One of the top young forwards in Major League Soccer continued his resurgence in Week 5 with a hat-trick, while a struggling expansion side finally got put a crooked number in the win column.
There were plenty of terrific performances from around the league to choose from as the best of Week 5, but our editors narrowed it down to a select few to honor from the weekend.
Here’s our staff choices for the best of MLS Week 5:
Player of the Week
Erick “Cubo” Torres scored the first hat-trick of his MLS career on Saturday in the Houston Dynamo’s 4-1 thumping of the New York Red Bulls at BBVA Compass Stadium. The Golden Boot leader has scored in each of Houston’s first four matches.
Torres’ efforts saw him beat out Justin Meram, David Villa and Matias Laba for SBI MLS Player of the Week honors.
Team of the Week
After all the doom and gloom of the first four weeks, Minnesota United finally secured their first victory in franchise history on Saturday night, with a 4-2 beating of struggling Real Salt Lake. Christian Ramirez scored a pair of goals, while Kevin Molino scored once and assisted on two other goals. The win by the Loons moved them above the LA Galaxy and RSL in the Western Conference standings.
The victory earned the Loons SBI MLS Team of the Week honors, beating the likes of the Vancouver Whitecaps and Houston Dynamo.
Rookie of the Week
It’s not often you see a 75th-overall pick in the MLS Draft make an impact, but that’s exactly what Joshua Smith of the New England Revolution did on Sunday night in Portland. The defender put in a solid 89-minute shift for the Revs in their 1-1 draw at Providence Park.
Smith beat out Atlanta United rookie Julian Gressel and Columbus Crew defender Alex Crognale for SBI MLS Rookie of the Week honors.
Goal of the Week
Diego Valeri unleashed a stunning volley off a failed clearance in the 12th minute of Portland’s draw with New England. The goal was the fifth of the year for the Argentine midfielder.
GOLAZO!! Diego Valeri makes it 1-0. #PORvNE pic.twitter.com/8L16ZdkJBN
— Ben Jata (@Ben_Jata) April 3, 2017
@DiegoDv8 in the 12th minute!!! More goals than a New Years resolution list.💪⚽️ Timbers lead 1-0. pic.twitter.com/w68W7fPTMJ
— Portland Timbers (@TimbersFC) April 3, 2017
Its a bummer that the guy lighting up MLS is a fringe Mexican national team player
Maybe Mexico will hire Wilmer Cabrera next time they fire their manager
He’s a Houston player. That’s all I care about. That’s all every Dynamo fan I know cares about.
It’s actually probably preferable he stays on the fringe despite his improved situation. I assume it’s unprecidented for an MLS team to lose three starting forwards during international breaks