Sporting Kansas City v Real Salt Lake: Munoz to play 'massive role' for rest of season, says Zavagnin

Sporting Kansas City interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin expects Santiago Munoz to play a "massive role" for the rest of the season.

Zavagnin's side scored in the third and sixth minutes of added time at the end of the second half to beat Charlotte FC 2-1 in midweek.

Munoz came on with just over 20 minutes to go and sparked a comeback for the hosts, operating in close proximity to goalscorers Mason Toye and Dejan Joveljic.

The 22-year-old has come off the bench in each of Kansas City's last four games, scoring twice in that time.

Zavagnin believes Munoz has a positive impact on the team, which could be seen more often in the coming games.

"I think everyone can see that we don't have a drop-off when he comes in the game," said Zavagnin.

"The competition to be on the first XI is very, very high. The speed in which he's integrated himself to the league, and especially our team, has been very, very quick, and so he's knocking on the door, and so I would expect him to play a massive role in the second part of this season.

"Each and every game, what everyone gets to see on the weekend, we see during the course of the week. These aren't special performances. This is his norm.

"He's clever with the ball, clever in tight spaces, can create his own shot, and certainly when we brought him on to the game, wanted him to operate closer to Dejan Jovelijic and Manu Garcia, and when you put those three together, you know, good things happen.

"For a while now, I've been thinking in different ways about bringing them all into the game from the beginning, and time will tell if we're able to do that."

Next up for Kansas City in MLS action is Real Salt Lake. The two teams are 12th and 13th, respectively, in the Western Conference, with Sporting sitting one point above their opponents.

Both teams are targeting more wins to reach the playoff spots, though RSL ended a seven-match winless streak in MLS last time out with a 2-0 victory over D.C. United.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Sporting Kansas City – Dejan Joveljic

The performances of Joveljic have been important for Sporting KC this season. The striker is the team's top scorer with 11 goals, which is tied for the third highest among the league's top scorers in 2025.

After his 96th-minute winner against Charlotte, Joveljic has either scored or assisted in his last six matches.

Real Salt Lake – Johnny Russell

Salt Lake have been spearheaded in the final third by Diego Luna, who has scored on eight occasions, but he is on international duty with the USA.

Johnny Russell has come into the side in Luna's absence and scored in their recent win over D.C. United. He also contributed to 63 goals at Children's Mercy Park during his seven seasons with Sporting KC.

MATCH PREDICTION – DRAW

Real Salt Lake ended a seven-game winless run with their 2-0 home win over D.C. United. They are looking to win consecutive MLS matches for the first time this season, as they have lost all four previous matches that immediately followed a win.

On home soil this season, Kansas City have secured 11 points from a possible 27 on offer in nine MLS contests.

Real Salt Lake secured a season sweep of Sporting Kansas City last year with a 1-0 home win and a 4-3 victory on the road.

The seven combined goals in the most recent match were the most in a single game in the 47 all-time meetings between the teams across all competitions.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Sporting Kansas City – 33.1%

Draw – 25.6%

Real Salt Lake – 41.3%