Sporting KC Tops Portland 3-0 for Third Straight Win
August 18, 2018 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release
Diego Rubio struck twice and Johnny Russell added a late third as Sporting Kansas City posted their third straight shutout victory in a dominant 3-0 defeat of the Portland Timbers on Saturday night at Children's Mercy Park.
Rubio spearheaded the comprehensive performance with goals in the 28th and 37th minutes before Russell came off the bench to bag his team-leading eighth MLS goal in the 89th minute. The result lifts Sporting KC (12-6-6, 42 points) into a provisional tie for first place in the Western Conference with FC Dallas and gives Manager Peter Vermes' men three consecutive shutout wins in MLS for the first time since April 2013.
The fifth-place Timbers (10-6-7, 37 points) were kept off the scoresheet for the eighth time in their last 10 MLS meetings with Sporting KC, suffering a third straight defeat in the process. Sporting KC goalkeeper Tim Melia now leads MLS with 10 clean sheets season, equaling his career-high from 2017.
Fielding an unchanged lineup from last weekend's 2-0 win at LAFC, Sporting KC wasted no time asserting their dominance against a Timbers side just three days removed from a 4-1 road loss to D.C. United. Gerso Fernandes was the first to test busy Portland goalkeeper Jeff Attinella in the fifth minute, cutting centrally onto his left foot only to see his left-footed curler palmed wide.
In Portland's lone foray forward during a one-sided first half, striker Samuel Armenteros nearly fired the visitors ahead with a bending effort from the top of the box that caromed off Tim Melia's right-hand post in the 13th minute. It would be the Timbers' only shot attempt during the first stanza, as Sporting KC responded with an offensive siege at the opposite end.
The lively Fernandes went close twice in the space of four minutes on chances created by Roger Espinoza and Daniel Salloi, respectively, while Rubio forced Attinella into another save in the 20th minute. Graham Zusi, celebrating his 32nd birthday, almost buried a free kick three minutes later, but the diving Attinella was equal to it.
Sporting KC finally broke through near the half-hour mark when Espinoza played Rubio into a pocket of space just outside the box. The Chilean took full advantage with a low piledriver that nestled into the left corner, marking the fifth straight game in which Rubio has scored or assisted. Espinoza, making his 200th MLS start for the club, tallied his team-best ninth assist on the play.
Salloi set up Rubio's second goal nine minutes later, squaring low from the left side of the box. Rubio took a touch and found the right corner from near the penalty spot, recording his second career MLS brace and taking his MLS goal total to six on the season.
One-way traffic continued for most of the second period, although Portland could have grabbed a goal back in the 67th minute when Diego Valeri's looping cross was headed marginally wide by Andres Flores. Ten minutes earlier, a flowing attack involving Rubio, Espinoza and Salloi culminated with Gutierrez firing high from 20 yards.
Russell entered for Salloi in the 69th minute and almost scored within seconds of his introduction, but his chip shot off a feed from Espinoza floated inches wide and into the side netting. Two minutes later, Espinoza's low roller from the top of the box beat Attinella but clipped the wrong side of the post.
Krisztian Nemeth made his long-awaited Children's Mercy Park return as a 73rd-minute substitute and as on the receiving end of two chances manufactured by Russell and Espinoza, but was unable to put either effort on target. The Hungarian was active and involved nevertheless, and would play an instrumental role in Sporting KC's final goal of the game.
With a minute left in regulation, Russell played a brilliant give-and-go with Nemeth before slotting past Attinella for his 10th goal of the year in all competitions. Nemeth, meanwhile, notched his first assist in a Sporting KC uniform since August 2015, having rejoined the club earlier this month in a trade with the New England Revolution.
Sporting KC will play for their fourth successive win next Saturday at Children's Mercy Park, hosting regional rivals Minnesota United FC at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets for the match are available via SeatGeek.com as the club hosts its second annual Sporting Salutes, an immersive military appreciation night honoring past and present service members of the United States Armed Forces.
QUOTES Sporting Kansas City Manager Peter Vermes
Thoughts on the match...
I think from the very beginning of the game, we were actually very good with the ball. We never really gave the ball in critical areas of the field. I thought we had a great aggressiveness in and around the box. When we got our chances, we finished. Everybody we brought into the game had a lot of energy which really helped the team a lot.
On the team's performance...
