KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The easy spin for this game will be one of “brute force vs. technique and style.” Sporting KC play the role of the brutes – they led the league in fouls committed by a mile in 2013, and haven’t finished lower than fifth since 2009.

RSL play the role of “technique and style,” since they’re always at or near the top of the league in possession, passing accuracy, chances created, and long, glowing stories written about how they play the game “the right way.”

But it’s the opposite of those easy, thoughtless narratives that will determine how the 18th edition of the MLS Cup plays out (4 pm ET; ESPN, UniMas, TSN2/RDS in Canada):

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Vermes

Or maybe it’s Dr. Vermes and Mr. Hyde? Regardless, the question for Sporting will be “are you aiming to control the game, or beat it into submission?”

Vermes has often, since he moved down to the sidelines, tended toward overly robust and physical lineups, ones that can overpower the opposition. And their repeated strong showings in the regular season prove exactly why that has been a good decision.

But Sporting can ball a bit, too, and in 2013 made an on-again, off-again commitment to playing fewer long balls, keeping it all on the ground, and attacking up the middle. They’re still capable of getting wide and whipping in some service, and nobody in the league has the fullbacks attack upfield as ferociously as Chance Myers and Seth Sinovic (this is a point we’ll be getting back to). “Attacking from wide” is still very much in Sporting’s arsenal, as it should be for all good teams:

It’s not the first thing in the arsenal, though, which is the big change. In 2012 Sporting bent in the third-most open play crosses in the league (more than cross-happy San Jose, even), with 564. Every time they hit a roadblock, they’d get it wide and hoof it to the back post. Lather, rinse, repeat.

In 2013 they showed more restraint, finishing in the bottom half of the table with 472 crosses from open play. And by being more selective, they bumped up their accuracy by half a percent (24.36, good for fifth in the league). It’s not a ton, but every little bit counts when there’s a trophy on the line.

They also proved to be more versatile, which is that “attacking up the middle” part I mentioned before. Benny Feilhaber has been the focal point for this, as was Vermes’ intent when he brought the mercurial midfielder to Sporting Park last winter. Feilhaber’s ability to provide the final ball – see the series-winner against Houston – has made it harder for defenses to account for the likes of Graham Zusi, C.J. Sapong, and Dom Dwyer.

It’s also made Sporting a very good possession team:

So much for “brute force,” right? Granted, "possession" is a stat that's fraught with both too much meaning and lack of meaning, and those numbers are puffed up by Vermes' reluctance through most of the season to rely upon Feilhaber on the road. And it's worth mentioning that Feilhaber's been known to disappear from entire swathes of the schedule.

Nonetheless, gone are the days when SKC’s only recourse was to hammer 30 balls to the back post and hope that one of their own guys would rise highest. Even the Dynamo -- masters at coaxing KC into playing direct, regressive soccer -- couldn't troll 'em into it.