Sporting KC opens season with 1-0 road victory over Seattle Sounders FC

The cornerstone of the offseason plan was the addition of depth. Sporting Kansas City coach Peter Vermes called it a warranted response to late-season slumps engineered by injuries.

Absent three starters on MLS opening day, Sporting KC didn’t waste time in testing its strategy of the winter months.
So far, so good.

Sporting opened the season Sunday night with a 1-0 road victory over Seattle Sounders FC, using a long-distance strike from central defender Nuno André Coelho in his MLS debut.

Coelho, a veteran of European leagues brought in this offseason to provide depth in the center of the defense, instead supplied the offense. He skirted a low roller under the arms of Seattle goalkeeper Stefan Frei, who appeared to misjudge the bounce of the shot in the 73rd minute. That stood as the only tally to provide Sporting KC a victory that was aided by a one-man advantage.

Seattle defender Oniel Fisher was ejected in the 42nd minute for a two-footed studs-up challenge on Connor Hallisey, allowing Sporting nearly 50 minutes of a one-man advantage.

Sporting won in Seattle for the first time since 2009. The latest meeting — between two clubs whose season ended in penalty kicks in last year’s postseason — featured a highly-anticipated MLS debut for Seattle forward Jordan Morris, who had a good look toward goal in the opening minutes but skied the shot.

The Seattle shots that reached target produced the same result. Sporting keeper Tim Melia, the club’s breakout player last season, supplied a shutout in his first MLS opening-day start.

Sporting played without midfielder Benny Feilhaber, offseason trade acquisition Brad Davis and defender Seth Sinovic, all of whom sat with minor injuries. That shoved second-year fullback Amadou Dia, midfielder Soni Mustivar and Hallisey into the starting lineup.

Defender Ike Opara also didn’t travel. Opara has returned this season from an Achilles’ injury that was viewed as a risk to hold up on Seattle’s turf. Instead, Coelho started alongside Matt Besler in the center of the defense.

The duo held up.
Melia helped the cause.

Seattle nearly opened the scoring in the 15th minute, when Clint Dempsey lined up a free kick from 20 yards out. Goalkeeper Tim Melia got a finger on the shot to tip it over the bar, then required help from the same crossbar on the ensuing corner kick. Chad Marshall’s header clicked off the metal in one of five set plays from the corner in the opening 18 minutes.

Seattle midfielder Andreas Ivanschitz tested Melia shortly after halftime from distance, and the goalkeeper made a sprawling save that nicked the crossbar.

After playing on its heels for the initial 20 minutes, Sporting settled in and created a couple of prime chances, which fell at the feet of Hallisey.

Even so, it remained scoreless through halftime.


Link : http://www.kansascity.com/sports/mls/sporting-kc/article64475482.html