Sporting Kansas City defeated Minnesota United FC 2-0 on Saturday at Children's Mercy Park, recording their fourth straight shutout victory to finish a perfect month of August.
An integral contributor to Sporting KC's record-breaking streak has been veteran defender Seth Sinovic, who slotted into the lineup on Aug. 4 against the Houston Dynamo and played every minute of the club's four games throughout August.
The ultra-reliable Sinovic turned in another stout display on Saturday to claim MLSsoccer.com Team of the Week honors for the first time in 2018. Joining him among the best players in Week 26 are goalkeeper Tim Melia and forward Johnny Russell, who were selected to the Team of the Week bench.
Sinovic completed 59 of 67 passes against Minnesota, created a scoring chance and totaled three shot attempts. He also won five duels and three tackles as Sporting KC pushed their shutout streak to 376 minutes, the fourth-longest in MLS this season and the seventh-longest in club history.
Russell assisted both goals on Saturday, setting up Yohan Croizet's opener and Diego Rubio's game-sealer. The Scot has hit double-digits with 10 goals and 10 assists across all competitions, leading the team in both categories during an excellent first season in Kansas City.
Melia posted a perfect 4-0-0 record and saved all 18 shots he faced during the month of August, including eight stops in Saturday’s win over the Loons. The reigning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year leads the league with 11 clean sheets this season.
Manager Peter Vermes' men will now prepare for a mouthwatering matchup with Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday at CenturyLink Field. Seattle has tied an MLS record during the non-shootout era (2000-present) with a seven-game regular-season winning streak, having edged the Portland Timbers by a 1-0 scoreline on Sunday night.
Kickoff on Saturday is set for 3 p.m. CT, with three hours of live coverage beginning at 2:30 p.m. CT on FOX Sports Kansas City and FOX Sports Midwest Plus. The match will also air nationally in Spanish on UniMas and stream live in English on Twitter at @UnivisionSports, while ESPN 94.5 FM, 1510 AM and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM will broadcast the game over the radio.
