In the late summer of 2005, the Yavapai College men’s soccer team welcomed 18-year-old freshman Roger Espinoza to its squad.
At the time, few could have envisioned the Honduras native and longtime Denver resident making the meteoric jump from playing in the National Junior College Athletics Association to competing in two FIFA World Cups and an Olympics, winning three major championships at Sporting Kansas City and hoisting the heralded FA Cup in England.
Roll the tape 15 years forward and Espinoza has done precisely that, cementing his legacy as an all-time Sporting great alongside Matt Besler, Graham Zusi and a host of others who have comprised Sporting’s veteran core over the last decade-plus. Indeed, betting against Espinoza—back then and in present day—doesn’t seem like the best of ideas.
Patrolling the midfield with industry and grit, Espinoza has predicated his game on a tireless work rate and—to put it plainly—making opponents’ lives miserable. Often likened to a bulldog—an apt comparison considering the fact that he owns a bulldog named Chulo—he has embodied toughness and resolve for the better part of 11 seasons spread across two separate stints in Kansas City.
While Besler and Zusi are the longest-tenured members of the team and the only remaining players from the 2013 MLS Cup-winning side, Espinoza began his Kansas City career before both of them. After transferring to Ohio State and leading the Buckeyes to the NCAA national championship game in 2007, he joined Sporting as a 2008 MLS SuperDraft selection and wasted no time thriving as a professional.
Espinoza’s career highlights are equal parts plentiful and impressive: 2012 MLS All-Star and U.S. Open Cup champion; 2013 FA Cup champion with Wigan Athletic during his two-year foray to England; 2010 and 2014 World Cup veteran and 2012 Summer Olympics standout with Honduras; an integral midfield stalwart who claimed two more Open Cup titles and 2015 and 2017 while helping Sporting consistently punch among the MLS heavyweights.
A deeper dive into Opta’s statistical goldmine reveals that Espinoza is one of five MLS players since the start of 2015 to win least 800 duels and 200 tackles. Since the dawn of the Opta era in 2010, Espinoza has won 55 percent of his duels and 76 percent of his tackles.
Now at age 33, Espinoza has shown no signs of slowing down in 2020. He has started all five regular season matches for Sporting this season, notably scoring in a 4-0 rout of the Houston Dynamo on March 7 at Children’s Mercy Park, and ranks third in MLS with 12 tackles won. Moreover, his 32 duels won are one behind Khiry Shelton’s team lead.
With Sporting scheduled to play 18 more regular season matches in home markets between Aug. 21 and Nov. 8, Espinoza has the opportunity to solidify third place on Sporting’s all-time charts in appearances, starts and minutes while also adding to his eye-catching assist total.
ROGER ESPINOZA: ALL-TIME RANKINGS AT SPORTING KC
- Regular season appearances: 243 (3rd)
- Regular season starts: 222 (4th; 7 shy of 3rd place)
- Regular season minutes: 19,482 (5th; 1,034 shy of 3rd place)
- Regular season assists: 35 (t-5th)
- Appearances (all competitions): 288 (4th; 4 shy of 3rd place)
- Starts (all competitions): 262 (5th; 20 shy of 3rd place)
- Minutes (all competitions): 23,325 (5th; 1,953 shy of 3rd place)
- Assists (all competitions): 39 (6th; 2 shy of 5th place)
With the MLS is Back Tournament in the rearview mirror, Espinoza and Sporting will now prepare for a busy slate of fixtures in the weeks to come. Sporting will play six times in the space of three weeks from Aug. 21 to Sept. 13, beginning with a marquee visit to Minnesota United FC at Allianz Field.
Sporting currently occupies first place in the Western Conference with 12 points and a 4-1-0 record, one point ahead of unbeaten Minnesota. The Loons handed Sporting their lone loss of the season on July 12, scoring twice in second-half stoppage time to seal an unlikely 2-1 triumph in both teams’ opener at the MLS is Back Tournament in Orlando. The highly anticipated first game back will kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT with live coverage on FOX Sports Kansas City Plus.
