KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Six points off the Eastern Conference pace, four matches to go – and their last chance for a six-point swing against the conference leaders. This one has to mean more to Sporting Kansas City, right?
If that's what they're thinking ahead of Friday night's away match against D.C. United (8 pm ET, NBCSN, NBCSports.com, match preview), they'll never admit it.
“They're all big, especially for this time of the season,” center back and captain Matt Besler told MLSsoccer.com on Tuesday. “There's a big magnifying glass that is always used in these last couple of games. But in reality, every game of the season is just as important. It's just that now, everyone is paying attention, and there's a little bit of pressure.”
Sporting are on 42 points, tied for second in the East with surging New England, going into Friday night's match. Kansas City have won just once in their last six MLS matches, and they are 0-2 against United this season – but if they come away from RFK Stadium with all three points, the rest of October gets a lot more interesting.
Kansas City's biggest concern is not where other teams are in the standings, Besler said, but in regaining winning form for the playoffs and making a run at a second straight MLS Cup title.
“We're worried about ourselves,” he said. “We're worried about getting back on track and getting results. We're not worried about where we sit right now. We're not worried about if we win, where that's going to put us, how many points we need, all that other stuff. Everything will take care of itself if we take care of business and get results, so that's all we're worried about.”
Forward Dom Dwyer, who is one goal away from tying Preki's 1996 club record of 22 goals in all competitions, agreed with the captain's assessment.
- Catch more SKC news at SportingKC.com
“Obviously, it's a big game because it's later in the season,” he said. “But for me, that's the problem sometimes with the MLS season. Sometimes people don't realize how big a game 10 games ago was. It's just as big as this one. So this is just as big as any other game. Everyone just looks at it more now.”
For players who did not grow up in countries with postseason playoffs – England native Dwyer, for example – the eyes-on-the-playoffs approach can require a mental adjustment.
“The strange thing for me is that there's, I guess, more of a reward for winning MLS Cup than there is for winning the Supporters' Shield,” he said. “The Supporters' Shield is the league. That's everything. MLS Cup is kind of the playoff bit, after it. So it's different, but that's how it is, and we want to win MLS Cup.”
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
