In the 94th minute of Sporting Kansas City's crucial 4-1 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Wednesday night, 16-year-old midfielder Gianluca Busio made history.
Again.
Less than three months after becoming the second-youngest player in MLS history to record an assist, the Sporting KC Academy product and U.S. youth international tapped home from close range to open his MLS scoring account at Vancouver's BC Place. In doing so, Busio became the league's second-youngest player to score a goal in the regular season.
At 16 years and 142 days, Busio narrowly edged out Jesus Ferreira of FC Dallas for the No. 2 spot on the list below. The midfielder's goal, coming off a clever assist from Johnny Russell, made the score 3-1 before Daniel Salloi completed his brace with 97 minutes on the clock.
10 YOUNGEST GOAL SCORERS IN MLS HISTORY
<strong>#</strong> |
<strong>Player</strong> |
<strong>Age</strong> |
<strong>Club</strong> |
<strong>Date</strong> |
<strong>Result</strong> |
1 |
Freddy Adu |
14y, 320d |
DC |
04/17/2004 |
L 2-3 at NY |
2 |
Gianluca Busio |
16y, 142d |
SKC |
10/17/2018 |
W 4-1 at VAN |
3 |
Jesus Ferreira |
16y, 161d |
DAL |
06/03/2017 |
W 6-2 vs. RSL |
4 |
Diego Fagundez |
16y, 173d |
NE |
08/06/2011 |
L 2-3 vs. CHV |
5 |
Santino Quaranta |
16y, 217d |
DC |
05/19/2001 |
L 1-2 at CLB |
6 |
Eddie Gaven |
16y, 253d |
NY |
07/05/2003 |
W 3-2 at DC |
7 |
Jack McBean |
16y, 312d |
LA |
10/23/2011 |
L 1-3 at HOU |
8 |
Jozy Altidore |
16y, 314d |
NY |
09/16/2006 |
W 1-0 vs. CLB |
9 |
Fuad Ibrahim |
16y, 332d |
TOR |
07/12/2008 |
L 1-2 at CHI |
10 |
Andy Najar |
17y, 74d |
DC |
05/29/2010 |
W 3-2 vs. CHV |
Busio's tally, combined with Salloi's double, marked the first time in Sporting KC history that the club has received three goals from Academy products in an MLS match.
Wednesday's momentous win vaulted Sporting KC (16-8-8, 56 points) to second place in the Western Conference, level on points with LAFC (16-8-8, 56 points) while owning the goal differential tiebreaker. It also sets up a mouthwatering clash on Sunday as Manager Peter Vermes' side visits first-place FC Dallas (16-7-9, 57 points) at Toyota Stadium, kicking off at 4 p.m. CT on FOX Sports Kansas City and FOX Sports Midwest.
Sporting KC will then conclude their 2018 regular season campaign on Sunday, Oct. 28, against LAFC in an all-important Decision Day matchup at Children's Mercy Park. Tickets for the highly anticipated showdown, which could decide which team clinches a top-two finish and the Knockout Round bye that goes with it, are on sale now via SeatGeek.com. Supporters who attend the Fan Appreciation Match, slated to kick off at 3:30 p.m. CT, are guaranteed to win a prize exclusively through the Sporting KC Uphoria mobile app, available for free download on the App Store and Google Play.
