Los Angeles Football Club Forward Carlos Vela Voted MLS Player of the Week
NEW YORK
(Monday, October 7, 2019)
– Los Angeles Football Club forward Carlos Vela was voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Week for the 31
st
and final week of the 2019 MLS season. This is Vela’s sixth Player of the Week honor this season, tied for the most in MLS history in a single season with Jason Kreis (1999), previously winning the award for his performances in the second, fifth, 18
th
, 25
th
and 30
th
week of play.
Vela scored a hat trick on MLS Decision Day presented by AT&T to help LAFC to a 3-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids on Sunday. With the hat trick, Vela finished the season with 34 goals, setting a new MLS single-season goalscoring record. LAFC finished the year atop the league standings with 72 points (21-4-9 overall record), setting a new MLS single-season points record in the process. The club also clinched the 2019 Supporters’ Shield, along with a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the Audi 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs.
The Mexico National Team veteran broke the single-season goalscoring record in the 28th minute when he drilled a long-range left-footed shot from outside the box into the top left corner of goal past a diving Tim Howard (
watch goal
).
Vela then extended the record, scoring a tremendous bicycle kick from inside the box in the 31
st
minute to give LAFC a 2-0 lead (
watch goal
). Following a Colorado score, Vela completed his hat trick in the 51
st
minute, finishing with a left-footed tap in right in front of goal off a Tristan Blackmon cross (
watch goal
). The 34 goals this season for Vela is tied for the third-most worldwide.
LAFC has a bye during Round One of the Audi 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs and next hosts the winner of Minnesota United FC and the LA Galaxy in the Conference Semifinals on Thursday, Oct. 24 (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN / ESPN Deportes).
The MLS Player of the Week is selected each week of the regular season through both media and fan voting in a process conducted by MLS Communications. A panel of journalists from the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) comprises 75 percent of the vote, while a Twitter fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio and online media.
