Etihad Airways MLS Player of the Month (June 2015)
This past month featured many great goals from some of the league’s best attacking players — and also a goalkeeper standing on his head to prevent goals.
The five candidates for the Etihad Airways MLS Player of the Month award in June gives you a taste of both. And it won’t be easy to pick.
How it works: At the end of each month, the MLSsoccer.com editorial staff selects the five final nominees. You then vote to determine the winner. Voting for June POTM will be open until 11:59 pm PT, Wednesday, July 1.
The nominees:
Fanendo Adi, Portland Timbers — The Nigerian closed the month in style with two goals in Portland’s decisive 4-1 win over nemesis Seattle on Sunday. He had another brace earlier in the month and finished June with four goals in only 147 minutes.
Sebastian Giovinco, Toronto FC — Highlighted by a masterful two-goal effort in a win over Eastern-Conference leader D.C. United on June 6, The Atomic Ant earned his third straight Player of the Month nomination. He also had a goal and an assist in a victory over rival Montreal on June 24, helping Toronto to a 2-1-1 mark in June.
David Ousted, Vancouver Whitecaps —The veteran goalkeeper has led the Whitecaps to three straight wins, including a shutout over the LA Galaxy on June 6 and an eight-save effort vs. New England on Saturday. Even more impressive, he stopped two Bradley Wright-Phillips penalty kicks in one game —a 2-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls on June 20.
Matías Pérez García, San Jose Earthquakes — The DP midfielder came on strong at the end of the month, logging two assists in San Jose’s big win over the LA Galaxy after a one-goal, one-assist effort a week earlier at Seattle. His goal in the Earthquakes’ 2-0 victory over the Sounders was his first of the season — and it was good enough to land him AT&T Goal of the Week honors.
C.J. Sapong, Philadelphia Union — After a rough start to the season that included a facial fracture and DUI arrest, the striker has put the Union on his back recently. He scored in each of the first four games of June, matching a franchise record for consecutive games with a goal, and followed that up with a terrific assist in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Montreal.
