Sporting KC seeks to get back on track Saturday, but LAFC has only gotten stronger

Since beating Sporting Kansas City on Easter Sunday in Southern California, the black and gold of LAFC has continued to tear up Major League Soccer. They’ve only gotten better since then, adding global soccer stars Gareth Bale and Giorgio Chiellini.

Sporting KC, meanwhile, continues its fight to escape the bottom of the standings.

LAFC added Bale and Chiellini to an already stout crop of players that included Carlos Vela and former Sporting KC midfielder Ilie Sanchez, and now poses an even more significant challenge to Sporting KC when the two meet at 7:30 Saturday night at Children’s Mercy Park.

Bale and Chiellini might be in the latter stages of their respectively illustrious careers, but each still brings a level of star power and intrigue that Kansas City hasn’t really experienced since Zlatan Ibrahimovic visited with the L.A. Galaxy in 2018 and 2019.

“It’s always good to play (against) players that have been at their heights,” said Sporting KC midfielder Uri Rosell. “On the other hand, these types of players, I feel like they give you a lot but sometimes don’t want to defend as much as the rest. So it will be a good opportunity for us to exploit that, too.”

LAFC’s approach to building a roster mixes financial might with marquee attractions. It’s happened in other large markets, too, such as Miami, Toronto and Atlanta. Philadelphia and Dallas are good examples of another predominant trend: building entirely through the development of players in one’s own youth academy.

Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes doesn’t subscribe entirely to either philosophy.

“I’m not sure I have this grandiose plan, where you get this idea we’re a total youth movement, or we’re just going after big names,” Vermes said. “If you’re asking me if I would subscribe to either one of those, I’d say no. We’re trying to build a team each year that can compete.”

In the case of LAFC, its market plays favorably into its strategy. Los Angeles, with all of its glitz and glamour, is simply an attractive destination for a global star like Bale. Financial constraints also limit Sporting’s ability to spend so freely — KC ownership would likely have to pay extra to lure such players here.

Sporting has opted to build a roster that’s somewhere in the middle of these two approaches, with the intent of competing for a playoff berth every season. Sporting’s expenditures toward transfer fees and salaries have brought in some prime players they’ve surrounded with young up-and-comers.

Newcomers Willy Agada and Erik Thommy officially arrived in Kansas City this week, and they’re fairly emblematic of Vermes’ approach. There’s hope that their arrival can help get Sporting back on track: After all, even with as trying of a season that KC has had, Sporting is still just seven points off the playoff cutline.

The question of how soon Agada and Thommy will be able to contribute looms large at the moment. Agada trained with his new teammates all week, but Thommy didn’t get into training until Wednesday because he was undergoing his physical during Tuesday’s session.

Regardless, Vermes indicated that both have shown a good level of fitness. Agada trained on his own before he arrived, while Thommy was allowed to train with his former club (Stuttgart) during their preseason before departing his native Germany for Kansas City.

“What that means minutes-wise, it’s hard to tell at this point,” Vermes said. “I think some of it is also that they need to understand what it is that we’re trying to do on the field, especially in their position, and what their role and responsibility would be.”