After putting up his first career MLS brace and helping lead Nashville SC to a big 3-1 victory over the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday, Hany Mukhtar has been named the MLS Player of the Week for his efforts.
The Designated Player midfielder struck for both of his goals in an eight-minute span in the first half, which saw Nashville shoot out to a 3-0 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
Mukhtar opened the scoring in the 15th minute, running onto a pass from teammate Abu Danladi and making a nifty move to juke his defender and shoot into space before beating Houston goalkeeper Marko Maric with the finish.
After Danladi doubled the lead with a goal of his own in the 19th minute, Mukhtar completed the early barrage in the 23rd minute in highlight-reel fashion, lining up over a free kick from deep outside the area and unleashing a perfect strike into the top corner of the goal.
The outburst gives Mukhtar three goals and three assists in 13 games on the season. Nashville SC, meanwhile, moved their record to 5-6-6 and 21 points on the season with the result, leaving them in playoff positioning in the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference.
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.
