Minnesota United at Sporting Kansas City: Keys to the match, projected starting XI and a prediction

Minnesota United at Sporting Kansas City

When: 7:15 p.m. Saturday
Where: Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, Kan.
Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+
Radio: KSTP-AM, 1500
Weather: 46 degrees, cloudy, 12 mph south wind
Betting line: Kansas City plus-145; draw plus-250; MNUFC plus-170

Form: United (2-1-0) has won two straight, with victories over CF Montreal and San Jose Earthquakes. Kansas City (0-3-0) has fallen to San Jose, D.C. and Austin.

Stat: The Loons are riding a 192-minute shutout streak since late in the 1-0 loss to LAFC in the season opener on Feb. 22. Dating to last September’s 2-0 win over Sporting, MNUFC has seven shutouts in 11 games.

Recent matchups: K.C. owned the “nicest rivalry in sports” until Loons head coach Eric Ramsay took over last season. MNUFC won all three games in 2024 by a combined 7-2 scoreline.

Absences: Joseph Rosales (quad) and Kipp Keller (hamstring) are out. Kelvin Yeboah (hip) trained on Friday but appears questionable.

Projected XI: In a 5-3-2 formation, FW Sang Bin Jeong, FW Tani Oluwaseyi; MF Robin Lod, MF Hassani Dotson, MF Wil Trapp; LWB Anthony Markanich, CB Morris Duggan, CB Michael Boxall, CB Jefferson Diaz, RWB Bongi Hlongwane; GK Dayne St. Clair.

News: Loons will have five players away for international duty next week: Oluwaseyi and St. Clair (Canada), Boxall (New Zealand), Robin Lod (Finland) and Carlos Harvey (Panama). Rosales’s injury kept him from being called up by Honduras.

Speculation: With Oluwaseyi gone next week, the Loons will need Yeboah next week against L.A. Galaxy. This might be a chance to start Jeong up top and bring Yeboah off the bench. Ramsay has been rotating more this season, with an eye toward next week.

Scouting report: Sporting spent $4 million on forward Dejan Joveljic in the first MLS cash-for-player trade in MLS history. He had two goals and an assist in Galaxy’s 6-2 blowout of Minnesota in the Western Conference semifinal. He is a danger man with one goal so far this season.

Prediction: It’s hard to bet against the Loons’ defense this season. The only goal they allowed was a stunning, outside-the-box strike from Jeremy Ebobisse, which had an expected goals of 0.07. KC’s xG has been under 0.6 in two of three matches. MNUFC wins 1-0.

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Minnesota United at Sporting Kansas City: Keys to the match, projected starting XI and a prediction

Minnesota United at Sporting Kansas City

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