Sporting Kansas City is off to their worst start since they changed their name from the Kansas City Wizards in 2011. In every other season, they have managed to get at least four points from the opening three games.  For some, this might be cause for alarm, but for Peter Vermes, its part of the course.

With eight new players on the senior roster, there are bound to be some growing pains.  Peter Vermes is known for running an intense high press that requires a lot of conditioning.  The style and demands are more than what many players are used to and can cause a player to struggle early.  Claudio Bieler fell out of favor under Coach Vermes for an apparent lack of fitness and effort.  Dom Dwyer's emergence and the number one goal scorer might have helped with that too. Just before the start of the season, Jorge Claros was let go from the club for a lack of fitness.  Even if the fitness is there, playing Vermes' style in an MLS game is a whole other level. 

Adding to the new player struggles is the loss of eleven players that got significant minutes in 2014, including several starters. Toni Dovale, Lawrence Olum, Aurelien Collin, C.J. Sapong, Sal Zizzo, Igor Juliao, and Bieler all started games for Vermes in 2014, but did not return for 2015.

But Peter Vermes is not worried. He is actually "very excited about what [he has] seen thus far with the group and each game [they] are progressing in a positive manner." Although they didn't get the win on Saturday against Portland, Vermes "the guys really stuck the way [the team] wanted to play" and "made some strides in some areas [they] had been talking about quite extensively over [the] past week."  With all the new faces in the locker room and the adjusting, it sounds like the team is coming together and progressing. 

While the slow start may not be ideal, the growth of young players is.  No one has been more surprising this season than Amadou Dia, who has started at right back twice already.  The rookie has all the skills to be an elite player in MLS and has shown he is ready to compete right way. 

The highlight of the Portland game has to be the emergence of Jimmy Medranda.  In the post-match press conference, Vermes had nothing but positives to say,”At times he was very good on the ball, his service was really good, and you saw that little brilliance he had ... when he dribbled through everybody and laid the one ball off..." While his physicality may not be there yet, the potential certainly is.

Jalil Anibaba is yet another newcomer to get an early start; this time for Dia. Peter Vermes described his performance as "excellent" despite the lack of offense from his position.  Running him with the offense was not part of the plan though.  Vermes' view of Portland is that "they like to really break out with four guys all the time" so the objective was "to keep him home" where he did a great job.  Anibaba "was great in his individual duels, he made some very good decisions of when it was time to whack it out and not try to play."  He also adds another weapon on set pieces that is missing with the departures of Collin and Olum.

Marcel de Jong joined Sporting late in the preseason and sat out the first game to get acclimated to the surroundings, but by game two, he had displaced Seth Sinovic and may have sealed his spot in the starting eleven.  The Canadian international is a bit bigger and definitely more physical than Sinovic while offering nearly the same service.  Both options at left back are solid and the depth was necessary, but it's the competition for the spot that is the biggest addition he brings to the team.

Bernardo Anor is probably the biggest signing from inside MLS for Sporting this season.  The Venezuelan winger is great fit for the system coming out of Columbus.  He, like many other MLS players, is one that appeared to need a change of scenery to flourish, and Vermes is willing to give him the chance.  He started the opening game of the season and was a substitute in the other two games.  After the Portland game, coach Vermes praised him as "lift[ing] the game up a little bit, he was pretty dangerous going forward."  In an offense that thrives on creating chances, Bernardo is a great fit and fills a role that has been missing for several seasons.  Vermes has not had true wingers in his arsenal and has used midfielders and forwards to fill the role.

When asked about not finishing chances being a concern, Vermes was quick to respond "No, not at all, not for me." As a coach he is "more concerned when you don't make chance" s and he "has a lot of confidence in [his] team in scoring goals." Clearly goals are a requirement of winning, but Vermes seems to be putting the emphasis on the play and not on the results. 

The foundation of the team is there and the new players appear to be adjusting.  Sporting may be setting up for another "worst to first" run like they had in 2011 or they may be just a single win away from the confidence they need to climb the rankings.  However you look at it, the last place team in the Western Conference does not expect to stay there for long and has the squad to earn the points needed.

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About the author
Blayne Riffle
I am a KC native, living away from my true home. I do IT for a living. But I have always been an avid soccer fan and follow many other sports. Obviously there is some KC bias.