KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake don't like each other, and they've never been shy about saying it and showing it.
In the past, there was a notable name-calling exchange between Sporting playmaker Benny Feilhaber and RSL captain Kyle Beckerman, but is the two clubs' rivalry – fueled by conflict rather than proximity – still as intense as it used to be?
One man who was there at the beginning isn't so sure.
“That's a good question,” Sporting midfielder Roger Espinoza told MLSsoccer.com earlier this week, ahead of the two sides' meeting at Rio Tinto Stadium on Sunday (5 pm ET; MLS LIVE). “The league is so big on that, and we've played a lot of games against Salt Lake this year and last year. I don't know if it's a rivalry, but it is a very important game that you don't want to lose. You always want to win against them.”
Flash Points Galore
The bad blood first flowed in the 2011 preseason, when Espinoza brought down Javi Morales from behind during an exhibition match in Arizona, causing a brawl that eventually led to RSL coach Jason Kreis, now with Orlando City SC, pulling his squad from the pitch.
While it had its roots in 2011, the rivalry didn't really flower until the 2013 season. When it did, it bloomed big.
On July 20, at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, Sporting's Ike Opara scored seven minutes into second-half stoppage time to deliver a 2-1 victory. Fans threw trash and raged that the match never should have gone on that long – but RSL gave as good as they got.
Left back Chris Wingert was sent off in the 66th minute – but in the aftermath, the MLS Disciplinary Committee found that he should have been given a straight red for flattening then-SKC striker Kei Kamara less than a minute into the match.
Six days later, Garth Lagerwey – then RSL's general manager – had some more shots to fire. Lagerwey said his club tried to play a possession-oriented game, while Sporting just wanted to “kick people” and press for turnovers.
That set up the events of a frigid December night, when Sporting prevailed in a 10-round shootout to win their second MLS Cup after the two sides deadlocked 1-1 through regulation and extra time.
Sporting defender Aurelien Collin delivered the tying goal in regulation and the decisive spot kick, earning MLS Cup MVP honors – but Salt Lake's fans aren't the only ones who believe Collin should have gotten a second yellow well before the match went to extra time.
State of the Rivalry
Times change, though, and so do rosters and front offices.
Beckerman and Morales are still around, as are Feilhaber and Sporting manager Peter Vermes – architect of that high-pressing 4-3-3 system Lagerwey disparaged so pointedly. Espinoza and Wingert both left their respective clubs for a while, but have since returned.
But Collin has moved on, first to Orlando City and then to the New York Red Bulls. Kamara is four clubs down the road, and now with the New England Revolution. Kreis is in central Florida, on his second MLS coaching job since leaving RSL after that 2013 MLS Cup defeat, and Lagerwey is now the Seattle Sounders' GM and team president.
“Different players have come through the system, and it's kind of calmed down a little bit,” Espinoza said. “Back then, you were more worried about going at it. Now you've got to get the points. You've got to win.
“But it's still good games. All the games we've played this year have been pretty clean. It's a good thing that there's a rivalry there.”
As Espinoza noted, though, Sunday's match is all about the points. RSL can clinch a Western Conference postseason spot outright with a victory, while sixth-place Sporting could book a trip to the Audi 2016 MLS Cup Playoffs with a win and a loss/draw by the Portland Timbers against Supporters' Shield leaders Colorado on Sunday.
But with the playoffs on the line and the two clubs' history, Sporting winger Jacob Peterson wouldn't be surprised to see things get a little heated.
“It's no secret that we've had some battles in the past, and I don't see why this weekend would be any different,” Peterson told MLSsoccer.com. “I think just the time of the year that we're in, there's going to be more emotion. It's going to be a playoff game.
“Both teams know that this is a very important game, and if we don't bring the intensity, we know they will, and we'll get run off the field. So we have to match that, and hopefully we can out-soccer them after that.”
