KC Reporter

Dejan Joveljic scored his 18th goal of the season against his former team, but Sporting Kansas City lost 4-1 to the LA Galaxy on Saturday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. Sporting played with 10 men after Shapi Suleymanov was sent off late in the match for serious foul play.

Joseph Paintsil led the Galaxy with a hat trick, and Diego Fagundez added another goal in the second half. The game saw both teams attempt 19 shots each.

Interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin made several changes to Sporting's lineup following last week's loss to Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Stephen Afrifa started for the first time this season, Memo Rodriguez returned to midfield, Daniel Salloi came back from injury, and Mason Toye replaced Santi Munoz up front.

The Galaxy opened scoring early when Paintsil finished a set piece in the fourth minute. Paintsil added his second goal in the 25th minute after Harbor Miller’s cross found him unmarked. Sporting responded three minutes later as Joveljic converted a pass from Toye for his milestone goal, which ties him for second-most goals in a single regular season in club history and places him fourth in this year’s MLS Golden Boot race.

Joveljic's performance also means he has now scored eight goals in his last six games at Dignity Health Sports Park, including one during last year’s MLS Cup final as a member of LA Galaxy.

Sporting nearly equalized before halftime when Afrifa hit the crossbar following an assist from Joveljic. However, Paintsil completed his hat trick just before halftime by finishing a Cuevas cross.

In the second half, Afrifa and Salloi forced saves from Galaxy goalkeeper Novak Micovic. The Galaxy extended their lead when Fagundez scored off Gabriel Pec’s assist at the hour mark. Despite efforts from Toye and saves by John Pulskamp on several late chances for LA substitutes Ruben Ramos Jr. and Miki Yamane, Sporting could not close the gap.

Suleymanov was ejected after coming on as a substitute due to an aggressive foul with less than ten minutes remaining.

Sporting Kansas City will next face Minnesota United FC away on October 4 in their penultimate regular-season match. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT with coverage available on MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.

After this result, Sporting Kansas City holds a record of 7-19-6 (27 points), while LA Galaxy moves to 5-17-9 (24 points). Attendance at Dignity Health Sports Park was reported as 17,903 under partly cloudy skies and temperatures around 69 degrees Fahrenheit.

"Joveljic’s 18 goals this year are tied with Preki (1996) for the second most in a single regular season in club history," according to club records. "His 39 MLS goals since the start of 2024 (including playoffs) are third most in the league."