Sporting KC Earns 2-1 Road Win over Nashville
Published on June 19, 2022 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release
Long-range goals from Felipe Hernandez and Graham Zusi propelled Sporting Kansas City (4-9-4, 16 points) to a momentous 2-1 victory over Nashville SC (6-5-5, 23 points) on Sunday afternoon at sunny GEODIS Park in Nashville, Tennessee. The result gave Sporting their first road win since Oct. 23, 2021, and snapped Nashville's 25-match home unbeaten run in all competitions dating back to November 2020. Hernandez, who grew up in Nashville prior to joining the Sporting Kansas City Academy as a youth, fired his team ahead in the 41st minute and Zusi bagged a world-class winner six minutes into the second half, rendering Ake Loba's 63rd-minute strike inconsequential.
With Sunday's triumph in the bag, Sporting has now handed seven different MLS teams their first ever regular season defeat in their current stadium: Toronto FC in 2007, Seattle Sounders FC and Real Salt Lake in 2009, Houston Dynamo FC in 2012, New York City FC in 2015, LAFC in 2018 and Nashville SC this year after the club had been previously unbeaten in five league games at the new GEODIS Park.
After missing last weekend's home defeat to the New England Revolution, Sporting winger and 2021 league MVP finalist Daniel Salloi returned to the squad for his 100th career start in MLS competition. He accounted for one of four Sporting Kansas City lineup changes as striker Khiry Shelton and central defenders Andreu Fontas and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin also entered the fray. Roger Espinoza, Kortne Ford, Robert Voloder dropped to the bench and Uri Rosell was unavailable due to a red card suspension.
Overcoming a hamstring injury to make his first since May 14, Shelton nearly opened the scoring in glorious fashion after 28 minutes. Left back Logan Ndenbe won an aerial duel and cushioned a header to the feet of Sporting's center forward, who cut the ball onto his right foot and unleashed a 22-yard curler that Nashville goalkeeper Joe Willis was forced to tip over the crossbar.
Sporting continued to grow into the game and took the lead through Hernandez, who had returned to his hometown of Nashville for his second professional match in the city. Over three years after scoring against Nashville SC as a member of the Swope Park Rangers in the USL Championship, Hernandez struck again by driving a 40-yard free kick into the mixer from a central position. The ball fizzed past a swarm of bodies untouched and skipped beyond the outstretched Willis into the right corner of the net. Sporting has now scored direct free kick goals in consecutive matches, with captain Johnny Russell doing so a week earlier versus New England.
A stout first-half performance saw Sporting hand Nashville its first halftime deficit at home since June 23, 2021, coincidentally the same date of Hernandez's last MLS goal. Riding the favorable side of momentum, the visitors doubled their advantage on a world-class strike from Zusi.
Afforded space on the right edge of the box, Zusi darted onto his weaker left foot and and sent a sublime 24-yard strike into the far left corner for his first regular season goal since July 17, 2020, and his first in all competitions since scoring spectacularly from distance in a playoff victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Nov. 20, 2021. The stunning effort was Zusi's 10th career MLS goal from outside of the box and marked the first time all season that Sporting had led by two goals.
Hernandez had his eyes on a brace and almost extended Sporting's cushion to 3-0 in the 58th minute, powering into the penalty area and steering Salloi's cross marginally wide of Willis' right-hand post.
Nashville grabbed a lifeline in the 63rd minute as Sporting paid for a midfield giveaway. Hany Mukhtar galloped goalward on the counter attack and prompted goalkeeper Tim Melia into a strong save, but halftime substitute Ake Loba was on hand to thrash the rebound into the roof of the net for his second career MLS tally and his first of the 2022 campaign. It was also the eight goal scored by a sub against Sporting this year, the most in MLS.
Sporting were unfortunate not to restore their two-goal lead in the 73rd minute when Russell embarked on a lung-busting run down the right flank, burst into the box and dinked the ball across the face of the six-yard box. Nashville's Daniel Lovitz narrowly avoided an own goal by poking Russell's delivery over the crossbar and keeping his side within a goal. Not long later, Salloi found a pocket of room to lift a 20-yard piledriver high and wide.
The hosts thought they had equalized in the 84th minute when former Sporting striker C.J. Sapong stroked home off a low cross from Mukhtar, but Mukhtar was flagged offside prior to delivering the assist and the goal was disallowed.
The Father's Day thriller delivered another compelling plot twist in the final minute of regular time. Referee Victor Rivas originally awarded Nashville a penalty after Alex Muyl went down under a challenge from Ndenbe, but the call was overturned through VAR when Muyl was deemed to be offside in the play that immediately preceded the foul inside the box.
Having survived the major scare, Sporting kept Nashville off the scoreboard for eight nail-biting minutes of stoppage time to notch a morale-building win ahead of Wednesday's pivotal Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal clash against USL League One outfit Union Omaha Children's Mercy Park. Tickets for the contest are available at SeatGeek.com with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. CT and a live stream on ESPN Plus.
