KANSAS CITY, Mo. – On the one hand, Sporting Kansas City haven't lost at home yet this season. On the other, they went 0-2-1, with two road losses and a scoreless draw at home, in their three regular-season league matches against Real Salt Lake.
One of those streaks is guaranteed to break on Wednesday night when Sporting host RSL in the semifinals of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup (7:30 pm CT, YouTube) – the first knockout match between the two sides in any competition since Sporting won a 10-round penalty shootout to take the 2013 MLS Cup title.
And while their run of home form is a source of pride, manager Peter Vermes said his club can't coast on it.
“I don't think it means anything, to be honest with you,” Vermes – who also managed Sporting to the Open Cup championship in 2012 – told reporters on Tuesday. “I think you're only as good as your last performance, and this is the next one in front of us.
"We've got to go out and we've got to continue to play hard, and we have to have incredible effort and intensity in a game like this, because it's not hard for guys on either team to get up for games like this.”
Sporting are 10-0-4 across all competitions at Sporting Park this year, with three of those victories in Open Cup play – and each time, they've played in front of a packed house.
“It's been fantastic for our fans,” center forward Dom Dwyer told MLSsoccer.com. “They deserve the chance to see us play in such a big game, and I think they've been amazing this year. We're looking forward to putting on a good show for them.”
If Sporting get through Wednesday's semifinal, though, they will travel to either Chicago or Philadelphia for the championship match.
“This is our last home game in Open Cup, so we want to make sure we get things done against a big rival,” midfielder Benny Feilhaber told reporters. “We take it very seriously. We want to win this tournament.”
So, clearly, do their opponents – judging by their weekend personnel decisions.
Real Salt Lake left the core of their team home for Saturday's 4-0 away loss to Vancouver, while injury-depleted Sporting started a first-choice-heavy lineup for their 3-1 road victory over Toronto FC.
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
