Sporting Kansas City: Chasing Home Field Advantage

Sporting Kansas City is making a strong statement they are the team to beat for the 2017 MLS season. Will this be the year SKC finally reclaims the Cup?

Ten games into the 2017 campaign and Sporting Kansas City finds themselves in a tie with FC Dallas at the top of the Western Conference. While the season is far from over, it’s likely that Sporting will be among the six Western Conference teams to make the playoffs.

Despite Graham Zusi’s shift to defense this season, Sporting doesn’t seem to have lost a step on offense. The addition of Gerso Fernandes seems to have opened up additional scoring opportunities for Dom Dwyer who netted a pair of goals last Wednesday against the New York Red Bulls. Per The Kansas City Star, Benny Feilhaber isn’t taking the hot start for granted.

"“I think there was a good vibe in the preseason about what we were gonna be like this year. It’s coming to fruition, little by little,” Sporting KC midfielder Benny Feilhaber said. “But I think everybody has a good sense about how early it is in the season. There’s a lot of season left.”"

Not only has the offense been stellar but the defense has looked good as well. Prior to Sunday’s game, goalkeeper Tim Melia had notched six shutouts in a still-young season, tied for the league lead. In addition, Melia’s goals against average is a ridiculous 0.33 through the first nine games.

The one blemish on an otherwise good season thus far was Sunday’s 0-2 loss against Minnesota United FC. However, that loss can be partially explained by the fact that SKC was playing its third match in nine days and had made three substitutions to their starting lineup. Despite that, Sporting still dominated possession time and corner kicks in the match.

The Importance of Home Field Advantage

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The more pressing question is whether or not Sporting can get a hold of  home field advantage. It’s well documented that Children’s Mercy Park is one of the best home field advantages in Major League Soccer. The raucous crowd definitely plays their part in keeping energy high throughout all matches.

Sporting Kansas City is unbeaten at home thus far in 2017 with a record of  three wins and two draws. In fact, Sporting has outscored their opponents in KC at a clip of ten to two this season through Wednesday’s game against the Red Bulls.

The past two seasons, SKC suffered heartbreaking road losses in the knockout round to the Portland Timbers and Seattle Sounders FC respectively. It should be said that both of those teams went on to win the MLS Cup. I honestly wonder if the result would have been altered had those games been held in Kansas City.

What Lies Ahead for SKC?

In spite of their success thus far in 2017, coach Peter Vermes says Sporting isn’t going to be content with their achievements thus far.

"“I don’t see it as saying, ‘Oh my gosh, we’re playing really well right now,’ ” Vermes said. “This is what we expect. The key is that we continue to keep growing from here and keep getting better.”"

I don’t expect Sporting Kansas City to rest on their laurels moving forward. While they have taken care of business against tough competition like the Red Bulls, Timbers, and San Jose Quakes, there are tests ahead.

Following Sunday’s loss against Minnesota United FC, SKC’s next three matchups resemble a veritable murderers’ row. Those matchups are at Orlando City SC, home against Seattle, and at Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Orlando City and Vancouver would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. Also, defending champion Seattle is always a tough matchup, especially on the road.

I expect to see this team doing just that and hopefully in December, Kansas City will see another MLS Cup raised, right here in Children’s Mercy Park.