"The Week in Review,” is a weekly series that highlights the biggest storylines and news updates from Sporting Kansas City.
1. Sporting's offense lights up the Galaxy
The Sporting Kansas City offense came to life Saturday night at Children's Mercy Park in a Western Conference contest against long-time foes the LA Galaxy. Forward Willy Agada's brace was sandwiched by a 10th-minute volley from Erik Thommy and a second half match sealer by Daniel Salloi in Sporting's 4-2 cruising over the Galaxy. Saturday's win snapped a five match home losing streak as Sporting enters the twighlight of the 2022 MLS regular season.Thommy and Agada both netted their first scores as members of Sporting KC in the first half.
Thommy settled a chipped through ball from Roger Espinoza with his chest and thundered it past Jonathan Bond to put Sporting on top. Agada doubled the lead a half-hour later after Espinoza played a perfect ball onto his foot. Agada touched it goalward, had the initial shot blocked, put the rebound over the goalline, Bond smacked it out and Agada tried again. After a VAR check, Agada was given the goal. In stoppage time Agada blasted a cross from Daniel Salloi into an open net on the backdoor and Sporting took the 3-0 advantage into the break. The Galaxy scored two late goals to trim the deficit before Salloi intercepted a back pass and snuck it past Bond to lift Sporting past LA 4-2.
2. Sporting back on the road for matchup with Austin FC
Following the win against the Galaxy, Sporting has another matchup with Austin FC, after playing them on July 30, this time away from home. Sporting is behind Austin in the series at 1-2-1 in their four meetings all-time after slipping 2-0 to them in that July 30 match. In one trip to Q2, one of the United States' newest soccer-specific stadiums, Sporting was bested in a 3-1 defeat. The club will look to exact some revenge against the Green and Verde in the Texas capital on Saturday at 8 p.m. CT. The match will air in its entirety on 38 The Spot and can be streamed in the Sporting KC Mobile App via Sporting One or online at SportingKC.com.
3. Weekly honors
The newcomers shined in Sporting's successful Saturday. Erik Thommy and Willy Agada turned heads with their individual performances and earned weekly honors from Major League Soccer in just their second career Sporting starts. Thommy is one of four finalists for Goal of the Week presented by AT&T. The volley that he teed up for himself with his own chest is going up against LAFC's Gareth Bale and Christiano Arango as well as the San Jose Earthquakes Paul Marie in a fan-driven Twitter poll. Sporting KC supporters can vote in the poll below to help lift Thommy to Goal of the Week supremacy.
Agada also received league-wide recognition for his brace, earning a nod to the MLS Team of the Week presented by Audi bench. Agada's persistence and patience paid off on his first goal after he stuck with the play to beat Bond, waited for a VAR review and then jumped into Manager and Sporting Director Peter Vermes' arms. His second goal left little doubt after he buried a backdoor shot off a Salloi cross that he celebrated with a backflip in front of the South Stand.
4. MLS All-Star week is here
MLS All-Star week has arrived with now three days of memorable fan experiences leading up to the 2022 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target on Wednesday night. Monday, the MLS All-Stars kicked off the week with volunteers, working side by side to pack 100,000 healthy meals for local children and families in need. They will follow the community service up with a training session, press conferences and other media day activities. The evening will conclude with the MLS All-Star Concert presented by Target headlined by Khalid. Tuesday the competition kicks off with the Skills Challenge presented by AT&T 5G. Ten representatives from the MLS and 10 from Liga MX will show their stuff in various challenges including shooting, crossing, a crossbar challenge and more.
On Wednesday, Edgar Bazan, a Sporting KC Academy product and SKC II midfielder will compete in the first-ever MLS NEXT All-Star Game presented by All-State. Bazan has made two appearances for SKC II after representing the U17s this past season. Kickoff for the match will be at 11 a.m. CT and the contest can be found on Twitter and at MLSsoccer.com. Aeriana Ortiz and Eva McMahon will represent Sporting Kansas City in the Special Olympics Unified Sports All-Star Soccer Match presented by MLS WORKS, ESPN and Coca-Cola which begins at 3:30 p.m. CT. The All-Star Game will begin at 7:30 p.m. CT and will air live on ESPN as the best of the MLS take on the best of Liga MX.
5. SKC II updates
The MLS NEXT Pro inaugural season rolls on and with it brings news about the second season of the league. Last Wednesday, MLS NEXT Pro announced the addition of seven MLS-affiliated clubs in 2023 bringing the league to 28 teams. Atlanta United, Austin FC, Charlotte FC, LA Galaxy, Los Angeles Football Club, Nashville Soccer Club and New York Red Bulls will field teams in MLS NEXT Pro next season. More details about conference alignment and competition calendars will be released at a later date.
SKC II had some news of their own announcing the acquisition of forward Josip Hmura and defender Osuman Kassim. Hmura comes to Kansas City from Croatia and has been in training since late last week. Kassim has not arrived yet and hails from Accra, Ghana, and the Accra Lions, the former home of SKC II defender Joseph Addo Tetteh and the team's leading scorer Rauf Salifu. SKC II suffered a fourth straight defeat, losing to Houston Dynamo 2 3-0 at AVEVA Stadium on Sunday night. They will be back in action at Swope Soccer Village this Sunday at 5 p.m. CT against Portland Timbers 2.
