Match Preview: Sporting KC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps

About the Teams

Sporting Kansas City

Sporting Kansas City comes into this match off of a dominating 6-2 defeat over FC Dallas in the US Open Cup. In MLS play, they last beat the Colorado Rapids 2-0 in Kansas City. The team is still missing Graham Zusi and Marcel de Jong to national team duty. Seth Sinovic is still out with concussion symptoms sustained earlier this year, and Jalil Anibaba tore a muscle earlier this week in training. He's expected to miss 6 weeks of play, but Peter Vermes said that Chance Myers is ready to start at right back.

Vancouver Whitecaps

The Whitecaps are having a great season so far. Currently, the team sits in second place in the Western conference, and in third place for the Supporters Shield. The Whitecaps are coming off a 2-1 loss against the Colorado Rapids after a three game winning streak.

Who to Watch

Sporting Kansas City - Dom Dwyer

After scoring four goals in Kansas City's US Open Cup game, the forward could be on the start of a hot streak. One of the best things about his last performance was the diversity of the goals - two headers, one penalty kick and one run of play strike from the edge of the box. Look to see Krisztian Nemeth combine with Dwyer on scoring opportunities.

Vancouver Whitecaps - David Ousted

The goalkeeper has won MLS's Save of the Week award three weeks running. While the award is a fan vote, no one can deny how impressive Ousted has been this season. He'll have the tough task of standing up to Dom Dwyer, Krisztian Nemeth and Benny Feilhaber - who have a combined 17 goals this season.

Predictions

Lineups

Sporting KC: Melia; Dia, Ellis, Besler, Myers; Mustivar, Espinoza, Feilhaber, Nemeth, Dwyer, Peterson.

Vancouver Whitecaps: Ousted; Harvey, Parker, Watson, Beitashour; Koffie, Flores, Manneh, Rosales, Techera; Earnshaw.

Scoreline

Final Score: Vancouver Whitecaps 1-1 Sporting Kansas City