-goal margins, so expect a tightly contested affair at Children's Mercy Park.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Kansas City – 33.2%
Draw – 25.6%
Orlando City – 41.2%
St. Louis City interim head coach John Hackworth says their recent struggles have been a "test of character" as they look to bounce back against Sporting Kansas City.
St. Louis have lost their last three games by an aggregate score of 10-2, leaving them 13th in the Western Conference, eight points off a playoffs place.
With only one win in their last 13 MLS matches, Hackworth is keen to snap their current losing streak and says he saw positives in their 2-0 defeat to Seattle Sounders in midweek.
"The players made a huge step [against Seattle], played much better than we did previously," Hackworth said.
"[We] gave ourselves a chance to be in that game, had some unfortunate things again happen to us, but it wasn't for lack of trying to play with a lot of heart and soul, being collective, having each other's backs, so those are positives we can build on for sure.
"We have had all season to deal with a lot of hardships, it's a test of our character."
Meanwhile, Kansas City sit one place and one point ahead of their opponents but lost their most recent match 2-1 against Vancouver Whitecaps after back-to-back wins.
Head coach Peter Vermes expressed his disappointment with the defeat in Vancouver and is eyeing a quick improvement on Saturday.
"We're slow with the ball in situations that catch us out with fast transitions, and we need to be better there," Vermes said.
"We need as much energy and as many players as we possibly can for this weekend, so hopefully, we'll be there."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sporting Kansas City – William Agada
William Agada scored on Wednesday, bringing his total up to four goals in his last four matches in all competitions.
Prior to his recent form, Agada had notched just two goals in his previous 17 matches.
St. Louis City – Nokkvi Thorisson
Nokkvi Thorisson attempted two shots in the loss to the Sounders on Wednesday, tying him with Eduard Lowen for the most by any St. Louis player in the match.
It was the fifth consecutive match in which Thorisson had either the most or joint-most shots for the team.
MATCH PREDICTION: SPORTING KANSAS CITY WIN
Sporting are unbeaten in three straight meetings with St. Louis (winning two, drawing one), including winning both matches in the 2023 playoffs after St. Louis won two of the first three meetings between the sides.
Kansas City are also on a three-match home winning streak in all competitions, the most recent of which was a 2-1 extra-time victory over FC Dallas in the U.S. Open Cup. This is the 'longest home winning streak since winning four straight in May-June 2023.
Meanwhile, St. Louis lost 2-0 at Seattle Sounders on Wednesday, their third straight defeat, all by at least two goals. City are looking to avoid becoming the first team to lose four straight MLS matches, all by multiple goals, since Inter Miami did so in March 2022.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Sporting Kansas City – 50.1%
Draw – 25.2%
St. Louis City – 24.7%
Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini believes there are no limits to where his side can finish in MLS if they continue their unbeaten streak against Sporting Kansas City.
The Whitecaps have not lost any of their last five matches in all competitions, winning four and drawing one, leaving them sixth in the Western Conference.
With only eight points separating them from the top of the table, and Vancouver having two games in hand over some of those above them, Sartini is confident his team can challenge for a top spot.
"We have to push for the next two games at home before the rest and the Leagues Cup, so we really need to push, and then we can regroup in the last 10 games to try and get the highest position possible," Sartini said.
"We need to get points because everyone is getting points. It's really hard.
"If we keep winning, sooner or later we'll be higher than fifth or sixth. The only thing we can do is win."
Sporting Kansas City are on a three-match winning streak of their own, which has lifted them off the foot of the table.
After going through a rough patch of just one win in five before that, head coach Peter Vermes has highlighted how the squad rotation has helped him get the best out of his players.
"I am [proud]," Vermes said.
"Each time, no matter what their responsibility is — whether they are starting, playing 90 minutes or coming in the second half — the responsibility to come in and make a contribution to the team has taken on a much different effect than it did early in the season.
"It's a credit to the players because they are the ones on the field who have to do the work and make the contributions."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Vancouver Whitecaps – Brian White
Brian White has scored in four straight matches for the second time this season (also in April), the only player in MLS with multiple streaks of four or more games with a goal this season.
The only Whitecaps player to score in five straight league games was Camilo Sanvezzo in June-July 2013.
