Preseason for Sporting Kansas City in Arizona has come and gone. The results themselves are nothing to write home about but now the attention turns to the regular season, which kicks off this Saturday — February 29th — Leap Day. Sporting KC will head to the great white north to take on the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Before that though, The Blue Testament caught up with Head Coach and Sporting Director Peter Vermes one last time before the team hopped on a plane to fly back to the Midwest.

Felipe Gutierrez’s Injury Status

Gutierrez missed his fourth straight preseason game on Saturday as he sat out the finale against the New York Red Bulls. When asked about his status, Peter Vermes replied, “he right now has a bone bruise. He’s just trying to get over it. That’s really it.”

The real question is, could he have played if it was a regular season game. “I don’t know,” Vermes continued. “I would say he’s kind of up in the air today.”

Will Andreu Fontas be Bought Out by Feb 28th?

Without coming out and naming names, many are wondering if Sporting KC can carry six center backs — four of which occupy international roster spots — into the regular season. Vermes was short with his answer.

“We’ll see,” said Vermes. “I don’t know.”

That’s not the same as simply saying yes. If Sporting KC want to buy out a player, they have to do it before the offseason ends and the regular season begins. Many fans are holding out hope that the so far disappointing Andreu Fontas will be bought out. Before that non-committal answer I would have said he stays. But the recent addition of Winston Reid may make Fontas expendable.

Vermes Also Discusses

Winston Reid’s debut and penalty kick

His Starting XI

Gianluca Busio was sick midweek

The full interview is below. We apologize for the windy conditions. It was probably evident on the broadcast as the ball would just die in the air when KC tried to go long in the second half.