QUOTES
Sporting Kansas City Manager Peter Vermes
On whether Sporting felt desperate to win heading into the match...
It never was desperation. We haven't talked about anything ever since I've been here where it is desperation. You play with the mentality to win and you try to play the way that you play. You fight for everything and you try to get a result. That's what we do week in, week out.
On the 2-1 win over Nashville SC...
I think the first goal was a very opportunistic goal, but that's something you talk about all the time. You try to put your free kicks on goal because goalkeepers a lot of times are anticipating a bounce off other players. It's an opportunistic goal in that we knew what we wanted to try to do in the game. We wanted to get the ball into the box and at the end of the day, it goes in the back of the net. We scored a great second goal, made a mistake on the goal they scored, and then they called offside at the end.
I don't agree that [Logan Ndenbe's] late foul is a penalty. I don't agree at all. If you really watch it, you have a replay that lends itself to VAR. What I don't understand is that before the player even makes an attempt at the ball, [Alex Muyl] is already leaning forward before the contact ever occurs. He never even makes an attempt at the ball. Usually you don't fall forward. You put your foot out to get the ball and if someone hits you, that's a different story. There were quite a few of those types of dives in the box. I will say, I think the referee did a good job. I'm not blaming the referee for anything.
On Sporting's toughness in securing the road win...
We fought and we did what we had to do. The guys fought for everything and we did a good job of actually managing the game, putting the ball down in their end in their corners and trying to milk the game a little bit. We did what we had to and we got the three points, which was incredibly important. We also did it at a new stadium, and I know what that's like. (Nashville) had an unbelievable amount of confidence, so this was a massive three points for us at the end of the day. Everything else is secondary to the three points that we needed.
On giving Nashville SC their first ever loss at GEODIS Park...
It's nice to do that, but we don't get anything [extra] for it. It's just three points and we needed three points. It's good to get some guys back. I give credit to guys like Khiry Shelton and Remi Walter. Remi was definitely not 100 percent, but he put everything out on the field today and did a great job. Khiry being able to go 90 minutes was a very tough job. He did a lot of hard work that we needed in the game. Daniel Salloi having been away and not played with the [Hungary] national team, it was important for him to play and give us the minutes. He did the business, too. I think Andreu Fontas and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin, Graham Zusi and Logan Ndenbe, those guys played very well in this game. They were organized and concentrated for 90 minutes. I thought Cam Duke had a really good game. I know he gave that ball away and they went down and scored, and I know he's disappointed. Sometimes that happened, but his teammates fought to help him still be successful. It's a good learning experience for him, but he played well when he was in the game.
On Graham Zusi's penchant for long-range goals...
When I drafted Zusi in college, he was a No. 10 who played underneath the forwards. He really was a lightning rod at Maryland, and that's what he was when he first came here. Then he moved to winger. So he's really comfortable around the goal and he's really proficient with both feet. He hits a really good ball. I think that's what it comes down to.
On the performance from forward Khiry Shelton...
It was all his work off the ball. I thought he was good on the ball, and I think it's a little unfortunate because he doesn't get the same kind of respect that so many other players do. He played really well and was very good defensively. The other thing is he was very good on set pieces. He won a lot of balls in the air.
Sporting Kansas City midfielder Felipe Hernandez
On scoring in his hometown...
Growing up here, I played five or 10 minutes down the road at some complexes down here. On Father's Day, my dad, my mom and a bunch of my family were here; my brother, too. It was really exciting. I put the ball in a good spot, put it on frame and when you put a ball like that on frame, anything can happen. A little touch, a little skip and it went in.
On the team's performance today...
We did really well first half. Defensively, we were really compact and we did well as a unit. With the ball, we kept the ball a lot and moved the ball around so we didn't have to defend as much. When we did get put in situations, we defended pretty well as a unit.
On the conversation with his family before the match...
I called my dad this morning and he usually doesn't really like gifts or anything like that. I told him I would score for him, and he was like, "That's the only gift I'll accept." He came up to me after the game and he was tearing up, so it was a special moment.
On Graham Zusi's game winning goal...
He took a touch and they weren't really stepping out to him. I made a diagonal run and dragged either their midfielders or center backs. That opened up the space for Zusi and as soon as he took that touch. I knew he was going to hit it and knowing him it was going in.
Sporting Kansas City defender Graham Zusi
On the importance of Sporting's 2-1 win and his long-range goal in the second half...
I thought our start to this game was the key to the victory. This game in particular-people said it was a must-win game-but they're all important. It was a nice one to have in a tough place to play. We seemed to control the tempo of the first half. We kept the ball, played out of the back, kept the ball in their half and we were patient. We got some pretty good opportunities and I think that set the tone for the game and we took some chances. Felipe Hernandez's goal was an opportunistic one with some runs in the box, and when you do that you get rewarded sometimes. My goal was a situation where we were on the attack and we pressed in that moment really well. We were in good spots for their clearance, picked the ball up, Felipe made a run to open some space for me, and I just brought it onto my left foot and had a go.
