Another MLS weekend is in the books, and it's increasingly obvious how young midfielders are beginning to put their mark on the league.
Chicago's Harry Shipp led his team to a 5-4 victory by scoring three goals and assisting another in a wild one at Red Bull Arena, while Diego Fagundez finally got on the scoresheet for New England by scoring two goals in a 5-0 romp over the Seattle Sounders.
Two foreign defensive midfielders also put their stamps on their respective games. Matías Laba and Oriol Rosell each displayed their skills, with Laba showing tackling and defensive prowess for Vancouver and Rosell enjoying a record-setting day for Kansas City.
Who else earned a spot on the latest Team of the Week? Read on to find out.
GK: Jon Busch (San Jose Earthquakes) – Was integral in helping 10-man San Jose get the win over FC Dallas. Made four key saves and assisted the Quakes’ opening goal to boot. Also collected a clean sheet against Colorado midweek.
D: Dan Gargan (LA Galaxy) – The veteran right back is settling in nicely along the Galaxy's revamped backline, and his long throw-in keyed Robbie Keane's late goal in the draw at Portland.
D: Bobby Burling (Chivas USA) – Read the game extremely well and helped to limit Colorado's opportunities in a surprising 3-1 road win for Chivas USA.
D: Jeff Parke (D.C. United) – Was a rock in the back on the road for D.C., limiting the Union to few chances in a 1-0 win for Ben Olsen's group.
M: Harry Shipp (Chicago Fire) – Recorded just the sixth hat trick by a rookie in MLS history in the Fire's much-needed first victory.
M: Matías Laba (Vancouver Whitecaps) – A monster in midfield for Vancouver, he shut down Federico Higuaín and set the tempo for the 'Caps in a 1-0 win on the road.
M: Javier Morales (Real Salt Lake) – Scored one of the fastest goals in MLS history and followed it up with two more, leading RSL to their first-ever victory in Houston.
M: Oriol Rosell (Sporting Kansas City) – Continues to pull the strings for one of the league's best teams. Completed 96 percent of his passes in a 3-0 win over Montreal, best in MLS since 2011.
M: Diego Fagundez (New England Revolution) – His creativity was on display on Saturday night, creating six chances in all. No surprise the Revs rolled.
F: Dom Dwyer (Sporting Kansas City) – The consummate Impact killer. Second brace against Impact in three weeks in SKC's romp in Montreal.
F: Bradley Wright-Phillips (New York Red Bulls) – It’s not very often that a player scores a hat trick in MLS and loses, but BWP did what New York needed him to do to have a chance against Chicago.
Coach: Jay Heaps (New England Revolution) – Has unlocked the triumvirate of Fagundez, Teal Bunbury, and Patrick Mullins to go along with his outstanding midfielder, Lee Nguyen.
Bench:Bobby Shuttleworth (New England Revolution), Alvas Powell (Portland Timbers), Marvin Chávez (Chivas USA), Luke Mulholland (Real Salt Lake), Will Johnson (Portland Timbers), Teal Bunbury (New England Revolution), Mark Sherrod (Houston Dynamo)
