"By The Numbers" is a season-long series sponsored by The Kansas Department of Transportation, giving a statistical preview of every Sporting KC match.
Sporting Kansas City and the San Jose Earthquakes continue their respective pursuits of Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup glory on Wednesday at Children's Mercy Park. The highly anticipated semifinal showdown will kick off at 7:30 p.m. CT, streaming live on SportingKC.com with a radio broadcast on Sports Radio 810 WHB. Tickets for the matchup are available at SeatGeek.com as Sporting Kansas City seeks its third Open Cup final appearance since 2012 and its fourth overall.
The long-time Western Conference rivals have met just once in Open Cup competition, having squared off in the 2004 semifinals. Kansas City prevailed that time around before winning the championship a month later. We take a statistical look at Wednesday's all-important battle in our By the Numbers preview.
Head-to-head
- Sporting KC is 3-0-1 in its last four meetings against San Jose, including a 2-1 win on March 18 at Children's Mercy Park and a 0-0 draw on June 17 at Avaya Stadium.
- Since September 2004, the home team in this fixture is 19-2-3 across all competitions.
- In all competitions, Sporting KC has won 12 of its last 13 home meetings against San Jose dating back to 2004.
- Sporting KC and San Jose have met just once previously in the U.S. Open Cup. Kansas City took a 1-0 home win in the 2004 semifinals en route to lifting its first Open Cup title.
- Sporting KC midfielder Benny Feilhaber has two goals and three assists in his last four appearances against San Jose.
- San Jose forward Chris Wondolowski has scored eight goals in 15 career regular season appearances vs. Sporting KC.
San Jose Earthquakes
- 2017 MLS record: 9-9-5, 32 points (6th in West)
- 2017 MLS away record: 2-8-1 (7 GF, 23 GA)
- Last five MLS matches: 2-3-9, 6 points (L-L-L-W-W)
- Last MLS match: W 2-1 vs. Columbus Crew SC on Saturday
- 2017 Open Cup path:
W 2-0 vs. San Francisco Deltas (NASL) in Fourth Round
W 2-1 vs. Seattle Sounders FC in Round of 16
W 3-2 vs. LA Galaxy in Quarterfinals - Best Open Cup finish: Semifinals (2004, 2017)
- San Jose is making its first Open Cup semifinal appearance since 2004, when the club lost 1-0 to Kansas City at Blue Valley District Athletic Complex.
- San Jose has rattled off three home wins en route to the semifinals, outscoring opponents 7-3 in this year's tournament.
- San Jose hasn't won a road game in the Open Cup proper since August 2005. The Earthquakes won at Portland in a 2011 Open Cup qualifying match.
- In the Open Cup proper, San Jose has never beaten an MLS opponent away from home.
- Forwards Danny Hoesen and Chris Wondolowski have each scored two goals in the 2017 Open Cup.
Sporting KC
- 2017 MLS record:9-4-10, 37 points (1st in West)
- 2017 MLS home record: 7-0-5 (23 GF, 8 GA)
- Last five MLS matches: 1-0-4, 7 points (T-T-T-W-T)
- Last MLS match: T 1-1 vs. Atlanta United on Sunday
- 2017 Open Cup path:
W 4-0 vs. Minnesota United FC in Fourth Round
W 2-0 at Houston Dynamo in Round of 16
W 3-0 (aet) vs. FC Dallas in Quarterfinals - Best Open Cup finish: Champions (2004, 2012, 2015)
- Sporting KC is 3-1-0 at the semifinal stage of the Open Cup, with their only such loss coming in 2002 at Columbus Crew SC.
- Sporting KC has outscored opponents 9-0 in their three previous Open Cup matches this season.
- Sporting KC owns a 9-0-5 home record in all competitions this season.
- Sporting KC is unbeaten in 12 straight matches across all competitions (6-0-6) since the start of June, one shy of tying the all-time club record set in 2012.
- Sporting KC has won six straight U.S. Open Cup home matches since 2015.
- Goalkeeper Tim Melia boasts a 7-0-1 record in the U.S. Open Cup as a Sporting KC player. The one draw was a penalty shootout victory over the Philadelphia Union in the 2015 final.
- Latif Blessing, Gerso, Ike Opara and Daniel Salloi have each scored two goals in 2017 Open Cup competition.
- Midfielder Benny Feilhaber is Sporting KC's all-time leader with eight Open Cup assists. Defender Graham Zusi ranks second with four.
Milestones and Miscellany
- Captain Matt Besler is one shy of taking the all-time club lead with 18 Open Cup appearances.
- Goalkeeper Tim Melia is one shy of tying Eric Kronberg for first in club history with five Open Cup shutouts.
Team stats (2017 regular season)
MLS rank in parenthesis (source: Opta)
<strong>Category (per game)</strong> |
<strong>Sporting KC</strong> |
<b>San Jose</b> |
Goals scored |
1.26 (t-17th) |
1.13 (19th) |
Goals conceded |
0.78 (1st) |
1.52 (14th) |
Shots |
14.5 (2nd) |
13.1 (9th) |
Shots on goal |
5.0 (5th) |
3.9 (20th) |
Shooting accuracy |
44.7 (12th) |
40.6 (21st) |
Passing accuracy |
83.2 (1st) |
79.0 (11th) |
Possession |
56.8 (2nd) |
50.9 (10th) |
Duels won |
48.9 (12th) |
49.7 (7th) |
Tackles won |
11.7 (20th) |
13.6 (9th) |
Interceptions |
11.9 (22nd) |
15.1 (1st) |
Fouls committed |
10.9 (18th) |
10.5 (20th) |
Fouls suffered |
12.2 (6th) |
11.3 (13th) |
Shots faced |
9.6 (1st) |
12.5 (13th) |
Recent #SKCvSJ meetings
- Regular season record vs. San Jose: 24-24-8 (65 GF, 67 GA)
- U.S. Open Cup record vs. San Jose: 1-0-0 (1 GF, 0 GA)
<strong>Date</strong> |
<strong>Result</strong> |
<strong>H/A</strong> |
<strong>Details</strong> |
04/24/2016 |
L 0-1 |
Away |
Wondolowski converts PK in 59th minute |
09/24/2016 |
W 2-1 |
Away |
Dom Dwyer and Kevin Ellis score to give KC first win in San Jose since 2000 |
10/23/2016 |
W 2-0 |
Home |
Benny Feilhaber and Graham Zusi score on Decision Day to seal playoff spot |
03/18/2016 |
W 2-0 |
Home |
Feilhaber scores stunner before David Bingham howler seals win |
06/17/2017 |
T 0-0 |
Away |
San Jose is held to just five shot attempts, their fewest all-time in an MLS home game |
