Two clubs in opposite conferences of MLS will do battle today in a league match between the Vancouver Whitecaps and Sporting Kansas City. The first-division clash scheduled for 8 p.m. ET will be held at BC Place in Vancouver and can be live streamed here.

Facing issues with his back line, head coach Peter Vermes was forced to duct tape a competitive defense against the Philadelphia Union last Friday. Despite being hamstrung with injuries and suspensions, the Sporting Kansas City boss was able to escape PPL Park with a much-needed point. "When you make a lot of changes like we had to—we had Jake [Peterson] playing left back who actually did a darn good job," Vermes said (via MLS's official website). "There was a lot of change in the team. And unfortunately, sometimes you lose that continuity and consistency."

"But I don't think the team played bad," he added. "I don't think they lacked work ethic. I think we had a good, solid game."

Vermes faces a similar situation in Week 22. Similar results must follow if the club is to maintain its Supporters' Shield pace.

Tactical Preview

Player to Watch: The creative driving force in Vancouver's midfield remains Pedro Morales. The 29-year-old enters today with six assists and an average of 2.8 key passes per match.

Vancouver Whitecaps' Projected Lineup (4-2-3-1): Ousted; Harvey, Leveron, O'Brien, Beitashour; Coker, Laba; Fernandez, Morales, Teibert; Manneh

Sporting Kansas City's Projected Lineup (4-3-3): Gruenebaum; Ellis, Besler, Collin, Juliao; Feilhaber, Olum, Zusi; Saad, Dwyer, Sapong

Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).

Standings

Rnk

Team

MP

W

D

L

GF

GA

+/-

Pts

1

Sporting Kansas City

22

11

6

5

32

20

12

39

2

DC United

21

11

4

6

32

21

11

37

3

Toronto FC

21

9

5

7

32

30

2

32

4

New York Red Bulls

22

6

10

6

35

33

2

28

5

Philadelphia Union

23

6

9

8

36

37

-1

27

6

Columbus Crew

23

6

9

8

28

31

-3

27

7

New England Revolution

22

8

2

12

29

35

-6

26

8

Chicago Fire

21

3

13

5

28

34

-6

22

9

Houston Dynamo

21

6

4

11

23

40

-17

22

10

Impact Montreal

22

3

5

14

22

41

-19

14

Rnk

Team

MP

W

D

L

GF

GA

+/-

Pts

1

Real Salt Lake

23

10

9

4

36

27

9

39

2

Seattle Sounders

20

12

2

6

35

28

7

38

3

FC Dallas

23

10

6

7

38

32

6

36

4

LA Galaxy

20

9

7

4

34

19

15

34

5

Portland Timbers

23

7

9

7

38

38

0

30

6

Colorado Rapids

23

8

6

9

32

31

1

30

7

Vancouver Whitecaps

21

6

11

4

31

29

2

29

8

San Jose Earthquakes

20

6

6

8

25

22

3

24

9

Chivas USA

22

6

5

11

21

36

-15

23