By The Numbers presented by KDOT: #SKCvFCD

"By The Numbers" is a season-long series sponsored by The Kansas Department of Transportation, giving a statistical preview of every Sporting KC match.
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A pair of Western Conference contenders square off Saturday when co-leaders Sporting Kansas City (9-5-10, 37 points) welcome fourth-place FC Dallas (9-5-8, 35 points) to Children's Mercy Park. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT on FOX Sports Kansas City Plus, FOX Sports Midwest Plus, FOX Sports GO, ESPN 99.3 FM (English) and La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish).

Saturday will likely mark the 100th consecutive MLS sellout at Children’s Mercy Park, a streak that began on April 7, 2012. We offer a statistical breakdown of the pivotal matchup in our By The Numbers preview.

Head-to-head

• Sporting KC and FC Dallas have met twice during the 2017 regular season, scrapping to a 0-0 draw on March 11 in Kansas City before FC Dallas earned a 1-0 home win on April 22 behind Maynor Figueroa's 77th-minute header.
• The sides also met in the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals on July 11, when Latif Blessing scored twice and Daniel Salloi added a third in a remarkable 3-0 extra-time victory.
• The home side in the series is 9-0-4 in the last 13 meetings across all competitions.
• Sporting KC is 5-0-1 in its last six home meetings with FC Dallas across all competitions, scoring 18 goals and conceding just three.
• FC Dallas won on its first visit to Children's Mercy Park in 2011, but has gone 0-6-2 since then while being outscored 21-5 (all competitions).
• Sporting KC holds a narrow 23-22-12 edge in the all-time regular season series.

FC Dallas

• 2017 MLS record: 9-5-8, 35 points (4th in West)
• 2017 MLS away record: 3-3-4 (12 GF, 12 GA)
• Last five games: 2-2-1, 7 points (W-W-L-L-T)
• Last MLS match: T 0-0 vs. Colorado Rapids on Aug. 12
• FC Dallas has just one clean sheet in its last 10 MLS matches after posting five shutouts in their first 12.
• FC Dallas' 1.18 goals against average is third-lowest in MLS, while their 11.0 shots faced per game are second-fewest only behind Sporting KC.
• FC Dallas' three road defeats are tied for the fewest in MLS.
• Forward Maximiliano Urruti leads FC Dallas with 11 goals but hasn't scored in four straight MLS matches, his longest drought of the season.
• Midfielder Michael Barrios is tied for second in MLS with 10 assists and leads the team with 40 chances created.
• Defender Matt Hedges is tied for eighth in MLS with 51 interceptions.

 Sporting KC

• 2017 MLS record: 9-5-10, 37 points (1st in West)
• 2017 MLS home record: 7-0-5 (23 GF, 8 GA)
• Last five games: 1-1-3, 6 points (T-T-W-T-L)
• Last MLS match: L 0-1 at Seattle Sounders FC on Aug. 12
• SKC's 1-0 loss at Seattle on Saturday snapped a club-record 13-game unbeaten run across all competitions.
• SKC is undefeated in a club-record 21 straight regular season home matches dating back to June 2016. It's the sixth longest such streak in MLS history.
• SKC's 19 goals conceded and 0.79 goals against average are the lowest marks in MLS.
• SKC is second in MLS with 14.3 shots per game while facing a league-low 9.8 shots per game.
• SKC leads MLS in passes per game (508), successful passes per game (423) and passing accuracy (83.2) while ranking second in average possession (56.7).
• Tim Melia MLS in shutouts (nine), goals against average (0.79), penalty kick saves (three) and save percentage (78.3) among goalkeepers with at least three games played.
• Defender Matt Besler is second among MLS defenders in passes completed (1,177), while Ike Opara (980) and Seth Sinovic (968) rank sixth and seventh, respectively.
• Midfielder Ilie second in MLS in both passes (1,611) and passes completed (1,373).
• Midfielder Benny Feilhaber is eighth in MLS with 50 chances created.

Milestones and Miscellany

• Saturday is expected to be the 100th consecutive MLS sellout at Children's Mercy Park dating back to April 2012.
• Midfielder Benny Feilhaber is one shy of his 150th MLS appearance for Sporting KC (including playoffs).

Team stats (2017 regular season)

MLS rank in parenthesis (source: Opta)

Recent #SKCvFCD meetings (all competitions)

• Regular season record vs. FC Dallas: 23-22-12 (84 GF, 89 GA)
• Regular season home record vs. FC Dallas: 14-8-7 (53 GF, 35 GA)