By Sam Kovzan – SportingKC.com
Willy Agada’s first-half brace and a sensational late strike from Memo Rodriguez propelled Sporting Kansas City (5-13-5, 20 points) to a thrilling 3-2 victory over FC Dallas (6-11-5, 23 points) on Sunday night at Children’s Mercy Park.
Agada buried a pair of headers inside 23 minutes to give Sporting a commanding lead, only for the visitors to respond with a goal on either side of halftime to level the score. The last laugh belonged to Sporting, however, as Rodriguez cannoned a 17-yard strike into the corner with eight minutes remaining to give Kansas City its second consecutive home win.
Sunday’s result made Manager Peter Vermes the third head coach in MLS history to win 200 regular season matches as Sporting prevailed in the first of two meetings between the clubs in four days. The MLS charter members will square off again Wednesday at Children’s Mercy Park in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals, with kickoff slated for 8 p.m. CT, tickets available at SeatGeek.com and live coverage on Apple TV and Sports Radio 810 WHB.
With his team navigating an arduous stretch of seven games in 22 days, Vermes deployed a lineup that featured seven changes from Thursday’s 2-1 loss at the Colorado Rapids. Captaining the club for the first time, veteran goalkeeper Tim Melia was shielded by a back four of Kayden Pierre, Robert Castellanos, Andreu Fontas and Tim Leibold. Rodriguez and Jake Davis formed a double pivot in midfield, while Alenis Vargas, Alan Pulido and Daniel Salloi were in advanced positions behind the lone striker Agada.
The hosts seized early attacking initiative and needed just 11 minutes to draw first blood. Rodriguez’s in-swinging corner kick from the left side was met by a leaping Agada, who planted a header past Dallas goalkeeper Maarten Paes for Sporting’s second-earliest goal of the 2024 regular season. Rodriguez has a team-leading six assists this year and Sporting is tied for third in MLS with 10 goals off set pieces.
Vermes’ men doubled their advantage a dozen minutes later. Receiving a pass from Leibold, Vargas squared up his defender on the right edge of the box and clipped a delightful service to the far post for Agada, who nodded home at point blank range to make the score 2-0. Vargas tabbed his first career MLS assist on the play, while Agada moved into a tie for fifth in club history with his sixth multi-goal game in the regular season. The Nigerian forward now has 16 goals in as many regular season starts at Children’s Mercy Park since joining the team in 2022.
Sporting were unfortunate not to score a third in the 26th minute when Salloi’s screaming strike from the left side of the area smacked the crossbar. His team’s misfortune was compounded on the half-hour juncture when Dallas grabbed a goal back on a Bernard Kamungo shot that hit the post and bounced off Melia’s backside for an own goal, culminating a chaotic scramble near the goalmouth.
Undeterred, Kansas City conjured a bevy of chances prior to halftime. Davis had a 25-yard belter sizzle inches over the crossbar before Pulido misfired on a breakaway that was ignited by a crunching Rodriguez tackle and a clever pass from Davis. Shortly thereafter, Pierre went on a brilliant solo run by weaving his way into the box and dragging a shot agonizingly wide of the target. Vargas then had a decent look go begging and Agada forced a save from Paes before referee Natalie Simon blew her halftime whistle.
With Wednesday’s crucial Open Cup match beckoning, both sides made their allotted five substitutions over the course of the second half. Sporting had three reinforcements introduced on the hour mark as Sebastian Bassong, Erik Thommy and Stephen Afrifa entered the fray. Thommy made his presence felt quickly, settling a feed from Agada at the top of the box and sending a left-footed effort high and wide.
Dallas was boosted by a crop of fresh second-half additions and restored parity through substitute Petar Musa in the 65th minute. Fellow sub Paul Arriola won possession, drove goalward, held up on the edge of the box and slipped a through ball to Logan Farrington, whose square pass was poked home on the doorstep by Musa for his 11th goal of the campaign and his sixth tally in five games.
Despite relinquishing the lead, Sporting finished forcefully and dominated the late stages. Agada’s bid for a hat trick was thwarted in the 70th minute when his glancing header off a delicious Rodriguez delivery was tipped over the bar by Paes. Rodriguez then delivered one of Sporting’s finest moments of the season, latching onto a loose ball at the top of the box in the 82nd minute and hammering a right-footed rocket into the right corner for his second goal of the year. It was the midfielder’s second career MLS match with a goal and an assist, having first achieved the feat in May 2021 as a member of Houston Dynamo FC.
Agada’s hunt for a hat-trick continued into the dying embers, with Paes producing another smart save to deny the forward in the 88th minute. Additional fireworks came in stoppage time when Bassong received a straight red card for violent conduct committed in reaction to Arriola maliciously pelting Bassong’s head with a throw-in. Arriola emerged with only a yellow card, but his team was less fortunate on the night as Sporting preserved their 3-2 cushion to the final whistle.
2024 MLS Regular Season | Match 23
Children’s Mercy Park | Kansas City, Kansas
Attendance: 17,457
Weather: 78 degrees and cloudy
Sporting Kansas City 3-2 FC Dallas
| Score | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sporting Kansas City (5-13-5, 20 points) | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| FC Dallas (6-11-5, 23 points) | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Sporting Kansas City: Tim Melia (C); Kayden Pierre (Khiry Shelton 65′), Robert Castellanos, Andreu Fontas, Tim Leibold (Zorhan Bassong 59′); Jake Davis, Memo Rodriguez; Alenis Vargas (Johnny Russell 70′), Alan Pulido (Erik Thommy 59′), Daniel Salloi (Stephen Afrifa 58′); Willy Agada
Subs Not Used: John Pulskamp, Robert Voloder, Nemanja Radoja, Marinos Tzionis
FC Dallas: Maarten Paes; Ema Twumasi, Nkosi Tafari (C), Omar Gonzalez (Marco Farfan 80′), Sam Junqua; Bernard Kamungo, Tomas Pondeca (Sebastian Lletget 46′), Nolan Norris (Asier Illarramendi 56′), Dante Sealy (Petar Musa 57′); Logan Farrington, Tsiki Ntsabeleng (Paul Arriola 56′)
Subs Not Used: Jimmy Maurer, Amet Korca, Carl Sainte, Eugene Ansah
Scoring Summary:
SKC — Willy Agada 6 (Memo Rodriguez 6) 11′
SKC — Willy Agada 7 (Alenis Vargas 1, Tim Leibold 3) 23′
DAL — Own Goal (Tim Melia) 30′
DAL — Petar Musa 11 (Logan Farrington 4, Paul Arriola 4) 65′
SKC — Memo Rodriguez 2 (unassisted) 82′
Misconduct Summary:
SKC — Robert Castellanos (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 15′
SKC — Zorhan Bassong (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 85′
SKC — Zorhan Bassong (red card; violent conduct) 90+4′
DAL — Paul Arriola (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 90+5′
Match Statistics
| Stat | SKC | DAL |
|---|---|---|
| Fouls | 18 | 9 |
| Offsides | 0 | 4 |
| Corner Kicks | 7 | 0 |
Referee: Natalie Simon
Assistant Referee: Cameron Blanchard
Assistant Referee: Eric Weisbrod
Fourth Official: Allen Chapman
VAR: Jorge Gonzalez
AVAR: Fabio Tovar
