Sporting KC Falls 4-2 to Portland
April 13, 2025 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release
Sporting Kansas City (1-6-1, 4 points) fell 4-2 to the Portland Timbers (4-2-2, 14 points) in a back-and-forth encounter on Sunday afternoon at Children's Mercy Park.
The hosts bagged first-half set piece goals from Shapi Suleymanov and Dejan Joveljic, but the Timbers used a Kevin Kelsy brace, a David Ayala strike and an own goal to secure their first regular season win in Kansas City since April 2013.
Interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin named an unchanged starting XI from last weekend's 2-0 home win over archrival St. Louis City SC, ending a streak that saw Sporting field a unique lineup in 43 consecutive matches dating back to April 2024. Among the players retaining their places was Spanish midfielder Manu Garcia, who notably logged the 300th professional appearance of his club career.
Garcia was at the heart of Sporting's first attack inside three minutes, creating a turnover with a crunching challenge in the attacking third that allowed Joveljic to spread left to captain Daniel Salloi, whose shot was saved by Portland goalkeeper James Pantemis.
Portland surged ahead on its first thrust forward as David Da Costa's cutback pass near the left endline was steered home by Ayala in the 10th minute. The visitors could only keep their lead for six minutes, however, as Suleymanov's low, driven free kick from the right channel skipped through traffic and into the far corner past Pantemis. The Russian's goal was his first since joining the club in February and marked the first time that Sporting had scored off a direct free kick since Erik Thommy buried one in a 3-2 road win over Real Salt Lake on Oct. 7, 2023.
The Timbers remained a threat and reclaimed the advantage on 26 minutes. After Ayala's long-range shot was blocked, Kelsy settled into possession and unleashed an 18-yard blast that took a wicked deflection, caromed off the crossbar and nestled into the net. Portland could have struck once more shortly thereafter, only for Sporting goalkeeper John Pulskamp to produce a pivotal save to deny Antony on the breakaway.
A few minutes later, Antony was at fault at the opposite end by stomping on Suleymanov's foot inside Portland's own penalty area. The infraction initially went unpunished, but VAR intervened and referee Pierre-Luc Lauziere promptly pointed to the spot. Joveljic made no mistake from there, dispatching an ice-cold Panenka down the middle in the 33rd minute for his fifth goal of the season, third most in MLS. Joveljic, who becomes the only player to score at least five goals in each of the last four MLS campaigns, has a sizzling 12 goals in his last 10 MLS home appearances dating back to last year with the LA Galaxy.
A sloppy start to the second half saw Sporting concede twice in quick succession. Kelsy notched his second goal of the day with a cool finish off a giveaway before Finn Surman's hopeful ball across the face of goal was inadvertently bundled into the back of the net by Sporting center back Jansen Miller, making the score 4-2 after 54 minutes.
Pulskamp conjured a smart save in the 62nd minute to thwart Da Costa, then Pantemis made an equally vital save by casting aside Jake Davis' breakaway attempt in the 67th minute. Portland's keeper was called into action once more with 11 minutes remaining, spreading himself to repel Joveljic's side-footed effort after the Serbian international had done superbly to corral Salloi's through ball and beat Portland defender Kamal Miller.
Pulskamp's best save of the day came in the 89th minute-a leaping stop to touch Jonathan Rodriguez's curler over the crossbar-before Sporting substitute Stephen Afrifa did well to earn the hosts a penalty in second-half stoppage time. A frustrating afternoon was punctuated, however, when Joveljic's penalty was palmed away by the outstretched Pantemis.
Sporting will look to rebound on Saturday with a visit to the San Jose Earthquakes (3-4-1, 10 points) at PayPal Park. Kickoff is slated for 9:30 p.m. CT with live coverage on MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.
QUOTES
Sporting KC interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin
Thoughts on the match...
We knew that set pieces and transitions in the game were big, especially against Portland. I thought in the first half we created a lot of very good chances. Overall in the course of the game, we had three times we're 1v1 with the goalkeeper. We have two penalty kicks. We have 2.8 in expected goals. We were in and around the area all day. You gave up four set pieces. You gave up two corner kicks and you gave up two off of throw-ins which I would consider set pieces. When you do that against a team that is more than happy to counter and transition very quickly with the speed and athleticism that they have, you're left chasing the game. We did a very good job coming back from 1-0 down. We came back again. We came in at halftime and we talked about some of the things that we needed to be better at. And when we started the second half, we were flat. Portland pressed us a little bit higher. They went for it. And sometimes it's those moments in games -- and they're not very long, they are three or four minutes -- that can turn the game on its head. And I think that first 5-10 minutes really did us in and made us chase for the remainder of the game.
On the team's scoring opportunities...
