The cold in the northern half of the United States wasn’t enough to stop two of the hottest performances of MLS Week 2. Atlanta United dismantled Minnesota United’s back line for six goals, while New York City FC downed D.C. United with ease in frigid temperatures at Yankee Stadium.
Elsewhere, a Western Conference rookie continued to impress and a few unexpected sides extended their perfect records into Week 3.
Continue reading below to see who our staff thought was deserving of recognition for their showings from Week 2.
Player of the Week
Josef Martinez was one of several Atlanta United attackers who benefited from Minnesota United’s putrid defending. The 23-year-old Venezuelan started the scoring at TCF Bank Stadium in the third minute and piled on with tallies in the 27th and 75th minutes on the way to Atlanta’s first MLS victory.
Martinez beat out David Villa for this week’s SBI MLS Player of the Week honors.
Team of the Week
It’s easy to think of Atlanta as the best team in Week 2 based off the final score, but it did play Minnesota. The team that impressed the most was New York City FC. Patrick Vieira’s men churned out a superb attacking performance at Yankee Stadium in their 4-0 win over D.C. United. The front four of Rodney Wallace, David Villa, Jack Harrison and Maxi Moralez were too much for the Black and Red from start to finish.
The win was enough to earn NYCFC SBI MLS Team of the Week ahead of Atlanta United and the San Jose Earthquakes.
Rookie of the Week
There’s a good feeling that Nick Lima will dominate this space during the season. The San Jose Earthquakes full back turned in his second straight standout performance on Saturday, and he added a goal to his defensive exploits against Vancouver.
Lima’s effort saw the Quakes rookie beat out Julian Gressel for SBI MLS Rookie of the Week recognition.
Goal of the Week
This honor came down to two stunning goals, one from Saturday and the other from Sunday. We chose Miguel Almiron‘s volleyed attempt that put Atlanta up 4-1 at TCF Bank Stadium.
What a hit, Miguel Almirón! #MINvATL@ATLUTD leads 4-1 in Minnesota https://t.co/RomnSnjBGk
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 12, 2017
What did you think of this week’s selections? Which player impressed you the most this week?
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