FC Kansas City sets sights on defending champs

FC Kansas City is well aware of the world-class names that are coming to town for its matchup with National Women’s Soccer League defending champion Portland Thorns FC.

However, with Blues’ current winning streak, FC Kansas City is confident it can beat anyone in the league right now.

FC Kansas City has won five consecutive matches entering Saturday’s matchup with Portland. The two teams will play at 7 p.m. at UMKC’s Durwood Stadium, where FC Kansas City is undefeated with a 5-0-2 record.

“I am very happy with the performances of the team because we not just score goals and win, but we don’t get scored on easily,” FC Kansas City coach Vlatko Andonovski said. “I think it will be a good battle to see a good, disciplined defense against the group that Portland has with Alex Morgan, Christine Sinclair and Veronica Boquete. (They) can make something happen from nothing.”

Morgan was selected NWSL player of the week after scoring two goals and notching an assist against Washington last Saturday. She also netted a pair of goals for the U.S. Women’s National Team, while assisting Sinclair. More recently however, Portland lost to Sky Blue FC 2-1 on Wednesday night.

FC Kansas City, on the other hand, is coming off a 1-0 victory against the Chicago Red Stars and has outscored opponents 11-4 in the last seven matches and 8-1 in the five victories. The squad also has four shutouts in the last five matches.

This will be the second matchup of the season between FC Kansas City and Portland, with Portland winning the first game 3-1 on April 26. In that loss, Lauren Holiday scored the only goal for the Blues.

This story was originally published June 27, 2014 at 3:37 PM with the headline "FC Kansas City sets sights on defending champs."