Sporting KC falls to LAFC in U.S. Open Cup final. A former SKC player sealed the loss

Sporting Kansas City and LAFC had no separation through 90 minutes of Wednesday night’s U.S. Open Cup final.

But that changed in extra time, where there was a decisive winner — and Sporting KC was left with heartbreak.

LAFC flexed its muscles in extra time with goals from substitutes Omar Campos (102nd minute) and former Sporting star Kei Kamara (109th), sending SKC home without any silverware in a 3-1 defeat.

“I think we were in it,” Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes said after the mach. “I think for us to be able to go away from home and play the way we did, I give the guys a lot of credit. Very proud of the effort that the guys put into the game.

“It never feels good to lose. But I also think that the group did themselves proud in the way they performed.”

Sporting KC and LAFC played to a scoreless first half, with each team getting one terrific chance. Hugo Lloris stopped Alan Pulido’s volley from inside the box. And Tim Melia reacted in time to avoid being nutmegged by Olivier Giroud.

Giroud finally opened the scoring in the second half. Erik Thommy was stripped of the ball in midfield, despite his protests for a foul. Sporting was slow to react to a ball in behind to Mateusz Bogusz. Bogusz played a pass to Giroud for a tap-in, giving LAFC the lead in the 53rd minute.

There were questions as to whether Bogusz was offside, but the video assistant referee (VAR) did not send referee Armando Villarreal to the monitor.

“I know its offside, but there’s nothing I can do about it,” Vermes said. “As a coach at this club for 16 years now, we have suffered way too many of these types of situations.”

That said, Vermes had plenty to say about his club’s performance.

“I’m sad and disappointed for them, because I think they deserved more in the game,” Vermes added.

In responding to the goal, Sporting needed to create a special moment, and it got one from Thommy in the 60th minute. Johnny Russell played a pass over the top to Daniel Salloi, who laid the ball off into the path of Thommy. He hit the shot the first time and roofed it into the net past Lloris.

“If you’re 1-0 down, and you can come back with (an) equalizer really quick, a lot of credits for us,” Thommy said. “That shows our mentality.”

Tim Melia made a miraculous save in the 75th minute, blocking a shot from Bogusz from near point-blank range. And Russell had Sporting’s best chance toward the end of the match, but his right-footed shot was too tame to cause Lloris any issues.

Neither team found the winner in regulation, sending the U.S. Open Cup final to extra time.

From then on, it was a different game as LAFC flexed its depth. Campos, a defender, scored a well-placed goal to put LAFC ahead. Kamara popped up with a header on the other side of the extra-time halftime to seal the victory.

Both Campos and Kamara were second half substititutes. LAFC brought on players that could arguably push for a starting spot with Sporting KC, including former SKC midfielder Ilie Sanchez. A formation change complete with high quality players to make it happen ended up being the difference in extra time.

“We did our best to manage the game and kind of close out as many opportunities (that) we can and give ourselves the best opportunity to go forward,” Sporting’s Robert Castellanos said. “But it comes down to margins once you’re in the final. It’s just about those little margins of error. A couple players, they were able to get a better opportunity than us. And they seized it.”

Sporting KC, which has also been eliminated from MLS playoff contention, returns to action on Saturday against St. Louis City SC. The match from City Park kicks off at 7:40 p.m. Central.

Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.

This story was originally published September 26, 2024 at 12:47 AM.