Real Salt Lake vs. Sporting Kansas City | 2016 MLS Match Preview

REAL SALT LAKE vs. SPORTING KANSAS CITY
Rio Tinto Stadium | Sandy, Utah
Sunday, Oct. 16 | Week #33 | MLS Game #328
5 pm ET (MLS LIVE, KMCI-38, KMYU)

A massive match in the Final Push for the Playoffs in the Western Conference is ahead with Real Salt Lake play host to Sporting Kansas City on Sunday afternoon at Rio Tinto Stadium. Both clubs come into the game aiming to book their tickets for the 2016 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, among four clubs still battling it out for the final three positions in the West. Real had their winless run extended to five games last time out, a 2-1 loss at the San Jose Earthquakes two weeks ago. Sporting continue their road swing after a loss followed a win, with their 3-1 defeat at the New England Revolution on Oct. 1.

• Real Salt Lake saw their winless run extended to five games, with a third loss in that time, in their 2-1 defeat by the San Jose Earthquakes on Oct. 1. Justen Glad scored the lone RSL goal, putting an end to a 310-minute goalless drought, the ninth-longest in MLS this season.
• Sporting had their three-game undefeated run come to an end in their 3-1 loss at the New England Revolution on Oct. 1. Dom Dwyer scored for a fourth consecutive match, now with 16 goals for the season.
• The teams are meeting for the third time this season, and Real have won the first two, both at Children’s Mercy Park. Justen Glad and Luke Mulholland scored on either side of halftime as Real Salt Lake claimed a 2-1 win April 2; Yura Movsisyan’s goal in the second half clinched a 3-1 RSL win on May 21.
• The first meeting victory was Real’s first ever at Children’s Mercy Park, in seven meetings lifetime, including MLS Cup 2013. RSL had last won in Kansas City in 2009 (at CommunityAmerica Ballpark).
• Real have a four-game winning streak alive vs. Sporting, having won the last two league meetings a year ago, both by 2-1 scorelines, and both at Rio Tinto Stadium (June 21 and July 24) – their first wins against KC since the 2011 season. RSL haven’t lost in five consecutive regular season matches vs. SKC (4-0-2).

REFEREE: Ismail Elfath. AR1 (bench): Ian Anderson; AR2 (opposite): Adam Garner; 4th: Chris Penso
MLS Career: 80 games; FC/gm: 24.8; Y/gm: 3.2; R: 18; pens: 22

SUSPENDED: KC: Jimmy Medranda (caution accumulation; through Oct. 16)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: RSL: Sunday Stephen -- KC: Matt Besler
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: RSL: Aaron Maund, Chris Wingert, Tony Beltran, Luke Mulholland, Javier Morales -- KC: Dom Dwyer, Lawrence Olum
DISABLED LIST: none
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none

HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (23 meetings): Real 9 wins, 29 goals -- Sporting 8 wins, 27 goals -- Ties 6
AT SALT LAKE (10 meetings): Real 6 wins, 17 goals -- Sporting 3 wins, 13 goals -- Ties 1

2016 (MLS):
4/2: KC 1, RSL 2 (Feilhaber 94+ -- Glad 29; Mulholland 79)
5/21: KC 1, RSL 3 (Dwyer 50 -- Martinez 32; own goal 47+; Movsisyan 53)

• Coaches record: Peter Vermes vs. RSL: P13 W3 L7 D3 -- Jeff Cassar vs. KC: P6 W4 L0 D2

LAST MEETING (MLS):

• RSL took the lead in the 32nd minute. Joao Plata recovered a loose ball in the SKC end and then he, Javier Morales, and Juan Manuel Martinez put on a passing clinic that ended with a perfect ball across the face of goal for Martinez to smash into the net.
• Real were up 2-0 at halftime after a Yura Movsisyan shot took a deflection off Sporting's Brad Davis for an own goal in stoppage time.
• SKC pulled a goal back back in the 50th minute when Jimmy Medranda sent a long diagonal ball to Dom Dwyer, who finessed the ball home through defensive traffic. But just three minutes later the two-goal margin was restored when Kyle Beckerman started an RSL counter with a midfield tackle that was finished Movsisyan past SKC goalkeeper Tim Melia.
• SPORTING KANSAS CITY (4-1-2-3): Tim Melia - Saad Abdul-Salaam, Nuno Andre Coelho, Matt Besler (Ike Opara 85), Jimmy Medranda - Soni Mustivar - Benny Feilhaber (Jacob Peterson 77), Roger Espinoza - Brad Davis, Dom Dwyer, Graham Zusi.
• REAL SALT LAKE (4-2-1-3): Nick Rimando - Tony Beltran, Justen Glad, Aaron Maund, Chris Wingert (Demar Phillips 68) - Sunday Stephen, Kyle Beckerman - Javier Morales - Juan Manuel Martinez, Yura Movsisyan (Luke Mulholland 90), Joao Plata (Devon Sandoval 78).