The Colorado Rapids (10-13-6, 36 pts., 8th West) fell on the road to Sporting Kansas City (7-15-6, 27 pts., 13th West) by a final score of 4-2. Goals from Rafael Navarro and Keegan Rosenberry were not enough for the Rapids on the night as the Kansas City attack netted four of their own.
The starting lineup for Colorado saw multiple firsts, starting with defender Rob Holding making his club debut since signing with the club on August 3 and receiving his P-1 Visa late last week. Additionally, midfielder Paxten Aaronson and defender Rafael Santos made their first appearances in the starting eleven for the Rapids. The pair made their club debuts last weekend after being subbed on against the LA Galaxy.
The match started off in favor of the hosts, with Kansas City maintaining possession in the early stages. That possession quickly led to the match’s first goal, with SKC’s Dejan Joveljic finding the back of the net in the fourth minute to go up 1-0.
From there, the Rapids attack looked to bounce back. Colorado was able to create multiple opportunities after conceding, eventually leading to an equalizer in the 22nd minute. After receiving a pass from Santos on the back line, Cole Bassett found himself with the ball around midfield. The Homegrown midfielder threaded a perfect through pass to a streaking Rafael Navarro. From there, the Brazilian took a touch and then played a soft chipped shot over the Kansas City goalkeeper to level the match at a goal apiece.
Navarro’s goal marked his club leading 12th goal of the season in MLS play. Bassett’s assist was his third of the season and Santos’ assist marked his first as a member of the Rapids since being traded from Orlando City SC.
Shortly after finding their first, the Rapids would quickly take the lead. With heavy traffic in the box, the ball was kicked out to Santos down the left wing. The defender then whipped in a cross that deflected off Navarro and eventually found Keegan Rosenberry, who redirected the ball into the back of the net to put his side up 2-1.
The goal from Rosenberry marked his second of the season, tying a single-season career high in MLS play. Santos’ assist was his second of the match, marking the first multi-assist game of his MLS career. Navarro’s assist on the Rosenberry goal was his fourth of the season and brough the forward to 14 goal contributions in his last 13 appearances across all competitions (10g, 4a).
The Rapids headed into the break with a one goal lead.
Despite the strong defensive play from Colorado early in the second half, including multiple highlight reel saves from goalkeeper Zack Steffen, the hosts would find a pair of goals to take the lead.
In the 22nd minute, Dániel Sallói equalized with a close range shot that found the goal’s side netting. Two minutes later, Mason Toye added another to give his side the lead.
Kansas City doubled their advantage in the 81st minute when Joveljic found his second goal of the night to solidify the win for the home side.
The Rapids will return home following a week off on September 13 for a matchup with Houston Dynamo FC at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. MT and coverage will be available on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, Altitude Sports Radio, ColoradoRapids.com, and the Rapids app.
