By Favian Renkel and Justin Ruderman
Welcome back to Week No. 22 of Justin and Favian’s Weekly MLS Awards where SBI staff writers Justin Ruderman and Favian Renkel bring you a glimpse at the best of each week in MLS.
The league season has returned following the Leagues Cup Finale and the playoffs are just around the corner. Things are heating up in both conferences with playoff spots and seeds up for grabs!
Here is a closer look at the action:
Player of the Week
Justin Ruderman: Marco Reus (LA Galaxy)
Hollywood’s latest star arrived in Los Angeles with a bang on Saturday night in a dream super-sub debut to rescue Galaxy.
Borussia Dortmund legend Marco Reus entered LA Galaxy’s stalemate with Atlanta United in the 62nd minute with the match scoreless and the home side in desperate need of a spark. Luckily, that was just the scenario Reus was brought in for.
Coincidentally, this is the exact type of game Marco Reus could provide a big boost for #LAGalaxy— Justin Ruderman (@JustinRuderman_) August 25, 2024
Immediately, Reus found himself on the ball looking to link play for his new team while developing a relationship with fellow star playmaker Riqui Puig. While the Spaniard was buzzing around the pitch like the busy bee he is, Reus took a calmer, silkier approach.
The combination clearly works as the German set up Puig in the 76th minute for a classic curler to open the scoring before putting the cherry on top of his debut with a goal of his own to secure the three points in the 84th minute.
Arriving with a debut impact that can only be compared to that of Zlatan Ibrahimović, Reus gave Galaxy fans (and the rest of the league) a glimpse of what they can expect from him for the rest of the season. With the two-time German footballer of the year added to their devastating attack, LA may be able to outscore opponents all the way to a record sixth MLS Cup title.
Favian Renkel: Luis Suarez (Inter Miami CF)
It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? Luis Suarez didn’t make it seem that way, picking up his form right where he left off before Copa America.
In what some might call the biggest game of the season for Inter Miami against FC Cincinnati, Suarez scored two massive early goals to help secure all three points in the Supporters’ Shield race for the Herons. With fiery words directed at former teammate DeAndre Yedlin and impressive hold-up play to give Miami a breather while they were down a man for a half, Suarez did everything in his power to secure the win.
Suarez was playing so well that Tata Martino kept “El Pistolero” in the match despite an arm injury, even though Inter Miami might have the best bench player in the league in Leo Campana.
Miami now sits in pole position to win the Supporters’ Shield and will be on cruise control in the remaining games.
Don’t sleep on Suarez winning a few more SBI Player of the Week nominations before the MLS Cup Playoffs. With Suarez likely locking up the MLS Newcomer of the Year award, we might even see a late run for MVP if he continues scoring important goals in crucial moments for the Herons.
Young Player of the Week
JR: Adilson Malanda (Charlotte FC)
I find it hard to believe that this is Adilson Malanda’s first MLS Weekly selection.
Charlotte FC’s 22-year-old French center-back has been fantastic leading the defensive line for Dean Smith’s side this season but has not received the recognition he deserves as an All-Star snub.
On Saturday, with a strong new partner in USMNT CB Tim Ream, Malanda shined again not only with his defensive action but his impressive passing range as well. Along with 23 total defensive actions in the match, Malanda completed the most passes of any player on the pitch (105) at a 93% accuracy (105/113) including nine passes into the final third, one chance created, and 15 successful long balls at an 83% accuracy (15/18).
It may have only been one game but I feel confident in saying Charlotte FC has the best center-back pairing in MLS with an experienced longtime U.S. international partnering with a young, hopeful French international. Come playoffs, Charlotte will be difficult to score against, much less beat.
FR: Diego Gomez (Inter Miami CF)
None of us, myself included, expected this Paraguayan superstar to remain in MLS past the transfer deadline. Diego Gomez’s talent is undeniable—he should be playing in Europe. Once again, he delivered an outstanding performance in a crucial match. Even when Miami went down a man, Gomez kept his composure and stepped up his work rate to ensure the Herons kept a clean sheet against the second-place team in the Eastern Conference.
With 17 of 18 passes completed, 2 of 3 dribbles, and 7 of 11 ground duels won, Gomez put in an impressive shift.
