Sporting KC player ratings and analysis: Resilience arrives as Sporting KC win 2-1 in Austin for the first time

Saturday’s 2-1 win over Austin FC provided several firsts for Sporting Kansas City in 2026. The club not only won back-to-back games for the first time this season, but Sporting Kansas City head coach Raphael Wicky played the same starting XI in back-to-back matches. Sporting came from behind to claim a win for the first time in 2026, showing a resilience that wasn’t there just a few games ago. The victory also marked the first time Sporting Kansas City won in Austin at Q2 Stadium.

With Sporting Kansas City now on 11 points from 13 games and on a bit of a winning streak, let’s look at FotMob ratings for each player and analyze the performance.

Goalkeeper

Stefan Cleveland – 6.6

Cleveland started his fourth match in a row against his former team. It’s no surprise that Sporting Kansas City picked up points in three of those four games. Cleveland made two saves, with both coming high down the middle. Austin’s lone goal came thanks to bad defending on the wing, which allowed a cross to reach an unmarked player. It was another strong match from the 31-year-old. As it stands, Cleveland has lost just one of four games.

Defenders

Right-back

Jake Davis – 6.8

Davis is now playing more regularly at right-back. Justin Reynolds is still coming back from a hamstring injury, so once fit, Davis may be used more from the bench. On Saturday, Davis put in a solid 64 minutes. He spent a lot of time in the attacking half, according to his heatmap. Davis made four defensive contributions.

Center-back

Ian James – 7.6

Could Ian James be the next player Sporting Kansas City develops and sells for a profit? He is showing improvement this season, and Wicky loves him and continues to select him when fit. James’ positioning was good, allowing him to make five defensive contributions. Four of those contributions were tackles.

Center-back

Wyatt Meyer – 7.2

Wicky also loves Wyatt Meyer, a player who earned a spot on Sporting Kansas City’s roster thanks to a successful preseason trial. Meyer had a strong game, although his positioning can be blamed for Austin’s goal. He did well at applying pressure when needed, forcing Austin’s attackers to offload the ball. His heatmap shows that he spent a lot of time around the halfway line and was more adventurous than James. Meyer had six defensive contributions, including two tackles, three clearances, and one interception.

Left-back

Jayden Reid – 7.3

Another player to earn a contract from a successful preseason trial, Jayden Reid has become first-choice at left-back. Reid was active up and down the left flank. He spent most of the match in the Austin half, as Sporting Kansas City put pressure on the home side throughout the game. Indeed, Austin’s goal was against the run of play. Reid completed 23 of 29 passes. Notably, he completed two of four crosses. Crosses have been something Sporting has struggled to complete all season.

Midfielders

Right midfielder

Capita – 6.7

Wicky stuck with the 4-4-2 formation that won the game against the LA Galaxy. Finally, he seems to have seen the light and is sticking with the 4-4-2. Capita scored against the Galaxy. Against Austin, he wasn’t as active. He had just 17 touches and was subbed at halftime, most likely due to the injury he picked up against the Galaxy. Capita was at fault for not putting pressure on the Austin player who crossed the ball into the box for the goal.

Center midfielder

Zorhan Bassong – 6.8

Zorhan Bassong’s presence in midfield has completely changed Sporting Kansas City. Bassong is the willing runner Sporting hasn’t had all season. While Jacob Bartlett has improved and Davis can play in midfield, they aren’t the constant runners capable of applying defensive pressure that Bassong is. The Canadian’s heatmap showed he covered a lot of ground, tallying 50 touches. He played just 64 minutes, likely to prevent any injury recurrence. Bassong created two chances, had two shots, made 11 passes into the final third, and completed one tackle and one interception.

Center midfielder

Lasse Berg Johnsen – 7.6

Lasse Berg Johnsen delivered another stellar performance. He has been Sporting Kansas City’s most consistent player in 2026. Johnsen had 84 touches, the most of any player. His forward passes cut through the Austin defense. He spent a lot of time on the right side of midfield, as Sporting found a weakness on that side of Austin’s 4-4-2. Johnsen created the most scoring chances with three. He also completed 85% of his passes, with 13 of those played into the final third. Johnsen didn’t shy away from the defensive side, either, making five tackles.

Left midfielder

Calvin Harris – 7.4

Calvin Harris is in the form of his life right now. After scoring and tallying two assists against the Galaxy in midweek, Harris was a danger throughout for Sporting. Finally, we are seeing Wicky play to Harris’ strengths. He now has the chance to get forward and stretch defenders. Harris took the most shots in the game with six. Three of those were on target, with Brad Stuver making several remarkable saves to keep his team in the game. Harris was signed for free in the offseason. He is showing what the rest of MLS missed out on.

Attackers

Taylor Calheira – 7.0

Taylor Calheira earned back-to-back starts and showed he can be a valuable member of the starting XI. He had the most touches in the Austin penalty area with six. He took just two shots, but Calheira’s success wasn’t about scoring or getting shots off. It was his presence in attack alongside Joveljic. It gave Sporting another attacking player to put pressure on the Austin defense.

Dejan Joveljic – 7.1

It’s always great to see Sporting Kansas City pick up points without Joveljic scoring. Why? Because for the team to improve, they have to find ways to score goals without the Serbian getting them. Joveljic had a quiet night overall. He had just one shot on target. His lack of touches and shots in games has been an issue for Sporting this season. However, this was the first time the rest of the Sporting Kansas City team was tallying shots to make up for the striker’s lack of involvement. Joveljic had just four touches in the opposition box. Austin’s defense was keyed on the Serbian, allowing the rest of the Sporting team to swarm forward.

Substitutes

Shapi – 7.5

Shapi Suleymanov delivered another solid performance off the bench after replacing Capita at halftime. He was more active than Capita, collecting 45 touches. Unlike Capita, Shapi’s heatmap showed him in different areas of the pitch. This was mostly due to Wicky’s change of personnel as Sporting chased the game in the second half. Why is Shapi playing so well currently? It is the first time Sporting Kansas City has had genuine competition for places.

Manu Garcia – 7.2

Manu Garcia has currently lost his place in the starting XI. Still, he came off the bench and scored the equalizer as Sporting Kansas City applied relentless pressure. Garcia completed 13 of 15 passes, had 19 touches, and made four passes into the final third.

Justin Reynolds – 6.9

Reynolds came on for Davis to play right-back for the final 26 minutes. Reynolds is a more attacking full-back and provides speed up the right flank. He created two chances, made three defensive contributions, and completed his only cross.

Stephen Afrifa – 7.0

Stephen Afrifa may be fourth-choice among Sporting’s wide players, but his performances continue to demand more minutes. Afrifa scored his first goal of the season, a brilliant curling finish that gave Sporting Kansas City the win. That decisive strike came from just three touches in 15 minutes on the pitch.

Ethan Bartlow – NR

Ethan Bartlow came on for James for the final seven minutes as Sporting Kansas City saw out the win. It is interesting that Wicky turned to Bartlow, a player signed after a successful preseason trial, rather than Diego Borges, who arrived earlier this season for what is a significant transfer fee by Sporting Kansas City standards. Bartlow helped close out one of the club’s most significant wins of the 2026 season.

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