The MLS season continues at the weekend as Sporting Kansas City welcome Seattle Sounders to Children's Mercy Park in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The hosts find themselves second from bottom in the Western Conference table whilst their visitors are third coming into the match.
Match preview
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Peter Vermes's Kansas have made a wretched start to the 2023 campaign as they are without a win and have collected only two points from their opening four games, courtesy of two 0-0 draws against Colorado Rapids and LA Galaxy respectively - the second-worst start to a season in Sporting's history after they lost the first four matches in 1999.
The Missouri outfit host Seattle off the back of a 2-1 loss away at Dallas last weekend as Daniel Salloi had given City the lead in the 11th minute but strikes from Alan Velasco and Jesus Ferreira condemned City to their second defeat of the campaign.
Vermes's team come into the match in 12th place in the Western Conference and they are already starting to lose ground on the playoff places. The four-time US Open Cup winners badly need to kickstart their season with their first victory this season against Seattle and three points could take them as high as eighth but a defeat may leave them bottom of the division.
Kansas' home form will give them hope of turning their season around as they are unbeaten in their last seven matches at Children's Mercy Park, winning six of those ties and conceding only one goal in the process.
Salloi represents their main attacking threat against Seattle as his seven goals and four assists in 2022 were club-high numbers, and the Hungarian forward will be hoping to score for the second game running and drag City up the table after notching their first strike of the league term last weekend.
Sporting will need to service him better in opponents' penalty boxes as 52.2% of their shots so far in 2023 have been taken from outside the box, which is the joint-most in the MLS alongside Minnesota United.
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Brian Schmetzer's Seattle have begun the new season excellently as seven points from their opening four games has them in third place coming into the weekend, although last time out they drew 0-0 at home to Los Angeles FC.
The Sounders have gone two games without a win so they will be hoping to get back on track against Kansas on Saturday and a victory could put them second in the division by the end of the weekend as they look to close the gap on the league leaders St Louis City.
The Washington outfit's away form is dire as they are on a sequence of 10 matches on the road without a victory stretching back to July 2022 - the longest winless streak in their MLS history. The Sounders have also lost the last five in a row away from home so they will need to cure their travel sickness if they are to improve on last term's 11th-placed finish.
Nicolas Lodeiro was the shining light for Seattle in the previous campaign as his seven goals and as many assists from midfield stood out in an otherwise underwhelming year. The Uruguayan will be hoping to get off the mark for 2023 against Kansas on Sunday.
Left winger Jordan Morris has already netted three times this season, including the opener in Seattle's last victory against Real Salt Lake on March 5, and he will be confident of continuing his goalscoring exploits against struggling opponents at the weekend as he aims to eclipse the 12 strikes he managed in 2016, particularly as he was on target in Seattle's last victory over Kansas, which was a 3-0 success in June 2022.
History in this fixture is mostly on the side of the hosts as Kansas have won five of the seven meetings with Seattle, including a 1-0 triumph at Children's Mercy Park last term, and only Portland have more wins over the Sounders than City with the visitors looking for a first win in Missouri since a 2-1 success in September 2021.
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Team News
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The hosts are still without Johnny Russell, Logan Ndenbe and Tim Melia against Seattle due to muscle injuries, so John Pulskamp will start in goal and Erik Thommy will captain Kansas in Russell's absence.
Defender Kortne Ford is still sidelined after rupturing his Achilles tendon so Robert Voloder will partner Andreu Fontas in the heart of the defence.
Willy Agada will lead the line for Vermes's side in place of Alan Pulido, who is out after having knee surgery, as is Gadi Kinda, who will be replaced in midfield by Roger Espinoza.
Brazilian forward Heber is missing for the visitors due to a muscle injury so Raul Ruidiaz will be the lone striker in a 4-1-4-1 system.
Seattle will also be without Alex Roldan and Nouhou Tolo this weekend as they are on international duty, so Fredy Montero and Xavier Arreaga will fill in for them in the full-back roles.
Joao Paulo will protect the back four whilst Morris and Cristian Roldan are charged with providing the attacking width for the Sounders as well as offering support for the full-backs.
Sporting Kansas City possible starting lineup:
Pulskamp; Zusi, Voloder, Fontas, Sweat; Walter, Espinoza, Thommy; Shelton, Agada, Salloi
Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:
Frei; Montero, Ragen, Gomez Andrade, Arreaga; Joao Paulo; Roldan, Lodeiro, Rusnak, Morris; Ruidiaz
We say: Sporting Kansas City 0-2 Seattle Sounders
Seattle will be confident of ending their winless run away from home against a Kansas side that have come out of the blocks in the new campaign very slowly. Lodeiro, Morris and Ruidiaz will cause the hosts problems as the visitors look to continue their fine start to the season.
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Top tip
Ollie Hawthorn