Tata Martino and Inter Miami are fortunate to keep Gomez as long as they can because with him, this team is the deepest in MLS history, and their hard work is paying off.
Goal of the Week
JR: Albert Rusnák (Seattle Sounders)
Following Allbert Rusnák’s pair of mediocre seasons to begin his Sounders career, the 30-year-old Slovakian international has rolled back the years in 2024 with one of the best seasons of his career to lead Seattle alongside Jordan Morris.
On Saturday night, the Sounders designated player came up trumps once again for his team with a clever and clinical game-winning goal from the top of the box against Minnesota United. As the ball squirted out to him with Robin Lod closing to pressure, Rusnák dropped his shoulder with a slight feint, dropping Lod to the ground and opening up space for himself to slot a pinpoint finish inside the near post.
The body feint and the strike would be highlight-reel worthy as separate actions but combined they constitute my game-winning Goal of the Week.
FR: Evander (Portland Timbers)
The 99th minute of an eight-goal thriller, in front of the home crowd, with a free kick to tie the match in the dying minutes.
It doesn’t get much better than this.
Evander scored a world-class goal as the fans went wild at home.
This goal will be remembered in Portland.
Team of the Week
JR: New England Revolution
The New England Revolution are a completely different team with captain Carles Gil on the pitch.
In his first game back from injury in over two months, the 31-year-old attacking midfielder dropped his usual man-of-the-match level performance with a primary assist, secondary assist, six chances created, seven successful dribbles completed, and nine duels won — all match highs — as he led his last-place Revs to a much-needed 5-0 win over CF Montreal.
Despite just clawing themselves off the bottom of the table, the Revs still control their own playoff fate just two points out of a postseason position with a couple of games in hand on most teams above them. If Gil can stay healthy the rest of the season, there is no reason Caleb Porter’s men should miss out on playoff soccer.
FR: Inter Miami
Inter Miami is on pace to tie the single-season points record (73) and became the first team to clinch a berth in the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs, becoming only the fourth team in league history to do so within the first 26 games of a 34-game season.
This team is still getting the job done without Lionel Messi. While the Columbus Crew are grabbing all the headlines and being touted as possibly the best team of all time, the Herons are quietly wrapping up the Supporters’ Shield even before Messi returns to full health. In a way, it’s both a blessing and a curse—fans won’t get to see Messi play in the upcoming weeks, but the Argentine star isn’t being rushed back before he’s fully recovered, which means he should be ready for the playoffs.
Inter Miami is back on track, winning every match possible, and they’ll likely start resting players once the playoff picture becomes clearer.
Courtesy of their 2-0 victory tonight, @InterMiamiCF became the first team to clinch a berth in the Audi 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs and is the fourth team in league history to do so within the first 26 games of a 34-game season. pic.twitter.com/AnpeHwDfHs— MLS Communications (@MLS_PR) August 25, 2024
Best Thing We Saw This Week
JR: Peak Providence Park Pandemonium in Portland
St. Louis CITY SC got off to a flying start in Portland on Saturday, taking the lead inside ten minutes en route to a dominant 3-1 first half away from home. The newest MLS club was cruising towards their first road win of the season…or so it seemed.
Within 20 minutes of the second-half kickoff, however, Felipe Mora scored a brace to counteract another STL goal and bring the Timbers within a goal at 4-3. For more than half an hour, the visitors clutched to their lead as they attempted to fend off continued attacks from Portland.
Eventually, Timbers club-record signing Evander answered the bell for the Timbers with a 90+9’ free-kick equalizer from just outside the St. Louis box to send the home fans happy with a draw that felt more like three points.
Let this be a lesson for all: You can never predict what will happen in an MLS game.
FR: LA Galaxy is the first to 10,000,000
Wow, an incredible milestone for a team in a league that’s still in its youth and hasn’t yet reached its peak. The LA Galaxy became the first club in MLS history to host 10 million fans for regular-season matches, thanks to tonight’s crowd for their match against Atlanta United. With superstars like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Steven Gerrard, David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Chicharito, Robbie Keane, and many others, this franchise has always set the standard in MLS, consistently pushing the league forward and establishing itself as the gold standard in building a successful organization and brand from the ground up.
Let’s see what team is next to this milestone.
