New York Red Bulls forward Tom Barlow (74) and Sporting Kansas City defender Andreu Fontàs (3) battle for a header during their match played on Sunday July 3, 2022 at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.
Special to the Star
Despite playing with a man advantage down the stretch, Sporting Kansas City fell 1-0 to the New York Red Bulls on Sunday evening at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.
Aaron Long’s 53rd-minute header off a short corner routine was the difference in a wild and physical affair.
Lightning nearby caused a nearly hour-long weather delay in the 28th minute. But Sporting KC, especially captain Johnny Russell, had multiple opportunities once play resumed.
Sporting KC was up a man from the 70th minute on after Dylan Nealis was sent off for handling the ball and denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. The referee initially gave Nealis a yellow card, but it was upgraded to a straight red after video review.
But Sporting KC just could not crack the Red Bulls’ back line, even through seven minutes of stoppage time.
With the loss, Sporting KC (4-4-12) falls back to last place in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference. The team travels north of the border next weekend to play CF Montreal.
It was the third straight home loss for Sporting KC.
This story will be updated.
This story was originally published July 3, 2022 9:49 PM.
