Sporting KC paid a big sum for Dejan Joveljic. He’s been worth it — and then some
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- Sporting KC paid $4 million for Dejan Joveljic, now deemed a bargain deal.
- Joveljic has scored 16 goals in MLS play, already tying for third-most in club history.
- Despite low service, Joveljic leads in penalty-area touches and goal pursuit.
Sporting Kansas City’s acquisition of Dejan Joveljic in the 2025 offseason came with a few question marks.
National media and pundits pondered why a team would sell off Alan Pulido a year after signing him to a large extension and not commit to William Agada as the starter, as the two had somewhat similar chance and shot-creation numbers in 2024.
But Sporting clearly knew what it was getting. And the $4 million fee paid to the Los Angeles Galaxy for Joveljic looks like an underpay now.
Joveljic’s two goals to bookend a 4-2 win over the Colorado Rapids brought his season total in MLS play to 16 goals. That ties him for the third-best mark in club history (Dom Dwyer in 2016; Daniel Salloi in 2021), with six games left to play.
Interim coach Kerry Zavagnin acknowledged that Joveljic has already exceeded the staff’s expectations.
“I don’t want to downplay (his success) because the expectations were extremely high,” Zavagnin said. “We brought him in for a reason, knowing that he would be a big piece of our puzzle going forward. I believe he’s exceeded those expectations.”
Joveljic turned 26 last month and is just entering the prime of his career. His goal in the first half was his 100th career goal at the club level in all competitions.
“It’s a lot,” Joveljic said of the milestone. “It’s nothing special, though. We go now for 200.”
That exchange this week offers a glimpse into his mindset. If he scores, he’s only worried about the next chance. If he has two goals and misses a chance at a third, he may not sleep over the miss.
Joveljic scored just two goals in the team’s first six games. Since then, he has scored 14 in his last 20.
“To be honest, after a few games here I thought this was gonna be a hard season for me,” Joveljic said. “I’m not gonna score a lot, I’m not receiving a lot of balls. Last season before the playoffs, I had scored 15 goals. Now I have 16 with six more games.”
He did acknowledge a difference, though. The Galaxy was on its way to winning the MLS Cup. In Kansas City, he’s fighting just for a shot at the playoffs.
“I feel bad for him for us not being in a playoff position,” Salloi said. “I feel like if we were there throughout the year, he would be winning the Golden Boot by now, and he still has a chance. He can still win it.”
Still, with Sporting KC in the middle of its transition, Zavagnin appreciates the way he goes about his business.
“It is (happening) in a team right now that could potentially be creating more chances than what we currently do,” Zavagnin said. “And despite the fact that we’re not, he still has a lot of goals.”
Joveljic has the fifth-most touches in the opposing penalty area this season yet has received the least amount of passes of those five players. The five in that conversation? Denis Bouanga (15 goals), Sam Surridge (20 goals), Anders Dreyer (14 goal), and Hany Mukhtar (14 goals).
“The way he is in and around the goal and is constantly pursuing the next play, the next action, in such an optimistic and intense way near the goal,” Zavagnin said, “he’s been outstanding.”
Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.