SPORTING KANSAS CITY vs. MINNESOTA UNITED FC
Children’s Mercy Park | Kansas City, Kansas
06.03.18 | MLS Week No. 13 | MLS Game No. 14
7:30 p.m. CT (FOX Sports 1, MNUFC Radio on 1500 ESPN)

2018 Records:
SKC: 7-2-4, 4-1-2 at home
MIN: 5-7-1, 1-5-0 on the road

With memories of the 1-1 draw on May 20 in Minneapolis still fresh in their minds, Minnesota United and Western Conference-leading Sporting Kansas City meet for the second time in 11 days in a nationally televised match on Sunday night. Both sides took points from their only match since their last meeting, with the Loons grabbing all three in a 2-0 home win over Montreal Impact and Sporting KC settling for a scoreless draw with Columbus Crew home.

Minnesota United’s second meeting of the season with SKC will commence at 7:30 p.m. CT on Sunday, June 3 from Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City. National pre-match coverage begins at 7:00 p.m. on FOX Sports 1, streaming on FOX Sports GO and on MNUFC Radio on 1500 ESPN.

It took most of the first half for the Loons to settle in against Montreal, but they rebounded and clawed their way to a convincing victory. Once they had shaken off their slow start, Head Coach Adrian Heath said his team was “very good” and turned the tide by getting further up the pitch and exerting their will on the Impact, while forward Christian Ramirez believes he and his side will be better for learning how to adjust when they are not necessarily at their best.

“At the end of the day we got a result and we figured out a way to get that result,” Ramirez said. “That is something we need to move forward with. It might not be our best day, but if we can grind out a result and take our chances that is a sign that things are going in the right direction.”

That growing resolve will be tested this weekend in Kansas City. Minnesota’s task has not changed much since the last meeting with Sporting KC. SKC will still come at the Loons with its well-organized 4-3-3 attack, try to put them on their back foot and get them out of their comfort zone, while MNUFC will again have to ensure midfielder Ilie Sanchez does not put his stamp on the match. But those objectives are easier said than done at Children’s Mercy Park, which Heath called one of the toughest parks in MLS to go into and get a result from.

“It is a tough place to play,” Ramirez said. “Their fans do a good job of making it a tough environment because they are right on you. It is always a good place to play and a tough place to play. Hopefully we can get a result down there. That would be nice.”

Adding to the Loons’ challenge will be slowing down Sporting KC’s potent, Johnny Russell-led attack without its captain, Francisco Calvo. With the centerback away for the World Cup, either Brent Kallman or Wyatt Omsberg is expected to step up into a new look back four. But despite a different style of centerback coming in, do not expect MNUFC to sit back against their Midwestern rivals. Heath has learned the perils of playing passive against SKC and, despite the defensive adjustment, is encouraging his team to play to its strengths.

“When we try to be more defensive we’ve actually lost a bit of what we’re about,” Heath said. “We’ll have a good look at it and see what we have available at the end of the week. The most important thing is I want us to go into the game playing with a bit of confidence and not go there waiting for something to happen against us which is what we’ve done in the past.”

After Sunday’s match, Minnesota United will face a short turnaround before its U.S. Open Cup fourth round clash against USL side FC Cincinnati. That match is scheduled for Wednesday, June 6 at 6:30 p.m. CT at Cincinnati’s Nippert Stadium. US Soccer will stream the match and fans can also follow along on Twitter at @MNUFCmatch.

Following its USOC match, and after a week off, MNUFC returns to MLS action on Saturday, June 23 on the road against Colorado Rapids at 8:00 p.m. CT. Pre-match coverage will begin at 7:30 p.m. on FOX Sports North, streaming on FOX Sports Go and on MNUFC radio on 1500 ESPN.

INJURY REPORT

Minnesota United FC
OUT:
M – Sam Cronin (cervicogenic dysfunction)
M – Kevin Molino (left ACL tear)
M – Ethan Finlay (right ACL tear)
D – Marc Burch (left knee surgery)
D – Jerome Thiesson (right leg injury)

QUESTIONABLE:
GK – Matt Lampson (right knee injury)

Sporting Kansas City
OUT:
M - Felipe Gutierrez (sports hernia surgery)

QUESTIONABLE:
F- Diego Rubio (back injury)
D - Jimmy Medranda (undisclosed injury)

FIRST TOUCHES:

• Ike Opara and Sam Cronin were teammates at Wake Forest in 2007 and 2008.
• Seth Sinovic, Ethan Finlay and Brent Kallman were teammates at Creighton University in 2009. Sinovic later played with Bobby Shuttleworth from 2010 to 2011 with the New England Revolution.
• Peter Vermes and Manny Lagos were teammates on the New York/New Jersey MetroStars for the inaugural MLS season in 1996. Lagos played the 1997 season on the MetroStars with current Sporting KC Assistant Coach Kerry Zavagnin.
• Tim Melia and Collen Warner were teammates on Real Salt Lake in 2010 and 2011.
• Tyrone Mears made his first appearance for MNUFC since April 1 in the 2-0 victory over Montreal Impact last weekend. The defender had been sidelined for several weeks due to injury.
• Christian Ramirez’s match-winning goal against Montreal Impact drew him level with Darwin Quintero for most goals on the team (three each).
• Five different players (Ramirez, Sam Nicholson, Miguel Ibarra, Ethan Finlay and Ibson) have scored match-winning goals for MNUFC this season.
• Ibson provided his first assist of the year on Ramirez’s goal against Montreal Impact.
• Bobby Shuttleworth crossed the 150-save mark at MNUFC with his four saves last weekend. He has a career total of 152 saves with the club and 523 over his MLS career (including playoffs).
• Shuttleworth earned his second clean sheet of the season last week against Montreal Impact. It is his seventh career shutout with the Loons.
• Shuttleworth has a career record of 5-2-2 with 1.22 lifetime goals against average when up against Sporting Kansas City. He has made 36 saves and posted three clean sheets in his nine appearances against them.
• Abu Danladi has a goal and two assists in his three career appearances against Sporting Kansas City.
• MNUFC and Sporting Kansas City battled to a 1-1 draw two weeks ago at TCF Bank Stadium. Khiry Shelton and Darwin Quintero were the goal scorers.
• MNUFC captain and defender Francisco Calvo has departed to compete in the 2018 World Cup with Costa Rica. The Ticos will play Brazil, Serbia and Switzerland in the group stage.
• Three days after this match, both teams will play in the Fourth Round of the U.S. Open Cup. MNUFC travels to play FC Cincinnati (USL) and Sporting Kansas City meets Real Salt Lake.
• Neither MNUFC or Sporting Kansas City has won on the road in this series since 2017.
• Sporting Kansas City leads the league in shots (241) and corner kicks (87).
• Five players have been ejected when playing vs. Sporting Kansas City this year.
• This is the second of three meetings between MNUFC and Sporting Kansas City this year. It is the only club MNUFC plays three times in 2018.
• MNUFC has gone 1-1-2 in MLS matches vs. Sporting Kansas City and 0-3-0 in U.S. Open Cup matches dating back to 2014.