Sporting KC earns playoff berth with 2-1 win over LA Galaxy in final regular-season match

Sporting Kansas City captain Matt Besler climbed a ladder perched in the northwest corner of Sporting Park on Sunday evening. An hour before his club played the LA Galaxy with its playoff future at stake, Besler grabbed a can of silver spray paint and inscribed the final two digits of “2015” on a blue wall of honor, the signature representing the club’s U.S. Open Cup championship last month.

The march toward the next trophy — an MLS Cup — is alive.

If only by a slim margin.

On the final day of the regular season, Sporting KC clinched its fifth consecutive playoff spot with a 2-1 victory against the LA Galaxy.

“It was the performance that we needed going into the playoffs,” Besler said. “Obviously, it got us in. ... But we really wanted to play well tonight and earn it.”

As the sixth and final playoff team in the Western Conference, Sporting KC will travel to face Portland at 9 p.m. Thursday in a one-game playoff for a spot in the conference semifinals.

But first: A sigh of relief. After squandering its first two opportunities to clinch its playoff spot, Sporting KC left its work to the regular-season finale against the defending MLS champions.

An unlikely substitute provided Sporting KC his typical spark.

Coach Peter Vermes left All-Star midfielder Benny Feilhaber out of the starting lineup Sunday, but Feilhaber came on in the second half and flicked a perfectly placed assist to Dom Dwyer for the game-winning goal in the 65th minute.

“Within myself, I was obviously disappointed. I always wanna play. I wanna help this team win. I wanna make the playoffs. I know how important this game was,” Feilhaber said, describing his reaction to opening the game on the bench. “No doubt about it — I was surprised and disappointed.”

Vermes said he didn’t think Feilhaber could play 90 minutes — citing his recent endurance marks after games and training — and preferred to have Feilhaber close out the game rather than start it. Either way, Feilhaber, a player who spent the first half of the season in discussion for the MVP race, made his impact.

His 15th assist of the season nullified the need for scoreboard watching. While Sporting KC entered the day in a “win and in” scenario, it could have also moved into the postseason with a San Jose or Seattle loss, among other possibilities. After San Jose grabbed an early 1-0 lead against FC Dallas and Seattle had a three-goal lead against Real Salt Lake, Sporting KC spent a 15-minute segment Sunday on the outside of the playoff picture.

But Sporting KC players said they didn’t receive any updates of the San Jose match, which FC Dallas ended up winning anyway.

“Why would we?” said defender Kevin Ellis, who scored the first goal Sunday. “If we took care of business, none of that mattered.”

Nevertheless, a day Major League Soccer branded “Decision Day” opened with drama outside of Sporting Park on Sunday.

Plenty inside the park, too. With the Galaxy motivated to earn a result to preserve their second-place standing — and, in turn, a first-round playoff bye — the teams traded aggressive stances moving forward.

Ellis gave Sporting KC a 1-0 advantage in the 38th minute, hammering home a rebound after LA Galaxy keeper Donovan Ricketts stoned an initial attempt from Chance Myers. LA Galaxy striker Robbie Keane needed only 8 minutes to tie the game.

That first-half action came with Feilhaber saddled on the bench. The club stayed even without him.

It pulled ahead with him.

Up next: Another trip to the postseason. Sporting KC was 1-0-2 against Portland this season, posting shutouts in all three games.

“We’re ready,” Besler said. “We’re feeling very good physically (and) mentally. Guys are coming back from injury, and they’re begging us to continue to play to give them a chance to get back on the field. We’re really excited to see what we can do.”

Sunday’s summary

SPORTING KANSAS CITY 2

GALAXY 1

LOS ANGELES: Donovan Ricketts, Omar Gonzalez, A.J. DeLaGarza (Alan Gordon, 81st), Leonardo, Robbie Rogers, Steven Gerrard, Juninho (Mika Vayrynen, 85th), Sebastian Lletget (Jose Villarreal, 79th), Robbie Keane, Giovani Dos Santos, Gyasi Zardes.

KANSAS CITY: Tim Melia, Saad Abdul-Salaam, Kevin Ellis, Matt Besler, Chance Myers, Graham Zusi, Paulo Nagamura, Soni Mustivar, Jordi Quintilla (Benny Feilhaber, 46th), Dom Dwyer, Krisztian Nemeth (Erik Palmer-Brown, 90th).

GOAL SCORING

Los Angeles: 2, Keane 20 (Dos Santos), 45th+. Kansas City: 1, Ellis 4, 38th minute. 3, Dwyer 12 (Feilhaber, Mustivar), 65th.

CAUTIONS

Los Angeles: DeLaGarza (unsporting behavior), Los Angeles, 24th.

Kansas City: Dwyer (argument), 17th; Myers (unsporting behavior), 58th; Nagamura (unsporting behavior), 66th; Feilhaber (time wasting), 90th+.

RED CARDS

Los Angeles: None.

Kansas City: None.

OFFICIALS

Referee: Mark Geiger.

Assistant referee: George Gansner.

Assistant referee: Kermit Quisenberry.

4th official: Allen Chapman.

Announced attendance: 19,422.

This story was originally published October 25, 2015 at 8:24 PM with the headline "Sporting KC earns playoff berth with 2-1 win over LA Galaxy in final regular-season match."