Midfielder Gianluca Busio bagged a sensational long-range goal on Saturday to lift Sporting Kansas City to a 1-0 win over LA Galaxy in the club’s final match of the 2021 preseason, presented by Children’s Mercy. Busio conjured his moment of magic in the 33rd minute at Kino North Complex in Tucson, Arizona, as Sporting Kansas City concluded their four-game preseason slate with a 2-1-1 record. Post-match remarks from Manager Peter Vermes are below.
On Sporting’s performance in the 1-0 win…
Both teams were a little tired because the heat was massive today. We weren’t quite used to it so we were chasing shadows. We were trying to do what we wanted to do, but it was just a tough climate for our guys. With all of that being said, it’s great that some of the guys got used to what an MLS game is going to be like in the summer months. They got a good indication that you’ve got to be good on the ball and you’ve got to understand that the heat’s going to be a factor. You have to manage that and I thought it was good for the guys to do that today.
On the first-half performance of center back Nicolas Isimat-Mirin…
It was a good experience for him to be able to play against another MLS team. At some point, he’s going to have to see that and he won’t be able to do that again until our first game of the season. On the ball, he’s very good. He also has a good mentality and I think it’s just going to be step by step for him. We pushed him a little bit to get 45 minutes today and we’ve got quite a few guys that we’re going to have to get fit over the next couple of weeks.
On Sporting’s unavailable players…
We need to get some type of match fitness, and I’m talking about Johnny Russell, Alan Pulido, Gadi Kinda, Graham Zusi, Daniel Salloi. All of those guys weren’t available to play today, so we’re trying to get them fit. That’s going to be an important aspect. Johnny turned his ankle a few days back and we’re working through that at the moment. Kinda will be back in training next week. Zusi is back running. They’re all working towards it and it’s going to be step by step for those guys.
On Sporting’s preseason training camp overall…
There was a lot of really good stuff done here during spring training. I do think there’s still a lot of stuff we have to work on. Like I said, we need to get guys fit and indoctrinated into the team, but it was very good in a lot of respects.
On Busio’s first-half goal…
In the midfield, I thought we were coming back for the ball a little too much. Once he started playing a little higher up the field, I thought we started to become more dangerous. It was a great shot and those are the types of things he can do.
On the first-half performance of Ozzie Cisneros…
He did fine and it was a really good experience for a guy like him. To be able to go into a game and play against an MLS team and compete at that level is great.
