Football Season Guide

Sporting Kansas City's 2022 could be described as a season of two halves. The club suffered huge setbacks before a ball was even kicked when two key players in striker Alan Pulido and midfielder Gadi Kinda were both ruled out with serious knee injures. Neither ended up playing a single minute of the campaign. The team struggled to deal with the absences and spent a good portion of the season rock bottom of the Western Conference. The turning point came in August when new signings Erik Thommy and Willy Agada arrived. Both breathed new life into a previously lifeless squad. Agada bagged 8 goals and 2 assists in just 12 MLS appearances so he will provide real competition for the returning Pulido up front. Thommy could play alongside Kinda in a new-look midfield. Peter Vermes will be looking forward to having the duo for an entire season this time around. Their arrivals didn't come quickly enough to get Sporting KC into the play-offs last year, despite a very strong run-in. There hasn't been much activity in the transfer market since, both in terms of arrivals and departures so the squad seems pretty settled. Pulido and Kinda will feel like new signings when they return to full fitness. Nemanja Radoja arrives with La Liga experience and will likely start as the defensive midfielder, with Uri Rosell having left the club. Tim Leibold is the only other notable signing and will challenge for the left-back spot. Further reinforcements are likely needed in defence after the departure of Nicolas Isimat-Mirin. The main threat of the team will again come from the wide areas in Vermes 4-3-3 system, with captain Johnny Russell and Daniel Salloi usually the most productive players.