Patrik Bergabo – Sporting Kansas City
Sporting Kansas City (6-18-4, 22 pts.) produced a rousing second-half comeback to earn a 3-3 draw with Portland Timbers (9-13-6, 33 pts.) at Sporting Park on Saturday night. Andre Luiz scored another pair of goals to take him to seven goals in his first seven appearances for the club, while Justin Reynolds also got on the scoresheet with his first in Sporting Blue.
Head coach Raphael Wicky made one change to the team’s defeat against Seattle at the start of the month, restoring Zorhan Bassong in midfield with Lasse Berg Johnsen missing out with a hamstring injury.
Sporting created the first clear opening of the match when Andre won the ball off Portland star Vincent Janssen deep in his own half and drove toward goal before seeing his strike deflected onto the inside of the post before bouncing agonizingly across the goal line and out for a corner.
Instead, it was the Timbers who took the lead in the 10th minute when Designated Player David Da Costa slotted the ball into the bottom corner after being well picked out by Ariel Lassiter down the right wing.
As the clock headed into first-half stoppage time, Portland was awarded a penalty kick following Video Review after Jansen Miller brought down Kristoffer Velde in the penalty area. Janssen slammed the ensuing spot kick into the roof of the net and make the score 2-0.
With just seconds remaining before the halftime whistle, Sporting earned the team’s first penalty kick of the season when Taylor Calheira was caught by Diego Chara while attempting to shoot. Andre stepped up and saw his penalty tipped onto the post by James Pantemis, but the Brazilian followed in to tap home the rebound for his sixth goal of the season, becoming just the third player in club history with goals in five consecutive matches (Preki in 1996 and Johnny Russell in 2021).
While Sporting started the second half on the front foot in search of an equalizer, it was the Timbers who restored the team’s two-goal cushion when Lassiter stroked home off Jimer Fory’s cross in the 64th minute to make it 3-1.
Undeterred, Sporting responded once again when Reynolds rifled home his first goal for the club in the 70th minute. After Calheira kept the play alive in the Timbers penalty area, he set the ball back to Reynolds and the 22-year-old did the rest, firing beyond Pantemis for his second MLS goal after scoring for Chicago against Inter Miami last season.
Sporting completed the comeback three minutes later when Andre added his second of the night to cap a rapid counterattack. Substitutes Ruben Ramos Jr. and Seymour Reid combined to free Andre in behind the Timbers backline and the winger raced clear before slotting into the bottom corner for his seventh goal of the campaign to make the final score 3-3 on a wild night at Sporting Park.
Sporting hits the road midweek with a visit to Nashville on Wednesday night before returning to Sporting Park next weekend to host Real Salt Lake. Kickoff for Wednesday’s match against Supporters’ Shield leaders Nashville is set for 7:30 p.m. CT and will be available to stream on Apple TV, while the game will be air on the radio on Sports Radio 810 WHB and La Grande 1340 AM.
2026 MLS Regular Season | Game 28
Sporting Park | Kansas City, KS
Attendance: 14,825
Weather: 76 degrees and clear
Sporting Kansas City 3-3 Portland Timbers
| Score | 1 | 2 | F |
| Sporting Kansas City (6-18-4, 22 points) | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Portland Timbers (9-13-6, 33 points) | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Sporting Kansas City: Stefan Cleveland; Justin Reynolds (Ian James 71’), Jansen Miller, Wyatt Meyer, Emir Karic; Andre Luiz (Shapi Suleymanov 82’), Zorhan Bassong (C) (Jacob Bartlett 79’), Kwaku Agyabeng, Calvin Harris; Stephen Afrifa (Ruben Ramos Jr. 71’), Taylor Calheira (Seymour Reid 71’)
Subs Not Used: Jack Kortkamp, John Pulskamp, Ethan Bartlow, Jayden Reid
Portland Timbers: James Pantemis; Ronald Hernandez, Joel Waterman, Kamal Miller, Jimer Fory; Diego Chara (C) (Jose Caicedo 63’), Joao Ortiz (Eric Izoita 75’), David Da Costa; Kristoffer Velde (Alexander Aravena 87’), Vincent Janssen (Antony 63’), Ariel Lassiter (Ian Smith 87’)
Subs Not Used: Trey Muse, Eric Miller, Cole Bassett, Omir Fernandez
Scoring Summary:
POR – David Da Costa 5 (Ariel Lassiter 6, Diego Chara 3) 10’
POR – Vincent Janssen 4 (Penalty Kick) 49+
SKC – Andre Luiz 6 (Unassisted) 52+
POR – Ariel Lassiter 5 (Jimer Fory 6, David Da Costa 9) 64’
SKC – Justin Reynolds 1 (Taylor Calheira 3) 70’
SKC – Andre Luiz 7 (Seymour Reid 1, Ruben Ramos Jr. 1) 73’
Misconduct Summary:
POR – Vincent Janssen (Yellow Card; Unsporting Behavior) 12’
Match Statistics
| STAT | SKC | POR |
| Shots | 12 | 9 |
| Shots on Goal | 5 | 5 |
| Expected Goals | 2.1 | 1.7 |
| Corner Kicks | 6 | 1 |
| Possession | 46.9% | 53.1% |
| Saves | 2 | 2 |
| Fouls | 17 | 9 |
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauziere
Assistant Referee: Brian Dunn
Assistant Referee: Stephen McGonagle
Fourth Official: Robert Vincze
VAR: Ramy Touchan
AVAR: Tom Felice
