No Vermes, and Sporting KC will still be missing 2 players for Sunday battle in Seattle

Sporting Kansas City will still be without head coach Peter Vermes and two officially unnamed players for Sunday’s game at the Seattle Sounders due to Major League Soccer’s safety protocols for COVID-19.

Vermes said on Friday that despite being vaccinated, he tested positive for COVID-19. He said he does not know how or where he contracted the coronavirus.

He would not disclose information about the two players ruled out, but said he and both players have minimal symptoms and are in good condition.

“I don’t know how I got it. I have no idea,” Vermes said. “But what I would say is my symptoms have been minimal at best and so being vaccinated probably helped me immensely, not getting severe symptoms. My suggestion is get vaccinated.”

The trio missed Wednesday’s 1-1 tie with the San Jose Earthquakes Wednesday night due to the same protocols. Assistant coach Kerry Zavagnin stepped in for Vermes as head coach for the fixture and will do so again on Sunday.

Wednesday’s game finished in a 1-1 tie with the then-12th-place San Jose Earthquakes at Children’s Mercy Park. Daniel Salloi salvaged a point with a goal in the third minute of second-half stoppage time.

But Sunday’s game presents a slightly tougher challenge for Sporting as they have to travel to Supporters Shield-leading Seattle. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. CT at Lumen Field.

Seattle sits in first place in the Western Conference, five points ahead of Kansas City but having played an extra game. The Sounders have lost just one game all season — a 1-0 loss to Minnesota last Sunday — and has conceded a league-low nine goals.

“It’s going to be a tough game and it’s going to be a really fun game,” KC goalkeeper Tim Melia said. “It’s going to be a game where both teams are jockeying for the top end of the table so we’re all looking forward to it as well.”

But there has already been a slight shine taken off a game that could very well end up being a playoff game at some point later this year. Both clubs are missing key players due to injuries and international call-ups.

Although KC is getting closer to full fitness, the club is still missing the two players under safety protocols as well as midfielder Felipe Hernandez for personal reasons. Alan Pulido and Gianluca Busio are also both still on international duty for the Gold Cup.

Roberto Puncec was also left out of Wednesday’s 18-man squad due to an undisclosed reason.

Seattle is yet to release its injury report but was without 10 players in Thursday night’s 1-0 win over Austin.

That report includes Alex and Cristian Roldan on international duty and injuries to goalkeeper Stefan Frei, defenders Nouhou Tolo and Shane O’Neill, and long-term injuries to key players like Nicolas Lodeiro, Will Bruin and Jordan Morris.

The Sounders played five teenagers in their victory over Austin.

“We’ve still got to play the game, there are still players. They’re the best team in the league, so for us, it’s obviously a challenge for both of us,” Vermes said.

“We’ve got to go there and try to get a result as best as we can with the players that we have available,” he continued, “and everybody’s got to know that they’ve got a responsibility and accountability to try and get that done for us.”

Luckily for fans wanting to see full-strength, high-end squads battle head-to-head in the regular season, Sunday’s game is the first of three between these teams in the next three months.

And regardless of the injury situation, Seattle is still unbeaten at home this season (5-0-3). And that’s in spite of playing without many key players all season.

Vermes still sees it as an incredibly tough game for KC.

“We have to be on our toes, we have to be concentrated for 90-plus minutes,” Vermes said. “We’re going to have to be as best we can or as close as we can to our A-game to even come close.”