MLS Multiplex
Fansided

MLS: Top 5 performances from Week 25

By Matt Coles

LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 11: Carlos Vela #10 of the Los Angeles Football Club dribbles down the field at Banc of California Stadium on August 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.(Photo by Ray Carranza/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 11: Carlos Vela #10 of the Los Angeles Football Club dribbles down the field at Banc of California Stadium on August 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.(Photo by Ray Carranza/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 5
Next
MLS, LAFC, Carlos Vela
LOS ANGELES, CA – AUGUST 11: Carlos Vela #10 of the Los Angeles Football Club dribbles down the field at Banc of California Stadium on August 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.(Photo by Ray Carranza/Getty Images) /

It was Heineken Rivalry Week in MLS this week and it gave us some great games and some wonderful performances. Here are the top five.

Week 25 of the Major League Soccer regular season included both the Los Angeles, Texas and New York derbies, as well as the Rocky Mountain Cup, which Real Salt Lake beat Colorado Rapids to win.

‘El Trafico’ was the last, and best, match of the week, as the two LA sides played out another thriller, with this one ending in a 3-3 draw. Elsewhere, FC Dallas put five past Houston, while NYCFC got the better of the Red Bulls in the Hudson River Derby. That came off the back of a win in the midweek slate, where LAFC also put four past San Jose, and Sporting KC got the better of Minnesota United.

Related Story. MLS: Predicting the Eastern Conference Playoffs. light

Here are the top five performers from the week’s action.

Seattle Sounders, Raul Ruidaz
HARRISON, NJ – MARCH 27: Raul Ruidiaz #11 of Peru celebrates after scoring the second goal of his team against Iceland during an International Friendly match at Red Bull Arena on March 27, 2018 in Harrison, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) /

5. Raul Ruidiaz

The Cascadia clash in Heineken Rivalry Week came between the Portland Timbers and the Seattle Sounders, the winners of the MLS Cup in 2015 and 2016, respectively. The Sounders knew a victory at Providence Park would give them the Cascadia Cup trophy for the 2019 campaign, and they went and delivered on Saturday night, thanks to Raul Ruidiaz.

The Peruvian set up Seattle’s first, halfway through the first period of play, as he assisted Cristian Roldan for the opening goal of the match. And then he provided the crucial moment. The forward came into the game having only scored once in his last 13 shots, but he made amends for that just after the half-time interval.

Jordan Morris managed to get past his man down the left wing, before pulling the ball back into a dangerous area. Ruidiaz was then on hand to finish it off, bagging his tenth goal of the season, and more importantly, doubling the Sounders’ lead.

https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/status/1165112994092765184

With Ruidiaz now into double figures on the year for the Rave Green, they will be hoping the Peruvian can kick on and find his shooting boots more often in the final stretch of the season.

Home/MLS News