You can't control the outcome of the game. You can control how you prepare. You can have a strategy. You can implement it and you hope that what you've trained shows up in the game. For a better part of that first half -- I'd have to throw the second half away because we were chasing and it was wide open - but for a better part of that first half, we were executing. We were opening the game. We had opportunities. We defended in decent ways. I think it's very encouraging that over the last two games it's been our highest expected goals of the season and we continue to fire away. We're not shy about that of trying to attack. We put attackers on at the end to try to go for it. And so from my perspective, I'm happy about that. But I think I said either in the first press conference or the second, defense wins championships. You need to be defensively organized. Through the run of play, (we were) okay. Set pieces? Not okay. And that, at the end of the day, killed us.
On the team's attacking style...
I think we've tried to create a structure of how we want to get to the goal. And within that structure, we have players that are difference makers. We just need to get them the ball in the right area. I think we've taken a little bit of the apprehensiveness away. Instead of just circulating the ball side to side and being happy with the possession, I think we've taken our opportunities. But it's not about being a direct team. It's about taking advantage of the space that's available. I think we've done that either behind the opponent or with combination play. Those are good signs. Those are good signs. But anytime you give away four goals at home, it doesn't feel good -- or anywhere for that matter.
On improving set piece defending...
We've tried to be creative in giving them different environments in training. We've given them a responsibility set piece wise in terms of their matchups. At the end of the day, if you're attacking and you want to score goals, the service has to be good and the commitment on the runs has to be there. We're not scoring on attacking set pieces and from the defensive side, it's a mentality. It's an attitude. To be able to be successful in those moments, you have to band together as a group and you have to protect the goal. That takes dirty work and we have to learn how to do that.
On the two second half goals...
We came out in the second half flat. We thought by playing the ball back to our goalkeeper or our backs that we would be able to build the game. And Portland had a different idea. The throw-in was a mistake. Not a technical mistake, not a tactical mistake. It was a mistake of concentration and attention and not an appreciation for what the opponent was going to come with. Those are the little things. We talk about little things that a lot of them put together make up big things. And that little thing turned into a very big thing in one moment and put the game in a completely different state than it was as we entered the half. The second goal, another set piece. I have to take away the last 25-30 minutes of the game when we were just throwing attackers forward. You have two ways you go down if you're down two goals. You can go down 5-2, 6-2, 7-2. Or you can try to get back in. Today my decision was try to go for it and to see if we can put as many attackers on the field. I know it might not be, you know, the smartest decision in giving up 5, 6, and 7, but we wanted to go for it. I wanted to go for it.
On his intensity as a coach...
I think as a player, you can have more of an impact on the game. As a player, you think that you can influence it. And as a coach, there's only so much you can do. When you're on the sideline, you can direct or you can organize the players. I talked a lot when I was a player. I know that. I moved players around and it was easier for me to try to impact the game. Out there with the guys, you're not trying to control the game for them. You're trying to encourage them. You're trying to remind them of some of the things that you talked about during the week. But you can't program the players. You can encourage them. You can pick them up when a goal is scored. you can make tactical decisions if you know a guy's tired or you see something in the game, but there's very little you can impact as a coach in terms of determining the outcome. They have to do it.
On the team's chemistry...
I don't know how long it takes. Sometimes you put a combination of players together and they somehow click right away. It's hard to put a timeline. And by no means would I ever use an excuse that there's coaching changes or player turnover. We've been together and what you guys don't see behind the scenes is that there is some combination and chemistry being built within the group. It doesn't end up in the final result at the moment, and we're still chasing that, but there are combinations that I'm pleased with. And it's not because of coaching changes or new players coming into the group. We have got to work faster. We have to work with more urgency to make sure we're better defensively and better attacking.
On the flat start to the second half...
Looking back on this, I'm going to look at me first. What was my message? Was it the right message? I'm going to look internally first. There have been games over the course of my career here, either in coaching or playing, that the message was great and the players, for some reason or another, just came out and they weren't ready. And then you flip it on its head and there are days where the players come out, and the message might not have been that great, and they come out and they get an early goal and momentum and everything breaks. So, you know, those halftime talks are always analyzed. Did you say the right things? Did you do the right things? Should you have made substitutions? We can question that all day. My and our job going forward is what are we going to do about it next time? And so how are we going to address that? The players will know. They know already. They came out flat. I don't need to tell them. I'll remind them, but I don't need to tell them something they already know. So I just hope that and believe that we're going to be better the next time around.
On if the first half penalty should have resulted in a second yellow for Antony...
The fourth (official) Alan Chapman and I spoke a little bit about it. They didn't think it was as egregious, but it didn't move my needle of complaining about whether he should have gotten the second yellow or not. That's up to the officials. At the end of the day, we got the penalty kick. I believe it was a penalty kick. We did get the right call there. But that no call or could have gone the other way, it didn't impact the game.
On Stephen Afrifa's first action of the season...
