The Colorado Rapids have an opportunity to move into second place in the Western Conference standings on Wednesday when they travel to Children's Mercy Park to face Sporting Kansas City.
The Rapids are on the two-game winning streak heading into this match, as they sit just one point behind KC, who are winless in their last two MLS fixtures.
Match preview
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The international break appears to have impacted the Wizards form in front of goal, with KC firing 51 shots over their last two games but only scoring twice and dropping four points to a pair of conference opponents.
Despite the recent setback, manager Peter Vermes remains confident in his team, saying they have dominated the play of late, adding that he likes how in sync his side have looked, even though they have missed many scoring opportunities.
Last weekend, they seemed to dictate most of the play with 66% of the possession, but they were only able to fire three shots on target as they struggled to deal with the raucous crowd at Providence Park, who saw the Portland Timbers beat the Wizards 2-1.
This team have been successful when everyone is involved in the attack at every position.
The defence usually gets the green light to join the attack, while the strike force of Daniel Salloi and Alan Pulido, are among the best in the league with nine goals between them.
All season long Kansas City have been able to answer a loss with an impressive showing, winning their next match both times following a defeat, which follows a similar path to their 2020 regular season in which they lost two games in a row only once.
The time off did not appear to have any impact on the Colorado Rapids, who were clinical in front of goal last Saturday against FC Cincinnati, scoring on their only two shots on target and winning their second road game of this campaign.
Making the most of the chances they get has been one of the trademarks of this side all season, as they have had less than 50% of the possession in six of their eight fixtures, but they have still won three of those contests, scoring on six of their last nine shots on target over their previous three matches.
Manager Robin Fraser has seen his side fight hard all season to be in the position they are, in third place in the Western Conference and only six points behind the leaders, the Seattle Sounders.
The Rapids have found a killer instinct to put away the opposition when they are vulnerable lately, winning their last four matches in which they have scored the opening goal.
Fraser will know that the next few weeks could be a huge opportunity for his team to show that they belong with the elite sides in MLS, facing KC on Wednesday before hosting the number one team in MLS right now, the Seattle Sounders, in the first of four consecutive games at home.
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Team News
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KC midfielder Gadi Kinda has missed the last two games since the international break with a foot ailment, defender Graham Zusi missed the match against Portland with a groin strain, and midfielder Remi Walter did not play last weekend because of a knee injury.
Goalkeepers Kendall McIntosh and Brooks Thompson have yet to recover from an adductor and a back injury respectively, so Tim Melia is expected to get the start once again.
Defender Luis Martins is the only player for Kansas City who has played in every minute of the regular season so far, and he is among the league leaders in terms of crosses.
For the Rapids right-back, Steven Beitashour and attacking midfielder Younes Namli are out with unknown injuries.
Goalkeeper William Yarbrough has made 13 stops in his last two games, which have both resulted in clean sheets, as he is tied for the most in that department along with Joe Willis of Nashville and Pedro Gallese, who all have four shutouts so far.
Sporting Kansas City possible starting lineup:
Melia; Martins, Fontas, llie, Lindsey; Hernandez, Busio, Espinoza; Salloi, Pulido, Shelton
Colorado Rapids possible starting lineup:
Yarbrough; Vines, Trusty, Wilson, Moor, Rosenberry; Bassett, Acosta, Lewis; Barrios, Rubio
We say: Sporting Kansas City 2-2 Colorado Rapids
Sporting Kansas City have yet to lose at home this season, and we rarely see them drop consecutive matches, so expect to see them be a lot more clinical in front of goal and a lot less complacent against a side who are nipping at their heels in the standings.
Colorado have only suffered one defeat on the road this season, while also finding their form in attack recently and possessing perhaps the hottest goalkeeper in MLS right now, who is at the top of his game.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Sporting Kansas City win with a probability of 50.72%. A win for Colorado Rapids had a probability of 25.91% and a draw had a probability of 23.4%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sporting Kansas City win was 2-1 with a probability of 9.64%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (9.06%) and 2-0 (8.02%). The likeliest Colorado Rapids win was 1-2 (6.54%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.89%). The actual scoreline of 3-1 was predicted with a 5.7% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Sporting Kansas City would win this match.
