Even with little at stake, Sporting Kansas City and Los Angeles FC aim for strong play as the regular season winds down when the sides collide Saturday night in Kansas City, Kan.

LAFC (16-8-7, 55 points) already clinched a spot in the MLS Cup playoffs and appear headed for a top-four spot in the Western Conference. LAFC are in second place with a two-point cushion over third and a match in hand against the other five clubs among the top six in the conference.

LAFC claimed a 1-0 home victory over St. Louis City Wednesday night. Denis Bouanga, playing in his 100th match across all competitions for LAFC, scored the lone goal in first-half stoppage time. It was Bouanga’s 67th score with LAFC.

With a playoff spot secured, LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo has the luxury of fine-tuning and nitpicking his club’s play as the regular season closes.

“It was a good first half. We didn’t concede anything at all,” Cherundolo said. “We had plenty of chances to put the game away. But we were a little sloppy in the final third.

“The key was to come away with three points, which we did.”

Sporting KC (8-17-7, 31 points), meanwhile, are playing out the stretch after being eliminated from playoff contention two matches ago. But coach Peter Vermes believes that his club still has a reason to play well in its last two outings.

“I played the game for 15 years,” said Vermes, who is also the longest-tenured coach in MLS.

“As a player, every single day of training, every single game you play, you always have the ability to get better. Whether that’s for the team you’re playing for currently, or the next team you’re going to play for, or even if it’s the last game you’re ever going to play, you want to be the best you can be.”

LAFC beat SKC 3-1 in the U.S. Open Cup final on Sept. 25 in Los Angeles. The second half ended tied 1-1 before LAFC scored in both 15-minute extra-time periods.

–Field Level Media