On the momentum-building result...
It's a big result. I think it can do a few things. For one, I think it can give the group some confidence and momentum. We showed what it takes to get three points in a tough place to play-and what it takes physically and mentally to get through something like that. It can be a steppingstone for the rest of the season. There are still lots of games left and teams go on runs all the time. I think this is a good time for us to go on one of those.
On Roger Espinoza's late-game yellow card prior to VAR overturning the awarded penalty kick to Nashville...
We have to give Roger Espinoza a lot of credit for what he did. I think it was a very savvy play by him. I honestly thought they were about to let the PK go ahead and be taken, but I honestly think if it wasn't for Roger going in and delaying that, I'm not sure they would have looked much more at that offside. Huge credit to Roger in that situation. I saw the play on the big screen and it looked like a bit of a soft one to begin with. I wasn't even aware that they were looking at offsides [on VAR], but Roger saved us big time.
On Sporting's defensive display...
We had a huge emphasis on our defensive shape and our movement from side to side this week in training. I thought that translated into this game extremely well. I can only speak for my side of the field and I'm sure it was the same on the other, but I felt really comfortable releasing and pressing their wingback. Isimat did a fantastic job covering for me.
2022 MLS Regular Season | Match 17
GEODIS Park | Nashville, Tennessee
Attendance: 29,269
Weather: 87 degrees and sunny
Score 1 2 F
Sporting Kansas City (4-9-4, 16 points) 1 1 2
Nashville SC (6-5-5, 23 points) 0 1 1 Sporting Kansas City: Tim Melia; Graham Zusi, Nicolas Isimat-Mirin, Andreu Fontas, Logan Ndenbe; Remi Walter (Kortne Ford 80'), Felipe Hernandez, Cam Duke (Roger Espinoza 74'); Johnny Russell (Kayden Pierre 90+7'), Khiry Shelton, Daniel Salloi
Subs Not Used: Kendall McIntosh, Kaveh Rad, Ben Sweat, Robert Voloder, Jake Davis, Marinos Tzionis
Nashville SC: Joe Willis; Eric Miller (Randall Leal 76'), Jack Maher, Dave Romney (Taylor Washington 64'); Alex Muyl, Sean Davis, Anibal Godoy (C) (Dax McCarty 64'), Tah Anunga (Ake Loba 46'), Daniel Lovitz; C.J. Sapong, Hany Mukhtar
Subs Not Used: Will Meyer, Elliot Panicco, Josh Bauer, Luke Haakenson, Ethan Zubak
Scoring Summary:
SKC -- Felipe Hernandez 1 (unassisted) 41'
SKC -- Graham Zusi 1 (Remi Walter 1) 51'
NSH -- Ake Loba 1 (unassisted) 63'
Misconduct Summary:
NSH -- Anibal Godoy (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 40'
SKC -- Tim Melia (yellow card; time wasting) 81'
SKC -- Johnny Russell (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 86'
SKC -- Roger Espinoza (yellow card; dissent) 89'
Stat SKC NSH
Shots 8 9
Shots on Goal 4 2
Saves 1 2
Fouls 14 9
Offsides 1 4
Corner Kicks 4 4
Referee: Victor Rivas
Assistant Referee: Chris Elliott
Assistant Referee: Jeffrey Greeson
Fourth Official: Adam Kilpatrick
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero
AVAR: Tom Supple
Major League Soccer Stories from June 19, 2022
- Barrios' Strike Secures Road Point for Colorado in Draw against NYCFC - Colorado Rapids
- Nashville Soccer Club Falls at Home to Sporting Kansas City - Nashville SC
- Sporting KC Earns 2-1 Road Win over Nashville - Sporting Kansas City
- Loons Fall 2-1 in New England - Minnesota United FC
- Revolution Defeat Minnesota United FC, 2-1 - New England Revolution
- NYCFC Levels Score against Colorado Rapids - New York City FC
- Atlanta United Defeats Inter Miami CF 2-0 - Atlanta United FC
- Ten-Man Inter Miami CF Falls to Atlanta United on the Road - Inter Miami CF
- Weekly Update: Chicago Fire FC to Travel to Face Western Conference Rival Houston Dynamo at PNC Stadium on Saturday - Chicago Fire FC
- D.C. United Establish Local Business Recognition Program - D.C. United
- Andre Shinyashiki: "The Best Is One Hundred Percent Yet to Happen" - Charlotte FC
- Post-Game Notes: Red Bulls Defeat Toronto FC, 2-0, at Red Bull Arena - Red Bull New York
- New York Red Bulls (2) - Toronto FC (0) Post Game Summary - Toronto FC
- Real Salt Lake Earns 2-0 Victory to Remain Undefeated at Rio Tinto Stadium - Real Salt Lake
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
