Sporting KC falls to LAFC in U.S. Open Cup final. A former SKC player sealed the loss

Sporting Kansas City and LAFC had no separation through 90 minutes of Wednesday night’s U.S. Open Cup final.

But that changed in extra time, where there was a decisive winner — and Sporting KC was left with heartbreak.

LAFC flexed its muscles in extra time with goals from substitutes Omar Campos (102nd minute) and former Sporting star Kei Kamara (109th), sending SKC home without any silverware in a 3-1 defeat.

Sporting KC and LAFC played to a scoreless first half, with each team getting one terrific chance. Hugo Lloris stopped Alan Pulido’s volley from inside the box. And Tim Melia reacted in time to avoid being nutmegged by Olivier Giroud.

Giroud finally opened the scoring in the second half. Erik Thommy was stripped of the ball in midfield, despite his protests for a foul. Sporting was slow to react to a ball in behind to Mateusz Bogusz. Bogusz played a pass to Giroud for a tap-in, giving LAFC the lead in the 53rd minute.

There were questions as to whether Bogusz was offside, but the video assistant referee (VAR) did not send referee Carlos Rivas to the monitor.

Sporting needed to find a special moment to get back into the game, and it got one from Thommy in the 60th minute. Johnny Russell played a pass over the top to Daniel Salloi, who laid the ball off into the path of Thommy. He hit the shot the first time and roofed it into the net past Lloris.

Tim Melia made a miraculous save in the 73rd minute, blocking a shot from Bogusz from near point-blank range. And Russell had Sporting’s best chance toward the end of the match, but his right-footed shot was too tame to cause Lloris any issues.

Neither team found the winner in regulation, sending the U.S. Open Cup final to extra time.

From then on, it was a different game as LAFC flexed its depth. Campos, a defender, scored a brilliant goal to put LAFC ahead. Kamara popped up with a header on the other side of the extra-time halftime to seal the victory.

Sporting KC, which has also been eliminated from MLS playoff contention, returns to action on Saturday against St. Louis City SC. The match from City Park kicks off at 7:40 p.m. central.

Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.