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Sporting Kansas City travel to the Pacific Northwest tonight to take on the Seattle Sounders in what will be the only regular season meeting between the two. Sporting KC has not had the best of luck at CenturyLink Field, as they have lost their last two games when playing away against Seattle from goals scored in stoppage time.
Sporting Kansas City fans will also remember the head-turning 2-1 loss to the Sounders last time out when they came down to LSP and scored two goals in stoppage time, yeah, the Sounders have made a habit of scoring against KC in the dying embers of the game and Sporting KC will need to maintain their concentration, especially in the defense, for the entire match.
Peter Vermes will look to beat a shaky Seattle side and receive all three points, something he has never been able to do against the Sounders both home and away.
The Basics:
Time: 9:00 pm CT, pregame starts at 8:30 pm on KSMO
Where: CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington.
Who: Sporting KC vs. Seattle Sounders
What: MLS Round 16, Game 135 of 2012 season
Key Matchup: Injuries vs. Injuries
Sporting KC's injured list has risen impressively in the past few weeks. Most notably Matt Besler, Paulo Nagamura, and Bobby Convey have all made the latest injury list. CJ Sapong also picked up a knock and Eric Kronberg is still listed as "out". Which raises the question of which keeper has traveled with Sporting KC to Seattle as the back-up goalie? Kempin recently tweeted a picture of his foot in a cast. So in all likelihood I think Steve Spangler, an MLS pool kepper, will be sitting on the bench for KC tonight. Seattle also has a host of injuries and players listed under probabable. So it will be interesting to see who gets the start for each team.
Seattle Sounders player to watch: Freddy Montero
I'd be lying if I didn't say Freddy Montero is Seattle's most dangerous player in the attacking third. His dribbling and deadly finishing has lead him to become one of the league's most pronounced strikers. He and Eddie Johnson will make a dynamic strike partnership moving forward so let's hope Sporting KC's center backs can hold the two off.
Predicted Lineup: GK: Jimmy Nielsen RB: Chance Myers CB"s: Aurelien Collin, Lawrence Olum LB: Seth Sinovic CM's: Julio Cesar, Graham Zusi, Roger Espinoza RW: Jacob Peterson ST: Teal Bunbury LW: CJ Sapong
Even though Kei is back from international duty with Sierra Leone I don't expect him to get the start. His legs will be tired and he'll still be recovering from jet lag. With Besler still out we'll basically see a carbon copy of last week's Starting 11.
Predicted Score: Sporting KC 1 - Seattle Sounders 1
If there's ever been a time to beat Seattle it would be now. Sporting KC are brimming with confidence after 2 wins in league play and have let in the least amount of goals in the entire league. Seattle on the other hand are coming off a horrible 4-1 defeat against the Montreal Impact and the result will either motivate Seattle or hurt them in their game against KC.
Although it would look as if a win for Sporting KC would make sense on paper, football isn't played on paper. Osvaldo Alonso will be returning to the Starting XI for Seattle following a suspension and will bring extra stability to the midfield. Not to mention, the Sounders are always going to be a tough team to play especially at home and with Olum starting at center back and Eddie Johnson and Freddie Montero up top for Seattle I see a 1-1 draw the most likely outcome.