Sporting Kansas City – Erik Thommy
Erik Thommy scored his first MLS goal since April in Sporting's win over San Jose on Saturday with a strike from outside the box.
It was Sporting's 11th goal from outside the box this season, three more than any other MLS team.
MATCH PREDICTION: VANCOUVER WHITECAPS WIN
The 10 meetings between the Whitecaps and Sporting Kansas City since the start of the 2020 season have been split, with each side winning four times and drawing twice. Both sides have recorded at least one win home and away in that time.
The Whitecaps are currently unbeaten in their last five home matches in all competitions (W4 D1), including winning the last two at BC Place. Vancouver have not gone six straight home matches without defeat in all competitions since October-November 2021.
However, Kansas City have won three of their last four regular-season matches after opening the season with three wins in their first 20 games (D5 L12). Saturday's win, 2-1 at San Jose Earthquakes, snapped an eight-match road losing streak in league play for Sporting.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Vancouver Whitecaps – 50.2%
Draw – 25.2%
Sporting Kansas City – 24.6%
Interim San Jose Earthquakes boss Ian Russell is keen to carry the momentum from last week's crucial victory over the Chicago Fire into Saturday, when Sporting Kansas City visit PayPal Park.
The Earthquakes halted a nine-match winless run and recorded their first victory in three games under Russell last time out, Hernan Lopez's goal proving enough to beat Chicago.
San Jose remain six points adrift of their nearest rivals – Saturday's opponents Sporting – at the bottom of the Western Conference standings, but Russell hopes last week's win can be a turning point.
"We needed a win. The Clasico was disappointing and against St. Louis we were flat. I thought we were on the front foot and deserved to win," Russell said.
"We're happy with how the players responded and got after it. We've had some close ones go the other way.
"Depending on the opponent, the main objective for us was to stop conceding goals. We needed to grind out a game like that and it gives us confidence moving forward.
"We just need to build momentum from that last game and carry it on to Sporting."
Sporting were also victorious last week, beating FC Dallas 3-2 in a game that saw William Agada score twice and Zorhan Bassong sent off late on.
Having then needed extra time to overcome the same opponents in the U.S. Open Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday, coach Peter Vermes will leave it until the last minute to pick Saturday's starting lineup.
"We go back to 20 guys now and I can't bury a bunch of guys. One issue is Bassong being out for the next game, that hurts a bit," Vermes said after their Dallas double-header.
"We'll have some challenges that we'll have to deal with and it'll be Saturday morning when we see how some of the players are."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
San Jose Earthquakes – Cristian Espinoza
Espinoza provided the assist on the lone goal in San Jose's win over Chicago last Sunday, his 10th assist of the season.
This is Espinoza's fourth career double-digit assist season, something no other Earthquakes player has done more than twice.
Sporting Kansas City – William Adaga
After scoring twice against Dallas last weekend, Agada has netted in 12 different matches in MLS, and half of those contests have seen him score a brace.
Of players that have scored in 10 or more MLS matches, only Miguel Almiron (53.8%, 7/13) has had multiple goals in a higher percentage of them.
MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW
Sporting KC have only lost two of their last 18 matches against the 'Quakes in all competitions, winning 10 and drawing six in a run dating back to September 2016.
One of San Jose's two victories in that span, however, did come when the teams last faced off at PayPal Park last April, a 3-0 win.
With Sporting losing eight straight regular-season road matches, their longest losing streak away from home in the post-shootout era (since 2000), this fixture may come at a good time for San Jose. Whether they have the quality to take three points, though, is a big question.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
San Jose Earthquakes – 35.9%
Sporting Kansas City – 38%
Draw – 26.1%
Peter Luccin was thrilled with FC Dallas' comeback against the Portland Timbers, but still sees plenty of ways they can improve.
Dallas came out on top from a topsy-turvy match in midweek, winning 3-2.
It saw Dallas bounce back from successive defeats, and they sit 11th in the Western Conference ahead of Sunday's clash with Sporting Kansas City, who are six points behind in 13th.
Asked what he liked about his team's performance against the Timbers, Dallas interim boss Luccin said: "Resilience, resilience from the team. That was huge.
"After the first half, we were very passive with nothing offensively. The only thing about the first half that I liked was the compactness of the team. We were compact, but no one making runs, no one even putting more pressure on the ball or playing with the ball.
