Inside KC soccer: Crucial transfer window for Sporting KC & World Cup hopeful
“Inside KC soccer” is The Star’s weekly soccer column from Daniel Sperry, who reports on both Sporting Kansas City and the KC Current. Read last week’s edition, here.
Lo LaBonta has been the face of the Kansas City Current since the team returned in 2022.
Her celebrations and soundbites go everywhere on social media, and her down-to-earth vibe connects easily with the fanbase. Top it off with her love and passion for Kansas City, and it’s a match made in heaven for anyone working to market a professional sports franchise.
After a tough loss in Los Angeles last Wednesday, the Current hosted the league leaders on Sunday — a team they lost to 2-0 earlier in the season. LaBonta’s performance as a veteran midfielder was nothing short of spectacular, and it wasn’t just her goal.
“When you talk about this team playing with that bite, grit, quality, resilience, energy, intensity, that was her today,” said head coach Chis Armas after the team’s 3-1 win over the Portland Thorns.
LaBonta completed 23 of 29 passes from the middle of the park, put in four tackles, made two interceptions and two ball recoveries, and won five of her eight duels with players, all while avoiding committing a single foul.
By the way, that was her third match in 10 days in which she played every single minute at age 33. No vet days, no breather subs late in a game. She leads vocally and backs it up by example.
Armas said LaBonta is “as real as they come” regarding her leadership.
“She says what’s on her mind, and she doesn’t let things slip in that locker room,” Armas said.
Armas said he often sees how long it takes for the players to “take over” and police the values and details of a club, as well as the match gameplans. Players like her, he added, make it easy.
“It’s easy for everyone to see what she does out there because she’s a great player and she drives this ship,” Armas said. “But when the cameras are off and no one is watching, on the inside, she really has gained the respect of everyone on that team. And she sets the standard by the way she shows up every day and pushes the standards.”
Sporting ends first half of season with positive performance
Sporting Kansas City’s rough first stretch of the season finally closed with three straight excellent performances. Unfortunately for MLS club, it didn’t end with three straight results.
Sporting lost to Red Bull New York on Saturday 2-1.
The stat sheet tells the story of what fans watched with their eyes. Sporting dominated possession (61%) and created far more chances than New York. More than half of Sporting’s 15 shots hit the target for an xG of 2.17.
In short, SKC looked much more like the team that had just won two straight than it did the team that didn’t win over eight straight matches in all competitions earlier this year. It also looked closer to the club’s performances seen in preseason.
“If we played the first 11 games like this, we would be in a much better position,” said Sporting captain Dejan Joveljic.
That much is true. Sporting ended the pre-World Cup stretch in last place in the Western Conference, giving up 36 goals in 14 games.
The team will break for three weeks before joining back for a mini five-week preseason.
That preseason should help further integrate players like Lasse Berg Johnsen, Capita, and Diego Borges, who arrived late and didn’t join the team until well after the season started. It also provides a chance for new additions to join the group and get up to speed.
“I hope that we are gonna bring in five additional pieces so they can be ready for the St. Louis (match),” said Joveljic. “That’s what’s important. And then they need to spend some time with us. And hopefully, our club and everyone in the front office, they’ll give their best to bring this club where it belongs.”
Crucial transfer window for Sporting KC
With most of the soccer world heading into a major player-movement period during and after the FIFA World Cup, Sporting KC should be on the prowl for added quality.
David Lee, Sporting’s president of soccer operations and general manager, has not spoken with the media since the team’s media day in late February. But according to multiple sources, Lee revealed during a recent meet-and-greet with season-ticket holders that his goal is to acquire four to seven starting-caliber players in the upcoming transfer window.
The team is already bringing in defender Or Blorian, and the indications are that his quoted number does not include Blorian.
If Sporting wants to vault itself even close to the playoff line, it’s going to take those signings actually coming to fruition, and a continuation of the performances the team put together over the last three games.
Surprisingly, Sporting is one point and a win better off through 14 games than the 2023 Sporting KC team that went winless through its first 10 matches. Sporting had 10 points from its first 14 games that season. To reach 44 points and 8th place in the Western Conference standings, Sporting went 10-6-4.
If Sporting did the same this year, it’d be sitting on 45 points, with a fair chance to get into the postseason. To go on a run like that, Sporting KC needs much more quality added to the roster.
The transfer window opens July 13 and closes Sept 2.
Could Sporting be represented at 2026 FIFA World Cup?
Sporting KC hasn’t had a representative from its roster at the FIFA World Cup since 2014, when Matt Besler (USA), Graham Zusi (USA) and Roger Espinoza (Honduras) all played. There is a chance of representation in 2026.
Zorhan Bassong was called into Canada’s 32-man training camp roster in Charlotte, North Carolina. Six players will be cut when Canada announces its final roster on May 29.
“I’m not trying to cause myself too much stress about it,” Bassong said. “I know what I can do. The coach knows what I can do. So it will just be his decision to make the final roster. Whatever happens, I’ll support Canada. Hopefully, we can do a little something during that competition.”
Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.