It is rare to find a performance so thoroughly dominant that it overshadows the kind of games we saw this weekend, but Landon Donovan had that sort of performance.
The Los Angeles Galaxy forward had THREE goals and an assist in the Galaxy’s 5-2 thrashing of Chivas USA on Saturday, upping his goal total to eight (which according to Max Bretos puts Donovan on pace for 225 career goals).
Donovan earns MLS Player of the Week honors in a week where there were a half-dozen deserving candidates. Among them were Toronto midfielder Amado Guevara, for his two-goal effort against Kansas City, Chicago midfielder John Thorrington for his brace against Colorado, and Crew goalkeeper Wil Hesmer for his stellar performance against Houston.
Choosing Player of the WEAK was much tougher this week. One team stood out above all others, with one player continuing what has been a nightmarish start to the season.
Brad Guzan is this week’s Player of the Weak. Yes, I know, it could have been a shared award with his defense, which played like striped traffic cones on Saturday, but Guzan’s terrible play on what wound up being Alan Gordon’s first goal opened the floodgates for the Galaxy.
Here is the play:
Yes, that was Guzan attempting to basket catch a high ball in the area, oblivious to the presence of Gordon underneath him. The subsequent goal was the first of three unanswered for the Galaxy.
Whether it is the disappointment of seeing his move to Aston Villa fall through, or the realization that he will likely have to settle for a much smaller club when he leaves this summer, something is distracting Guzan. I haven’t seen a player this affected by a failed transfer since Clint Mathis mailed in the rest of the 2002 season with the MetroStars after having MLS turn down a transfer offer from Bayern Munich.
Dishonorable mention for Player of the Weak goes to the following players: the entire Chivas USA Defense, Abel Xavier, Carey Talley and Facundo Erpen.
What do you think of the choices? Share your thoughts below.