A meeting of two basement dwellers, Atlanta United host Sporting Kansas City with both sides desperate to escape the Eastern and Western Conference cellar. Atlanta arrive on a two-match winning run, fueled by the creative trio of Almirón, Miranchuk and Picault, but they still…
Atlanta United FC vs Sporting Kansas City: MLS Basement Battle
Atlanta United FC host Sporting Kansas City on Sunday night in a Major League Soccer regular-season contest that pits the two lowest-placed teams in the overall standings against each other. Atlanta ended a seven-game winless run with a comeback victory over Red Bull New York last weekend, lifting themselves off the foot of the table, while Sporting KC arrive bottom of the league and mired in a 306-minute scoreless streak after a 2-0 defeat at Colorado in which they finished with nine men.
Team News and Injury Latest
Atlanta will be without midfielder Jay Fortune (hamstring) and option Mauricio Amaro (not due to injury), while Will Reilly is questionable with an ankle problem. That leaves head coach Gerardo Martino with limited central options but no suspensions to contend with.
Sporting Kansas City’s availability issues are heavier. Center-back Moises Mosquera and midfielder Kwaku Agyabeng are suspended after their red cards in Colorado, while designated player Andre Luiz is still awaiting his visa. Center-back Or Blorian is listed as questionable after exiting that match with a back injury, potentially forcing a makeshift backline for a side that has conceded 41 goals this season.
Atlanta United Form Guide
The Five Stripes’ 2-1 fightback against Red Bull New York provided a much-needed jolt. Tristan Muyumba scored a blistering equaliser — his third goal of the campaign — before a late winner completed the turnaround. “The players are still trying, still working hard,” Martino said afterward. “Not only did we need it, but I think the players deserved it for the work that we do.” Prior to that result, Atlanta had lost four straight and drawn one, leaving them with only one victory in their previous nine league outings.
Sporting Kansas City’s Struggles
Kansas City’s problems have deepened since a controversial 3-2 loss to St. Louis last month. They have now been shut out in three consecutive matches, with Dejan Joveljic –– who netted five goals in his last five against St. Louis –– failing to find the net in the run. The attack’s most dynamic element remains Capita Capemba, who has clocked the fastest top speed in MLS this season (23 mph), but without service from a patched-up midfield that threat has been blunted. Head coach Peter Vermes watched his side crumble after going down to nine men at Colorado, with Rapha Navarro sealing a 2-0 Rapids win late on.
Key Battle: Muyumba’s Burst Against a Thin Midfield
Tristan Muyumba’s recent burst of goals from deep gives Atlanta a route through a Kansas City midfield missing Agyabeng and Luiz. If Muyumba can break from the middle third as he did against the Red Bulls, the visitors’ reshuffled central unit may struggle to track his late runs. Atlanta’s wide men will also look to exploit the space behind full-backs pushing forward, an area Colorado targeted successfully.
What It Means
For all the late-summer gloom, the table offers a tangible prize: the winner will climb out of MLS’s basement. Atlanta can put distance between themselves and the bottom with a second straight win, while a Sporting KC victory would lift them off last place and snap a demoralising scoring drought. “We need to go step by step,” Muyumba cautioned. “We have another game on Wednesday, and then let’s think about it.” After this Sunday night clash, Atlanta travel to Minnesota United midweek; Sporting KC host St. Louis CITY SC.
