All the positioning is done. All that’s left to do is survive and advance.
Sporting Kansas City will play host to the Vancouver Whitecaps in the first round of MLS Cup playoffs Saturday afternoon with a fresh outlook.
Sporting KC lost their last three games of the regular season — the only time all season the club lost even two straight games — and finished as the third seed with a 17-10-7 record.
“The 34-game season is over with. This is now the playoffs,” Sporting head coach Peter Vermes said. “This is what they worked to get into. It’s a different challenge. There’s a very good vibe within the group. They understand what’s ahead of them, and they’re prepared to do it.”
The Whitecaps finished the regular season with a 12-9-13 record, earning the sixth seed. While Sporting KC enters the MLS playoffs with a three-game skid, Vancouver is trending the opposite direction. After earning a point in each of their final six regular-season matches, the Whitecaps may be the hottest team in MLS. They have lost only two matches since mid-July.
Sporting will look to capitalize on two trends from the regular season, plus one other potential factor. Vancouver finished the season 2-5-10 on the road, while Sporting was 9-3-5 in home games.
Sporting KC also finished second in MLS possession percentage, controlling the ball 55 percent of the time. Vancouver was 24th at 46.1 percent.
Sporting also will be appearing the MLS playoffs for the 10th time in the last 11 years, while Vancouver has missed the playoffs in the last three seasons. Only six players on the Whitecaps roster have postseason experience.
No lead will be considered safe. The game matches the two best teams in MLS when trailing at any point. Vancouver earned 22 points in games when they trailed, while Sporting, which led the category for much of the season, finished with 19 points.
Vancouver interim head coach Vanni Sartini said after the pairings were set on Decision Day, “We’ll beat Sporting Kansas City.”
But he has taken a more cautious approach in the days leading up to the match.
“We’re confident,” he said. “I think we can fight for the entire game, and at the end we’ll be happy. Because if we’re going to do our best, if they beat us it’s because they’re really better than us.”
–Field Level Media
