Nashville SC: Hany Mukhtar named Player of the Matchday By Justin Ruderman
Player of the Matchday 20: Hany Mukhtar
After scoring a brace to extend Nashville SC's lead atop the Supporters' Shield race on Matchday 20, Hany Mukhtar has been named MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob ULTRA. The former Landon Donovan MLS MVP netted twice in the second half, including the game-winner, to secure a 4-1 victory against Inter Miami CF on Saturday at GEODIS Park. The goals marked Mukhtar's 89th and 90th of his MLS regular-season career, making him just the 14th player in league history and the second active player to reach that mark. Mukhtar also scored the 20th game-winning goal of his career, becoming one of three active players with at least 20 game-winning goals and 15 game-winning assists. The star midfielder leads Nashville with 13 goal contributions (8g/5a) this season. As a result, Nashville widened the gap over their Eastern Conference foes to five points in the Supporters' Shield race as the Coyotes remain on pace to set a single-season MLS points record with 43 points (13W-2L-4D record) through 19 matches. Nashville also maintained their position as the only team in MLS this season with an unbeaten home record of 9W-0L-1D, while outscoring opponents 29-10 in those matches. That has contributed to their league-best plus-24 goal differential. This is the second time Mukhtar has been awarded MLS Player of the Matchday honors this season (Matchday 14), becoming the eighth player in MLS history to earn the award at least 10 times. Mukhtar and Nashville continue their Supporters' Shield surge when they travel to face Red Bull New York on Wednesday, August 19 at Sports Illustrated Stadium (7:30 pm ET | Apple TV). The MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob ULTRA is selected each matchday 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 an Instagram fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio and online media.
WATCH: Nashville SC outshine Inter Miami in Supporters' Shield clash