Tonight’s match right on the edge of Tornado Alley was nothing short of a whirlwind of emotions for loyal Loons and Kansas City fans both, witnessing what was likely the craziest comeback of the matchweek in a riveting final 30 minutes.
Twenty minutes into the match, it was clear we weren't in Kansas anymore. The Loons brought the northern weather southward and turned the pitch into Minnesotan soil, racking up two goals in the first half followed by a third at the inception of the second. The Boys in Black and Blue were showing no mercy at Children’s Mercy Park, with Sporting Kansas City desperate to notch a result and coming up short… until they flipped the switch, finding the back of the net three times in the second half.
Take a deep breath, Loons fans. A disappointing endgame doesn’t mean that a solid first 60 minutes aren’t worth celebrating. Let’s take a step back from the turmoil and start from the beginning, shall we?
Sporting Kansas City has yet to walk away with a win this season, and head coach of 17 years Peter Vermes put all the cards on the pitch tonight with both of the club’s Designated Players and U-22 slots starting. With a streak of nine losses, SKC had a point to prove at home.
On the visiting side, the Loons’ starting lineup had Robin Lod stepping up to the front line alongside Tani Oluwaseyi, one of two changes to last week’s eleven, the other being Joaquín Pereyra returning to the midfield. In standard 5-3-2 form, Minnesota dominated the first half as the snow came down with SKC’s spirits.
Hassani Dotson started things off with an absolute banger from 25 yards out in the 15th minute. After a little pinball in the box, Morris Duggan headed the ball to the right for Dotson to strike right through the box, finding its way past Pulskamp for a stunning goal. From there, the momentum was high for Minnesota.
The first half saw wingback Bongokuhle Hlongwane playing up significantly more than the last few matches, and that paid off in the 31st minute when he made the perfect pass to Tani Oluwaseyi on a classic Minnesota counterattack for the second goal of the night. Defender Jake Davis just couldn’t get to the ball in time, and Oluwaseyi got it past SKC goalkeeper John Pulskamp — though not without a bit of a collision that had Pulskamp down on the field for a stretch that contributed significantly to the six minutes of stoppage time.
Minnesota’s defense was tight as ever, consistently putting out fires in the box and clearing the (orange!) ball before Sporting’s Dejan Joveljić and Erik Thommy could get too close. SKC’s few shots on goal were put to sleep by Dayne St. Clair. By halftime, Ramsay’s philosophy of purposeful possession was shining. SKC sat at 73% possession with zero goals to Minnesota’s two. Things were looking good for the Loons as the snowfall began to dwindle.
The second half began with a Tani tap-in, cementing his status as Man of the Match but also marking the last time MNUFC would get a goal on the board tonight. Soon after, Peter Vermes put in subs Dániel Sallói and Tim Leibold. For the Loons, Sang Bin Jeong subbed in for Oluwaseyi and Jefferson Díaz took over for Pereyra in minute 65.
Three minutes later, Sallói served as a catalyst for Sporting’s attack when he slipped the ball past St. Clair off an assist from Leibold. Four minutes later, Shapi Suleymanov’s corner sent the ball into a chaotic box for an unfortunate own goal off Duggan, who has had a great showing so far this season as a defensive starter. With the deficit down to one, Minnesota’s defense began to play tight. Joveljić tied things up with a phenomenal goal, and a vicious back-and-forth for the last 10 minutes plus eight minutes of stoppage time left things in a disappointing draw. Kelvin Yeboah took to the pitch in place of Lod, but even Minnesota’s leading scorer of the season couldn’t put away the tie-breaker by the time the whistle blew.
“I really do trust this squad,” Coach Ramsay said in a postgame press conference. “But it’s very difficult to look past the before and after point today.”
The final half hour of this installment of “the nicest rivalry in sports” was not nice, not friendly, and notably not the steady defending we’ve come to know from our dedicated backline. Though disappointment and frustration no doubt hang heavy over the squad tonight, the Loons return to Minnesota with three great goals and an opportunity to turn things around.
“I think if we’ve learned anything from last year, it’s about picking ourselves up,” said midfielder Wil Trapp. “It’s about learning from the mistakes that we’ve made and shoring things up before the next game.”
Next week presents a chance to overcome for the Loons as they take on defending MLS Cup champions LA Galaxy with several players absent due to international call-ups. Rest assured that your boys will be hungry for a result when they next take the pitch at Allianz Field Saturday, March 22, at 3:30 p.m. CT.
