Reigning MLS Cup champion Atlanta United FC accomplished something on Sunday night that few other teams have in recent season at Children's Mercy Park.
They emerged victorious.
Josef Martinez bagged a brace and Ezequiel Barco added a goal and an assist, condemning Sporting Kansas City to a 3-0 defeat while snapping the club's 10-game home unbeaten streak in MLS regular season play.
Sporting's 10-game home unbeaten run was tied for the third longest such streak in club history. Only two previous spells eclipsed the 10-match stretch that began last August with a 3-0 triumph over the Portland Timbers.
Manager Peter Vermes' men went 24 home matches unbeaten from June 2016 to September 2017, a streak that stands as the third-longest in MLS regular season history. The team also avoided defeat in its first 12 home fixtures of 2015.
SPORTING KC: LONGEST HOME UNBEATEN STREAKS
(ALL-TIME MLS REGULAR SEASON)
<strong>STREAK</strong> |
<strong>START</strong> |
<strong>END</strong> |
24 matches |
06/19/2016 |
09/30/2017 |
12 matches |
03/08/2015 |
08/19/2015 |
10 matches<br>
10 matches |
06/28/2008<br>
08/18/2018 |
03/21/2009<br>
05/05/2018 |
9 matches |
six times |
N/A |
Complicating matters for Sporting on Sunday was the fact that eight players missed the game through injury. Another two, 16-year-olds Gianluca Busio and Tyler Freeman, were on international duty with the United States U-17 Men's National Team.
Sporting's short-handedness showed in the matchday squad. Just 16 players dressed for the match, two fewer than the customary 18.
This marked only the second time during the Peter Vermes era, which began in August 2009, that Sporting dressed 16 players for an MLS match. The first occasion took place on June 27, 2014, when Vermes navigated his side to a 1-0 win at Portland despite a slew of injuries and international absences.
Winless in seven straight games across all competitions, Sporting will have a full week of training before hitting the road. Another Eastern Conference opponent awaits next Sunday as the club visits Audi Field for the first time to battle D.C. United in the nation’s capital. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. CT on FS1.