Stephen has ability, right? He's a wiry player that in games that are opened up an moments where players are tired, he can have an impact. I think today he did a good job. He drew the penalty kick. He got his first minutes and hopefully that's something for him to gain some confidence and build and try to become the best version that he can of a player.
On his message to the fans...
For the fans, we are committed to being better versions of what we've been. I've talked about this in kind of a historical sense. It's been a lot of years here where things have been very good and maybe we've taken it for granted from time to time when it's so good for so long. And I don't necessarily say the fans take it for granted. Maybe collectively we have this feeling that it's always going to be like that. But in sports, sometimes you have these moments. The great clubs of the world, the great organizations of the world, sometimes you have these moments. And we're not as old as an organization of only 30 years to say, you know, we haven't had to suffer. And for the last couple years we've had a little bit where we've had to suffer, but it's all relative because that suffering moment is like this. And so my message is that we are going to get out of this. We're going to move forward. We're going to press forward and we're not going to stop. We're going to lose games, we're going to win games. And I hope that each time we step out there that our effort and the way we approach the game makes the people that are watching it proud and our ownership proud. And if we do that and we get results and we start to move in that direction, we will gain belief. We will gain confidence and that's what you need now to be a consistent winner.
Sporting Kansas City defender Jansen Miller
Thoughts on the match...
They scored on two throw-ins and two set pieces. All four of them were moments, not the run of play, and those decide games. I think we had the highest expected goals of the season; 2.8 is what I just heard. We're creating chances. It's getting better. It's just little moments. We have to focus more because we're getting better as a team. I know the scoreline didn't show that today, but you can look at the metrics and it's better.
On the start of the second half...
We just came out slow. We didn't put our best foot forward coming out. I think we thought they would just kind of let us have the ball. That's just kind of what it seemed like. And they're a team that they want you to go backwards because they're fast and they're going to jump on those moments.
On coming out flat...
I don't really know why, but it's something now that we've addressed and it won't happen again.
On the goals conceded...
We just need to be more organized. We need to help each other. I think that's the biggest thing, just helping each other in those moments. If somebody's out of position, telling them or just do the work for them. I think it's just something that's going to come with time. We'll look at them and then we'll fix it.
On asking to speak with the media...
I just wanted to make sure people knew that wasn't indicative of how we played and how we've been prepared and the difference since Kerry's came in. I think the way Kerry's been, I think you can see a difference in the field. Obviously, there's little moments, but as a whole we're moving in the right direction. I just wanted people to know that and see it.
2025 MLS Regular Season | Match 8
Children's Mercy Park | Kansas City, Kansas
Attendance: 17,898
Weather: 82 degrees and mostly sunny
Score 1 2 F
Sporting Kansas City (1-6-1, 4 points) 2 0 2
Portland Timbers (4-2-2, 14 points) 2 2 4
Sporting Kansas City: John Pulskamp; Khiry Shelton (Memo Rodriguez 69'), Jansen Miller, Joaquin Fernandez, Logan Ndenbe (Tim Leibold 69'); Jacob Bartlett (Stephen Afrifa 88'), Jake Davis, Manu Garcia (William Agada 88'); Shapi Suleymanov (Erik Thommy 55'), Dejan Joveljic, Daniel Salloi (C)
Subs Not Used: Ryan Schewe, Dany Rosero, Zorhan Bassong, Mason Toye
Portland Timbers: James Pantemis; Juan Mosquera, Finn Surman, Kamal Miller, Ian Smith (Claudio Bravo 46'); Diego Chara (C) (Cristhian Paredes 69'), David Ayala; Santiago Moreno (Jonathan Rodriguez 69'), David Da Costa, Antony (Ariel Lassiter 76'); Kevin Kelsy (Felipe Mora 76')
Subs Not Used: Maxime Crepeau, Eric Miller, Dario Zuparic, Joao Ortiz
Scoring Summary:
POR -- David Ayala 1 (David Da Costa 3) 10'
SKC -- Shapi Suleymanov 1 (unassisted) 16'
POR -- Kevin Kelsy 2 (David Ayala 1) 26'
SKC -- Dejan Joveljic 5 (penalty kick) 33'
POR -- Kevin Kelsy 3 (Antony 1) 49'
POR -- Own Goal (Jansen Miller) 54'
Misconduct Summary:
POR -- Ian Smith (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 22'
POR -- Antony (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 28'
SKC -- Joaquin Fernandez (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 45+6'
POR -- Diego Chara (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 58'
POR -- Ariel Lassiter (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 78'
STAT SKC POR
Shots 9 14
Shots on Goal 6 8
Saves 5 4
Fouls 9 16
Offsides 4 3
Corner Kicks 6 7
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauziere
Assistant Referee: Jeremy Kieso
Assistant Referee: Eric Weisbrod
Fourth Official: Allen Chapman
VAR: Shawn Tehini
AVAR: Joshua Patlak
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