First things first: Benny Feilhaber’s 37th-minute wonder-strike, to be clear, was the highlight of Sporting Kansas City’s 2-1 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday evening at Children’s Mercy Park.
Feilhaber’s moment of magic was a prompt reminder of his ability to turn a match on its head, and indeed — the goal proved decisive in giving Sporting KC its first win of 2017. But more in Feilhaber in a minute.
Numbers across the board indicate that Peter Vermes’ men are off to one of the best defensive starts in club history. Sporting KC came agonizingly close to opening an MLS season with three straight clean sheets for the first time ever, and although Florian Jungwirth’s consolation goal in second-half stoppage time ended those hopes, statistics suggest Kansas City will be awfully hard to break down in 2017.