Debuting throughout the season on Sports Radio 810 WHB, the Sporting Kansas City Show is available on several podcast hubs including Spotify and iTunes as well as SportingKC.com. With Nate Bukaty, Aly Trost and Conall McCourt hosting the weekly program, Sporting fans have a place to go to catch up on club storylines, guest interviews and more.
After helping his team to a pair of exciting home wins last week, back Amadou Dia was the star of the newest Sporting Kansas City Show, presented by Michelob Ultra.
The 28-year-old Dia made a pair of substitute cameos in consecutive victories over the Colorado Rapids and LAFC—his first MLS appearances of the season—as Sporting jumped within two points of Seattle Sounders FC in the Supporters’ Shield standings.
Next up, of course, is a Fourth of July trip to the LA Galaxy at 9:30 p.m. CT on Sunday. The contest will be shown live on Bally Sports Kansas City, Bally Sports Midwest Plus, BallySports.com, the Bally Sports app, Sports Radio 810 WHB and La Grande 1340 AM.
“We’re in good form and chemistry is clicking on and off the field,” Dia said. “We’re getting the results we need even though guys like Gadi Kinda and Remi Walter and (Nicolas Isimat-Mirin) aren’t playing. When you put all of those guys together who haven’t even been playing, that just adds to the roster.
“With those guys coming back, by the time we come back from our break after the LA game, we’ll be healthy and have a full roster. I think we’ll be able to keep it going and feed off this momentum. Daniel Salloi is a man on fire right now so we just need to keep it rolling.”
Dia was a regular starter for Sporting during the latter half of 2020, which saw the club ascend to first place in the Western Conference. The left back has split time between the first team and Sporting KC II this year, but Dia has kept a positive mindset amid the team’s continued on-field success.
“It’s a team game and when the team is playing well, you’ve got to keep working hard and be patient,” Dia said. “When your number gets called up, you’ve got to take your chance. That’s what I’ve been trying to do—the 30 minutes against Colorado and the 15 minutes against LA. Going in and helping make sure we get a win.”
Born in Nantes, France, Dia spent his early childhood in Paris before moving to Colorado with his family. He attended Clemson University and joined Sporting out of the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, spending two seasons in Kansas City. He spent part of 2016 with the Montreal Impact, then embarked on a fruitful three-year stint with USL Championship heavyweights Phoenix Rising FC prior to returning to Sporting at the start of 2020.
“At the end of the day, you’re here for the team,” Dia said. “You’re here to win championships for the team, not for yourself. Whatever Peter says, I have a lot of respect for him and the rest of the coaching staff. I speak to them and I always ask them for feedback about how I can get better. They tell me to stay ready and whenever they need me, they’ll put me in.”
He continued: “Part of that is being able to go down with (Sporting KC II) and get 90 minutes with them to stay match fit,” Dia said. “You always want to be in the starting XI, and whenever you get sent down to the second team, maybe you’ll wonder, ‘Why am I not playing well? What’s going on?’ But at the start of the season, Peter reiterated that this isn’t a punishment. He told everyone that guys were sent to (Sporting KC II) to get minutes and stay ready.
“We are lucky to have a second team where you can go and get some minutes when you need to. You can either take it as a negative or take it as a positive and try to improve your game. I have decided to take the positive route and try to stay ready for when a first team opportunity comes up.”
