World News – USA – Minnesota United to close Sporting Kansas City and advance to the MLS Western Conference final

Minnesota United reached in their first four MLS seasons with the 3-0 win on Thursday at Sporting Kansas the first final of the Western Conference city, in which it had never won.

Blooming star Emanuel Reynoso assisted on all three goals, as well as the team’s home win in the first round against Colorado. He now has 10 assists in his last five games.

Seasoned midfielder Kevin Molino scored the first two goals of the game after the Loons weathered a 15-minute opening in which they could easily have left a goal or more behind.

He has now scored 13 goals in his career, including two in each of the last three games that stemmed from the regular season final against FC Dallas.

The Loons will now play defending MLS Cup champions Sounders on Monday night in Seattle on just three full days of rest, while the home team has not played since Tuesday’s western semi-final win against FC Dallas.

They are now two wins away from a championship after extending their unbeaten club streak to 10 games at 6-0-4

By Thursday, the Loons had failed to win their first four MLS seasons on six previous visits to Kansas City, losing 15-1 overall.

Now the Loons have won their regular season finale against FC Dallas and their first two playoff games with a combined result of 9-0, all 3-0.

As of Thursday, Sporting Kansas City had only lost two home games since Children’s Mercy Park opened in 2011. It lost in a conference final to Houston in the same year and in another conference final to Portland, this one in 2018.

Molino and / or Reynoso scored all three goals in the first half, two of them from Molino himself and one a header from defender Bakaye Dibassy, ​​who finished a corner.

Reynoso has three templates in each of his first two MLS playoff games. Each game has tied an MLS Cup playoff record for assists in a game.

It was, of course, Reynoso who did the creation with another precise, perfectly timed pass with the left foot forward that Molino did to the full on the left. He sent a low, pliable shot from the 18-yard area that escaped SKC goalkeeper Tim Melia, who was the only MLS keeper in his team’s playoff opener against San Jose to ever block all three shots in a penalty shootout.

Molino followed his first goal with his second and twelfth goals of the season, including the disjointed regular season and MLS playoffs.

This time Reynoso played a gentle blow over the SKC defensive line. Alone with Melia in front of her, Molino’s shot from the right hit 35. Minute just on the left post.

Four minutes later, Reynoso assisted again. This time it was a well-placed left-footed corner kick from the right that defender Bakaye Dibassy slid forward to divert his head. A shot that Melia couldn’t react or stop.

The Loons were leading 3-0 at halftime, but it took them three moments in the first few minutes of the game to get there.

The first was veteran defender Michael Boxall’s header in the first 90 minutes, which kept the ball out of the net after sports star Johnny Russell hit St. . Clair who got off his line well to challenge. The ball shot towards the open goal until Boxall intercepted the ball and deflected it with his head.

Next time, St.. . Clair was the one who came out, this time to stop Russell’s shot.

The Star Tribune did not travel for this game. This article was written using the TV show and video interviews before and / or after the game.

Minnesota United FC, Sporting Kansas City, Kevin Molino, MLS Cup Playoffs, Western Conference