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Sporting Kansas City (7-8-4, 25 points) and New York City FC (8-5-6, 30 points) enter Sunday's interconference battle at Children's Mercy Park riding four-game unbeaten streaks in MLS competition. The match is set to kick off at 7 p.m. CT on FS1, FOX Deportes, Sports Radio 810 WHB and La Grande 1340 AM, with a limited number of tickets still available at Ticketmaster.com.
Manager Peter Vermes' men have shown signs of turning a corner over the last month, especially on the attacking end where the club has manufactured seven goals over the last three games. New York City FC, meanwhile, carries a remarkable road record into Sunday's contest (5-2-1) and boasts a star-studded lineup with a wealth of World Cup experience. The clubs have met once previously, squaring off in March 2015 at Yankee Stadium, when Ike Opara headed home a long throw-in from Matt Besler on the 12-minute mark to give Sporting KC a 1-0 victory.
We take a statistical look at the marquee matchup in our By The Numbers preview...
New York City FC
- 2016 MLS record: 8-5-6, 30 points (1st in East)
- 2016 MLS road record: 5-2-1 (14 GF, 10 GA)
- Last five games: 4-1-0, 12 points (L-W-W-W-W)
- NYCFC currently owns a four-game winning streak, tied for the longest by any MLS team this season.
- NYCFC leads MLS with five road wins (5-2-1). No other team has more than three. The club leads MLS with 1.75 goals per road game (14 in eight).
- NYCFC is unbeaten in its last four road games, winning three and posting shutouts in the last two.
- NYCFC enters the weekend tied for the league lead with 30 goals scored
- NYCFC leads MLS with 15.2 shot attempts per game.
- NYCFC's 31 goals conceded are second-most in MLS, but the club's current 272-minute shutout streak is the longest active streak in the league.
- Striker David Villa leads MLS with 12 goals, 114 shots and 48 shots on goal.
- Midfielder Tommy McNamara is tied for fourth in MLS with ix assists, including an MLS-best four game-winning assists.
- Midfielder Andrea Pirlo is tied for fifth in MLS with 39 chances created.
- Defender Frederic Brillant leads MLS with 111 clearances.
Sporting Kansas City
- 2016 MLS record: 7-8-4, 25 points (5th in West)
- 2016 MLS home record: 5-4-1 (14 GF, 13 GA)
- Last five games: 2-1-2, 8 points (L-T-W-T-W)
- Sporting KC has scored seven goals in its last three MLS matches (June 19 - July 3) after scoring seven in its previous 11 (April 13 - June 2).
- Sporting KC has faced 9.5 shots per game, the fewest in MLS, while also ranking second with 14.2 shot attempts.
- Sporting KC is 4-1-1 this season against Eastern Conference opponents and 15-5-5 against interconference foes since the start of 2014.
- Sporting KC is fourth in MLS with 10.1 chances created per game.
- Midfielder Roger Espinoza leads MLS with 126 duels while ranking sixth with 40 tackles and eighth with 661 successful passes.
- Since May 20, defender Jimmy Medranda leads MLS in tackles (28) and interceptions (32) while ranking fourth in duels won (38).
- Goalkeeper Tim Melia is tied for third in MLS with five shutouts and tied for fourth with seven wins.
Milestones and Miscellany
- Matt Besler is one shy of his 200th MLS start for Sporting KC (including playoffs).
- Graham Zusi is one shy of his 150th start for Sporting KC in the MLS regular season.
- Ike Opara is one shy of his 50th appearance for Sporting KC in all competitions.
- Jacob Peterson is one shy of his 100th career substitute appearance in the MLS regular season. He would be the fifth MLS player to reach the century mark in regular season substitute appearances.
- Sporting KC is one shy of its 50th MLS regular season win at Children's Mercy Park (49-21-25 record).
- Sporting KC is one shy of 200 goals scored at Children's Mercy Park (including friendlies). The club is two shy of 150 regular season goals scored at the stadium.
Team stats (2016 regular season)
MLS rank in parenthesis (source: WhoScored.com)
<strong>Category (per game)</strong> |
<strong>Sporting KC</strong> |
<strong>NYCFC</strong> |
Goals scored |
1.11 (17th) |
1.58 (t-6th) |
Goals conceded |
1.16 (4th) |
1.63 (17th) |
Shots |
14.2 (2nd) |
15.0 (1st) |
Shots on goal |
4.3 (16th) |
5.2 (3rd) |
Passing accuracy |
76.8% (10th) |
78.2% (6th) |
Possession |
52.8% (3rd) |
53.6% (2nd) |
Tackles |
20.8 (3rd) |
21.6 (1st) |
Interceptions |
19.9 (6th) |
18.6 (10th) |
Fouls committed |
12.4 (12th) |
12.3 (13th) |
Shots faced |
9.5 (1st) |
11.9 (4th) |
Recent #SKCvNYC meetings
- Regular season record vs. New York City FC: 1-0-0 (1 GF, 0 GA)
<strong>Date</strong> |
<strong>Result</strong> |
<strong>Stadium</strong> |
<strong>Competition</strong> |
03/28/2015 |
W 1-0 |
Yankee Stadium |
Ike Opara scores in 12th minute off Matt Besler throw-in |
