Five days after putting three past Minnesota United FC in a 3-1 home win, Seattle Sounders have little time to rest before Sporting Kansas City arrive at Lumen Field. The Sounders sit ninth in the Western Conference on 35 points, right on the playoff cutline with the top nine advancing. Sporting KC, meanwhile, are bottom of the West on 21 points after a 0-2 loss at Houston Dynamo, making this a meeting between a side trying to cement its postseason place and one that has had a difficult season by any measure. Something has to give at Lumen Field.
What’s at stake
Seattle sit ninth in the Western Conference, occupying the last automatic playoff berth with 35 points from 26 matches. The teams directly below them, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake and San Diego, are all on 32 points, meaning a slip from the Sounders could quickly put that postseason spot in jeopardy. With nine spots available in the conference, every point counts for Brian Schmetzer’s side as they try to open up some breathing room above the cutline.
For Seattle, three points here would move them to 38 and create a six-point gap over the chasing pack, giving them real daylight in the standings. For Sporting Kansas City, already 14 points adrift of the ninth-place Sounders on 21 points, the Western Conference playoff picture is not a live conversation. What Raphael Wicky’s team will be looking for is a performance that hints at better times, having picked up just six wins from their 26 matches this season.
How they got here
Seattle have gone WDDD before their win over Minnesota, meaning back-to-back victories heading into this fixture. They drew 1-1 at the LA Galaxy, 3-3 at Colorado Rapids, then beat Real Salt Lake 2-0 at home before the Minnesota result. It is a run that has stabilized their season after a period of inconsistency, and returning to home comforts at Lumen Field has been a key part of that upturn. Sporting KC’s last five reads WLWLL, with wins over Houston and LAFC bookending losses to Philadelphia Union, FC Dallas and Vancouver Whitecaps. The 0-3 home defeat to Vancouver and a 3-4 loss at Dallas paint a picture of a side that can produce results but concedes too freely, with 63 goals against from 26 matches the worst defensive record in the Western Conference.
Seattle are ninth on 35 points, three ahead of Portland, Real Salt Lake and San Diego who are level on 32. Sporting Kansas City are last in the Western Conference on 21 points, 14 behind the Sounders and 11 behind 14th-placed Minnesota United. Vancouver Whitecaps lead the West on 50 points, with FC Dallas second on 47 and San Jose Earthquakes third on 45.
Key battle to watch
The central question is whether Sporting KC’s attack can find a way through a Seattle backline that has been tightening up in recent weeks. Kansas City have scored 31 goals this season but leaked 63, suggesting their defensive shape remains loose and vulnerable to a Sounders side that scored seven goals across their last two home matches. Andres Rusnak and Pablo Arriola will be looking to exploit space on the break, and if the visitors continue the open style that has cost them points all season, Seattle’s front line should have opportunities to add to the two wins they have just put together.
Key Stats
Match Context
Standings
Head To Head
Our Prediction
Seattle’s momentum coming off back-to-back wins and the quality of their attack at home makes them the clear favorites here. Sporting KC have shown they can score, as their 3-1 win over LAFC last month demonstrated, but their defensive numbers on the road give Seattle plenty of reason for optimism. Expect the Sounders to control the match and extend their unbeaten home run, widening the gap on the teams crowding them from below.
Seattle Sounders
Sporting Kansas City