May 18, 2024 – Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release
Captain Johnny Russell and defender Jake Davis scored for Sporting Kansas City (2-6-5, 11 points) in a 3-2 road loss to Austin FC (6-4-4, 22 points) on Saturday night at Q2 Stadium.
Russell fired Sporting into an early lead, tying Dom Dwyer for second in club history with 57 career goals in the MLS regular season. Austin replied with three consecutive goals-a Jader Obrian brace and a Sebastian Driussi header-before Davis set the stage for a dramatic finish with a sublime 22-yard firecracker midway through the second half. Sporting midfielder Erik Thommy was then denied by the crossbar in the 90th minute, thwarting an admirable comeback bid and condemning SKC to a fourth straight league defeat.
Manager Peter Vermes made three changes to Sporting’s lineup from a 2-1 loss to Houston Dynamo FC last weekend. Left back Zorhan Bassong earned his first MLS start since February 2022, center back Robert Castellanos logged his first league start since June 2023, and midfielder Erik Thommy returned to the squad after missing out against Houston for the birth of his first child. Between the posts, veteran goalkeeper Tim Melia notably played the 250th match of his MLS regular season career, becoming the fifth active keeper to reach the milestone.
Russell ignited a strong start for Sporting within 30 seconds of kickoff, winning a tackle near midfield and bursting goalward before dragging a breakaway shot under duress wide of the near post. Fellow forward Daniel Salloi recorded his 65th consecutive regular season appearance on Saturday-now the fourth longest streak in Sporting history-and carved out a decent look shortly thereafter, shouldering off a challenge and unleashing a low drive from the top of the box that narrowly missed the mark.
Entering the night on a four-match home winning streak, the hosts thought they had taken the lead after five minutes. In a flowing foray into the attacking third, midfield playmaker Sebastian Driussi found Zan Kolmanic on the overlap before a cutback ball deflected into the path of Dani Pereira, who pelted a first-time strike into the left corner. However, VAR prompted referee Sergii Boiko to take a second look at the play, and the goal was correctly disallowed for an offside infraction on Austin winger Jader Obrian in the buildup.
An entertaining game ebbed and flowed fervently despite temperatures hovering near 90 degrees, and Sporting were rewarded…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at OurSports Central Major League Soccer MLS News…