Matt Besler has played in his fair share of wild games. After all, the 10-year MLS veteran has made 271 competitive appearances for his hometown club — including four cup finals and countless other high-intensity encounters — and competed on the sport’s grandest stage as a World Cup veteran with the U.S. Men’s National Team.
So when the captain labeled Saturday’s victory over the Chicago Fire as one of his craziest in recent memory, that tells listeners all they need to know about the 4-3 thriller.
“We could talk about it all morning because there were so many things that happened in that game that we could dissect, but overall it was an awesome win,” Besler told Border Patrol hosts Nate Bukaty and Jake Gutierrez on Sports Radio 810 WHB this morning. “We were down on the road with less than 10 minutes left and still somehow found a way to win. If you can’t enjoy a win like that, then I don’t know what to tell you.”
Indeed, the comeback triumph marked the first time in Sporting KC history that the club erased a deficit after the 80th minute to win a regular-season road match. Besler also spoke glowingly about his teammates, all of whom contributed to the hard-earned result.
“Everyone that stepped on the field made a couple of really big plays for us,” Besler said before singling out midfielder Felipe Gutierrez and winger Johnny Russell. “We knew our new guys have a lot of quality, and when a game like that is going back and forth, we expect our bigger and more experienced players to step up and make plays. Felipe and Johnny certainly did that, so props to them for sure.
Gutierrez bagged Sporting KC’s first and final goals of the night — the second of which is up for MLS Goal of the Week — while Russell notched a goal and an assist. Both players opened their MLS scoring accounts on a night that Sporting KC fans won’t soon forget.
Listen to the entirety of Besler’s interview below, and tune into Sports Radio 810 WHB tonight for a new episode of the Sporting KC Show. Bukaty and co-host Carter Augustine will chat with Russell on the heels of his clutch performance in Chicago and look ahead to this weekend’s home tilt against the San Jose Earthquakes. Tickets for that matchup are available now via SeatGeek.com, including a can’t-miss St. Patrick’s Day Pack for just $42.
