Any doubts about just which team is the very best in Major League Soccer at the moment were put to rest on Saturday night as Sporting Kansas City delivered their latest masterpiece performance.
Sporting KC thoroughly outplayed Real Salt Lake in a match-up of the league's best teams, with Aurelien Collin providing the difference with a header goal that gave Kansas City a 1-0 victory at Livetsrong Sporting Park.
The 1-0 scoreline doesn't do justice to the way Sporting KC controlled the match. They flustered Real Salt Lake's normally composed midfield and the Sporting defense continued their stingy ways, holding the normally dangerous RSL attack to just one shot on goal, the first shot on goal allowed by Sporting KC in three matches.
Real Salt Lake was without injured star midfielder Javier Morales and fellow midfield veteran Ned Grabavoy, but those absences do nothing to take away from the way Sporting KC controlled the match. RSL finished the match with the edge in possession stats, but only after Sporting closed out the match content to let Real Salt Lake knock the ball around far from the attacking third.
The victory improved Sporting KC to a league-best 6-0, which now gives the team an eight-point lead atop the Eastern Conference. The loss dropped West-leading Real Salt Lake to two points ahead of San Jose, with the Earthquakes holding a game in hand.
Here are the match highlights:
What did you think of the match? Starting to believe Sporting KC is a championship-caliber side? Still not convinced because RSL was missing Morales and Grabavoy? Starting to think about booking some hotel rooms in Kansas City for MLS Cup?
Share your thoughts below.