The quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup is always a fascinating stage of the competition. Teams begin to prioritise it a little more; the drama of the knockout context intensifies every kick of the ball, every crunching tackle, every net-rippling strike; there is still the surprising and enjoyable presence of the underdogs, the USL teams rivalling the might of their MLS opposition.
And that often provides some truly scintillating matches, none more so than Houston Dynamo’s 4-2 win over Sporting Kansas City on Wednesday night.
So, here are three things we learned from the calamitous Sporting KC defeat.