It was a very good game for us tonight. I think we played very well. We moved the ball and we made the ball do the work. The ball never gets tired. We moved the ball and the other team had to run quite a bit. I thought we did a really good job of exposing them in certain areas of the field where they were late because they just couldn't' run any more.
On the two goals from Diego Rubio...
It's been great. He's played very well in the last two games. Tonight, he was on fire. He got really good balls in and around the box. That's where his area of operation is - around the goal. Tonight, he had good movement and he was clinical on his finishing.
Sporting Kansas City forward Diego Rubio
Thoughts on the match...
I can say that we controlled almost the entire game. That was great. I said to some guys before the game let's start to show that this is our place again. It's like a hell for the opponent. We got it. We won so that's perfect for us.
On his first goal...
Some guys told me you need to start to shoot every ball. Strikers are like this. I like to pass the ball a lot. I saw the chance and shot to the goal. That simple.
On his second goal...
That was perfect, almost like a counter attack. I saw Daniel and I thought I need to be in the box. I saw the space. All four of the defenders of Portland went to the line to cover so I saw that space and I made a very good touch and then scored.
On the team's defensive play...
We're running like a team. Everybody's running. Everybody's marking. Everybody's covering his zzone. That's very important. We know that they have very good players on the attack. I think that our defenders and midfielders did a very good job today.
Sporting Kansas City goalkeeper Tim Melia
Thoughts on the match...
I thought the way we moved the ball east to west was phenomenal. I think this was one of our best possession games. We were calm all over the field. We slowly went back and forth, back and forth and got into the front half of the field. We created a ton of opportunities and got the goals we needed.
On the play of Diego Rubio...
His work ethic is phenomenal. He runs all over the place. He's checking back. He's defending. He's finishing. He's creating opportunities. He's been so good for us.
On the team's three straight clean sheets...
Obviously, very important for us. We always want to build from the back and have a good defensive mindset. We've done that in the last three games but we need to continue it in these latter points of the season.
Sporting Kansas City defender Graham Zusi
Thoughts on the match...
A full 90 minutes of excellent soccer from us. We were on the front foot from the opening whistle. I thought we possessed the ball extremely well and created a lot of chances. When they got the ball, we got it back very quickly. We were in very good spots defensively and really gave them nothing throughout the game.
On the team's defensive play...
I think what you've seen in the past three games is a very focused and determined team to not give away chances and goals. Like you said, that's three clean sheets in a row. That's very important for us as a team. We're trending upward when it comes to that.
On the pre-game recognition and winning on his birthday...
That's all I was wishing for was three points. I'm glad to have both my parents here. It's a tremendous honor but basically means I'm just getting a lot older.
Portland Timbers head coach Giovanni Savarese
Thoughts on the match...
We learned a lot of things this week in the three matches that we played. We tried to do certain things that didn't work out. As I said, we learned a lot this week for us to make sure that we're prepared better. Again, I assume responsibility for this defeat. I thought that we were in the game. I thought that we created some chances and then at the end, I think it was tough. It was tough to have to run without the ball so long. Once they got ahead in the game, it became very difficult for us.
On the team's adjustments...
We tried to get the team more in their half of the field. We tried to be more ambitious, but we didn't have the right ideas to be able to break them down. We did create but then once we became tired, it became a very difficult match and it could have been more than three.
On playing three games in a week...
This is soccer. This is soccer. And that's it. This happens. This was a difficult with three matches one after the other. We explored something. We tried to see if we can work with players playing matches back to back and we learned that we have to change certain things. It was a good learning experience these three matches.
Portland Timbers goalkeeper Jeff Attinella
Thoughts on the match...
Obviously, it didn't go our way tonight. I think if you give a team that many chances, they have good players, they're going to score and they're going to capitalize. It's a week that we can take and learn from. Obviously, it didn't go the way that we wanted it to. We have a massive game on Sunday. We've got to put this whole week behind us and look forward to the one on the weekend.
On the big picture...
You learn more from losses than you do from [going undefeated] 15 games in a row or going on that streak. The streak is well behind us. We're currently on a streak that we don't want to be on. At the end of the day, we've all got to look in the mirror and figure out what it's going to take to get the win on Sunday because obviously it's a massive one.
On the matchup with Seattle...
They've obviously figured it out a little bit but this rivalry always kind of finds a way to have extra storylines. It's just another extra storyline. They're going to come in feeling pretty good about themselves. We're going to come in fully focused on the task at hand. I'm expecting a good one. Like always, turn up at Providence Park because it's going to be pretty fun and we're going to need everyone's support.
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