There is no rest for FC Dallas again this week as they remain on the road following their 1-1 draw in San Jose over the weekend when they take on rivals Sporting Kansas City on Wednesday night.

Sporting is coming off a big 4-1 blowout win at home on Sunday against Portland, something that didn’t seem possible in their first ten games of the season when they only had three goals scored.

Don’t let Peter Vermes and Sporting KC get the better end of things this week. Subscribe to our work as a free or paid subscriber, it’s really that easy.

Key Player: Daniel Salloi

I called him out back in March when the two teams met in Frisco, and what did he do? He scored their first goal of the season. He also has seven goals and two assists against FC Dallas over the last couple of seasons. Stopping him really does mean stopping the Sporting attack that is starting to find itself here in the middle portion of the season.

Key Matchup: Jader Obrian vs Graham Zusi

I want more from Obrian after seeing how well he’s been playing the last few games, and going against a veteran like Zusi is an excellent test for him. It should be a fun matchup to watch on Wednesday night.

Availability Report:

Suspended: none
Out: Tim Melia (quad), Kortne Ford (Achilles surgery), Kayden Pierre (hamstring), Willy Agada (tibia stress fracture)
Questionable: Johnny Russell (Hamstring Injury), Remi Walter (Back Spasms)
On Loan: n/a
International duty: none

Quick Notes:

Finding their form - Sporting are 3-1-1 in the month of May, slowly righting the ship following a 0-7-3 start to the 2023 campaign. Sporting is now just three points out of the Western Conference's ninth and final postseason spot.

Jekyll and Hyde - SKC recorded its third win of the season on Sunday, defeating Portland 4-1. SKC has scored nine goals in its three league wins this season (3.0 per match) but has totaled just four goals in its other 12 MLS games (0.33 per match – D4 L8).

Last league game at KC - SKC last hosted Dallas at Children’s Mercy Park in MLS play on April 30, 2022, playing out a 2-2 draw. Johnny Russell gave the hosts the lead from the penalty spot before Alan Velasco and Jesus Ferreira scored a pair of goals to give Dallas the lead at halftime. Salloi stepped up to salvage a point for Sporting with a well-taken finish late in the second half.

Potential Lineup:

Vermes tends to stick with a 4-3-3, but we may see some rotation from Sunday out of him for this one.

Pulskamp; Ndenbe, Fontas, Rosero, Zusi; Thommy, Walter, Espinoza; Salloi, Pulido, Kinda

Keys To Three Points over Sporting

  1. Keep it simple - Given the quick turnaround for both sides, we might expect to see some rotation from each manager. This is the kind of game and environment that Nico Estevez needs to keep things simple and likely defensive (given all the injuries). I don’t think there is any shame in loading up the midfield with defensive guys again, as we saw in San Jose on Saturday.
  2. Continue to find the wings - I may sound like a broken record, but good things really do come in the attack for this club when they stretch the width of the field and force the other team to defend Jader Obrian or Alan Velasco on the wings. Dallas will likely have more chances on a counterattack in this one, so their speed will also play a factor.
  3. No more injuries, please - This is more of a wishful thought than a key, but it needs to be said. We don’t need any more injuries to this roster. I’ve told folks for a couple of weeks now that this club is one really bad injury away from the season being torn to bits. We’re living a little too close to the edge at the moment.