"The half-time talk, maybe it's better for me to not say anything. It was a hard talk, but at the same time, we told them to believe.
"We felt that we could score in the second half. The second half we showed character.
"We are in a very hard situation right now in the club and with the team, with so many injuries to very important players."
Petar Musa got on the scoresheet for Dallas to move into double-figures for the season.
"I am happy with my goals but for me, it's not about just the goals," said the striker.
"We want to win every single game and I want to help the team. I'm more focused on winning every game. So if I score I'm happy, but it's more important that we won."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sporting Kansas City - Daniel Salloi
Salloi has scored eight goals in 15 career regular-season matches against Dallas, three more than he has scored against any other opponent. Salloi has six goals in his last six matches against Dallas.
FC Dallas - Petar Musa
Musa has scored five goals in his last three matches, taking his total to 10 in his first 20 MLS games for Dallas. The last player to reach 10 goals faster for Dallas was Carlos Ruiz in 2005 (16 games).
MATCH PREDICTION: SKC WIN
Dallas are winless on the road in the 2024 regular season (D3 L7) with its three road points being the fewest in MLS this season. It is the second time the club has been winless through at least 10 away matches of a season as they failed to win any of their first 11 on the road in 2000.
SKC beat Austin FC 2-0 in their last home game. The win ended a streak of 14 straight home regular-season games of SKC conceding, the second-longest such streak in team history (22 straight from June 2002 to October 2003).
The home side has won each of the last four meetings between Kansas City and Dallas in all competitions. There have been at least three goals scored in each of the last six meetings with both teams scoring in all six.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
SKC - 41.3%
Dallas - 32%
Draw - 26.7%
Peter Vermes urged his Sporting Kansas City players to take responsibility for their own position ahead of the upcoming MLS road trip to Colorado Rapids.
SKC ended a three-game losing streak with a 2-0 victory over Austin FC in their last encounter, just their second victory in 15 league games.
Kansas City are still bottom of the Western Conference and 11 points adrift of the playoff spots, though Vermes is desperate for fighting spirit ahead of a testing schedule.
"We can't wait, we have a lot of games that are important coming up," SKC head coach Vermes said at his pre-match media availability.
"Each game has its own importance to it, this all started last week but we need to keep going.
"We go in with a plan, we have an idea, it sometimes comes down to how the guys recover. Hopefully no one gets injured, but also just minutes – it's going to be really important.
"Each guy himself has to be ready for the responsibility of the position and knowing what we do when we have the ball, when we don't, they have to go into the game with that.
"We don't have a lot of training time in between games, so they all have to be ready for that."
The Burgundy Boys will be out to extend their home unbeaten run to five games in this clash, though they suffered a 3-0 defeat to Los Angeles FC last time out on the road.
Colorado are fourth in the West standings but nine points adrift of the top two, a gap they will hope to shorten at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Colorado Rapids – Rafael Navarro
Rafael Navarro has scored in each of his last five home appearances for the Rapids, and will fancy his chances of extending an impressive run this time around.
The only players with a longer streak in regular-season play in Colorado's history are Diego Rubio (six in 2022) and Mark Chung (also six in 2003).
Sporting Kansas City – William Agada
Goals have been hard to come by for the Kansas City side, with William Agada leading the way this season in MLS with five strikes.
Agada has managed that tally from 20 games, averaging a goal every four matches, but will hope to add to his scoring returns in Colorado.
MATCH PREDICTION – COLORADO RAPIDS WIN
The Rapids are the favourites for victory on home soil in this clash, owing to a remarkable head-to-head record in meetings between this pair.
Colorado are unbeaten in 10 straight regular-season home matches against SKC (W5 D5) and have lost only two of their 28 home league matches against them since August 2000 (W13 D13).
This will also be Colorado’s third Independence Day meeting with Sporting, having won in both 2003 and 2005, with the expectation that history will repeat itself here.
SKC are hardly in fine form either, having managed just their second win last time out in their previous 15 MLS matches (D2 L11).
However, they managed the club's first clean sheet since a scoreless draw at LAFC on March 9, and will hope to build on that performance here.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Colorado Rapids win – 48.2%
Draw – 25.9%
Sporting Kansas City win – 25.9%
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