Preview: Sporting KC continues playoff push Sunday when LA Galaxy visit Children's Mercy Park

With the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title under its belt, Sporting Kansas City (11-6-11, 44 points) kicks off the final month of the MLS regular season with a pivotal showdown against the LA Galaxy (7-16-6, 27 points) at 1 p.m. CT Sunday inside Children's Mercy Park.

The Western Conference clash will air live on FOX Sports Kansas City Plus, FOX Sports Midwest Plus, FOX Sports GO, ESPN 99.3 FM (English) and La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish), while the Sporting KC Uphoria app will provide live updates. Tickets for Sunday afternoon's contest are available at SeatGeek.com, and the first 7,500 fans through the stadium gates will receive a free Sporting KC tote bag courtesy of match sponsor UMKC.

Sporting Kansas City were crowned U.S. Open Cup champions for the fourth time on Wednesday night, edging the New York Red Bulls 2-1 in a gripping final at electric Children's Mercy Park. The achievement vaults Manager Peter Vermes' men into the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League and makes Sporting KC the only MLS club with four major trophies since 2012, giving the side decisive momentum in a tight Western Conference race that currently sees the top four teams separated by a single point. Sporting KC sits on 44 points alongside the Portland Timbers and Seattle Sounders FC, while leaders Vancouver Whitecaps FC occupy the summit by the slimmest of margins.

The LA Galaxy, meanwhile, languish near the Western Conference basement, 11 points below the red line and at serious risk of missing the MLS Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2008. Head coach Sigi Schmid's side have suffered consecutive 4-0 defeats, most recently falling at the hands of a rampant Atlanta United FC outfit on Wednesday at the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

The hosts enter Sunday riding a club-record 23-game home unbeaten run in the MLS regular season, tied for the third-longest streak in MLS history. Sporting KC is also the only MLS club without a home loss in 2017. This bodes ominously for a Galaxy team that has just one win in its last 16 league matches and hasn't claimed a victory in Kansas City since September 2007. LA is 0-4-5 in its previous nine visits to KC, including an 0-3-3 mark at Children's Mercy Park.

Despite their 10th-place position in the Western Conference table, the Galaxy boast one of the best road records in the league. Their five road wins are tied for second-most in MLS, although the last such victory came on June 21 in Colorado. Midfield talisman Romain Alessandrini serves as a vital attacking piece, leading the team in goals (10) and assists (nine), while Mexican international brothers Giovani and Jonathan dos Santos add undeniable quality to the squad.

The abovementioned trio will have their work cut out against Major League Soccer's best defense. Sporting KC center backs Matt Besler and Ike Opara anchor a backline that has conceded just 22 goals this season, nine fewer than any other team. Right back Graham Zusi has thrived as an attack-minded right back, leading Sporting KC with eight assists in all competitions, while Tim Melia is a legitimate Goalkeeper of the Year candidate who sits atop the MLS charts in shutouts (10), goals against average (0.79) and save percentage (78.5).

Sporting KC is unbeaten in its last five regular season meetings against LA, earning two wins and three draws since October 2015. The clubs last met on June 24 at StubHub Center when Sporting KC posted a 2-1 road win behind a long-range strike from Roger Espinoza and a sensational bicycle kick from Opara.

Four days removed from a physically and emotionally taxing Open Cup Final, Sporting KC has four names on its injury report ahead of Sunday. Cameron Porter (season-ending ankle injury) and Soni Mustivar (hamstring strain) are sure to miss out, while Gerso (shoulder) and Open Cup hero Latif Blessing (thigh) are questionable. Blessing scored Sporting KC's opening goal in Wednesday's triumph over the Red Bulls before exiting on the stroke of halftime with a thigh contusion.