Sporting Kansas City vs. Austin FC – MLS, May 9, 2021

Sporting Kansas City welcomes Austin FC to Children’s Mercy Park on Sunday, May 9, hoping to improve on a poor start to the 2021 MLS season.

The Wizards finished atop the Western Conference last year, but they have only managed to take four points from a possible nine this term.

Having won two of their opening three games, Austin is currently sitting pretty in fourth place. Can the MLS newcomers maintain their promising start to their inaugural campaign?

In this Sporting Kansas City vs. Austin FC betting preview, I analyze both sides, take a look at the odds, and share my prediction and pick for Sunday’s clash.

Goals from Gadi Kinda and Daniel Salloi saw Sporting KC come from behind and beat the Red Bulls on the opening weekend. It was a shaky start, but everything was going to plan for the 2020 Western Conference champs.

However, following a draw with Orlando City in Week 2, Peter Vermes’ side suffered a shock 3-1 loss to Real Salt Lake last time out.

Not only did the Wizards manage to register just one shot on target last weekend, but they also struggled to keep hold of the ball. In fact, they only saw 40% possession – allowing RSL to dominate large spells of the game.

Finishing above teams like Seattle, Portland, and LAFC is no mean feat, but SKC ended up clinching the “best in the West” tag last year.

That said, if Vermes’ men continue to play as they did against RSL, they will struggle to get anywhere near the top of the standings this season.

The accolades keep coming for our Captain! pic.twitter.com/4OQ9CXCWN3

— Austin FC (@AustinFC) May 3, 2021

By contrast, Austin has gained plenty of admirers across the opening weeks of the campaign.

The newcomers gave an excellent account of themselves against LAFC in Week 1, only to lose 2-0. But since then, they have claimed back-to-back victories – scoring four goals along the way.

After Diego Fagundez had netted ATX’s maiden MLS goal, Cecilio Dominguez bagged a brace to seal an impressive 3-1 win over Colorado. Last time out, Fagundez scored the game’s only goal as Austin beat Minnesota 1-0.

Josh Wolff’s free-flowing approach already seems to be rubbing off on the team. The head coach has a clear plan for his players, and they appear to be responding well.

Having said that, it could be argued that Austin hasn’t been tested to their limits yet. With SKC up next, we should be able to gauge what Wolff’s men are made of this weekend.

I completely understand why the bookmakers view SKC as the favorite to win this one. After all, Vermes’ men have years of MLS experience in the bank, while Los Verdes are at the beginning of their journey.

Still, when you consider the contrasting early-season form of the two sides, you’d be foolish to write off Austin altogether.

The online sportsbooks expect the Wizards to claim all three points on Sunday, but I can see Wolff’s side upsetting the odds.

While it will be difficult for Los Verdes to claim three straight wins this weekend, I wouldn’t be surprised if they held SKC to a draw. I mean, the Austin camp must be brimming with belief at the moment.

On the flip side, the Vermes’ men will be low on confidence after last weekend’s disappointing loss to RSL.

Having taken everything into account, I’m going with the draw for my Sporting Kansas City vs. Austin FC prediction.