What does Sporting KC have left to play for at this point in a woebegone MLS season?

For Sporting Kansas City, the aftermath of Wednesday night’s penalty-kicks loss at Sacramento in the semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was devastating — both to the players in blue and the supporters who’d cheered them through a deep run in the tournament.

Immediately following the loss, even captain Johnny Russell was left searching for the right words to put the pain of the moment in proper perspective.

Defeats like that can sting for a while, no doubt. But Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes on Friday said that the time for mourning is over.

“We have a game at home, and we all have a responsibility to go out and perform,” Vermes said on the eve of his team’s resumption of Major League Soccer competition on Saturday evening at home against Austin. “That’s what everybody has to do. Not because they have to, but because that’s what we do.”

They’ve definitely had plenty of experience in dealing with heartache over the past year. Sporting KC had a clear path to hosting the MLS Cup in last season’s playoffs, but rival Real Salt Lake dashed that possibility with a last-second victory.

Sporting KC had time to get over that loss before its next match, as was also the case in both 2018 and 2020. The nature of how the U.S. Open Cup fits into the MLS schedule, however, leaves little time for such reflection.

“I’ve been doing this a long time, and I played for a long time,” Vermes said. “I have so many situations where I’ve been in as a player or coach where you have letdowns.

“Most coaches would say they’ve had more letdowns than they’ve had great moments. You’re probably prepared for a lot of those as players as well. That’s why when you have a championship it’s a special moment. It’s one you never forget.”

Championship hopes are a far-off thing for this Sporting KC squad at the moment. They’re dead-last in the Western Conference, and despite accumulating more points than DC United, Sporting brings up the rear in points per game — which over a 34-game season would “earn” the wooden spoon.

While Sporting isn’t entirely out of the postseason picture yet, Vermes and company desperately need to start earning points. It would take nothing short of a miraculous turnaround in form.

Since 2016, the average point total required to qualify for the MLS postseason is 47. For Sporting to reach that threshold, the club would need to win nine of its remaining 11 games. In other words, Sporting KC would need to be near-perfect.

Things won’t come easily Saturday evening at Children’s Mercy Park. Sporting KC and Austin seem to have flipped places in the table this season, with the team from Texas guided by a man whose name is in the Sporting Hall of Legends.

Josh Wolff has his side flying high in just its second season in MLS. Austin is currently second in the west and jockeying hard with LAFC, a 2-0 victor over Sporting KC last weekend, for conference supremacy.

Vermes said Austin and LAFC play a similar style, too.

“You have to be organized,” Vermes said. “You have to be good with the ball, and you also have to finish your chances. When a goal is scored, the game changes for both teams.”

This story was originally published July 29, 2022 at 3:56 PM with the headline "What does Sporting KC have left to play for at this point in a woebegone MLS season?."