MLS: Top 5 strikers in league history
By Matt Coles
3. Sebastian Giovinco
Another player who would come into that argument of the best European players in MLS history is an Italian striker who takes the bronze medal on our list of the best-ever forwards to have featured in the American top flight, former Toronto FC man Sebastian Giovinco.
He spent the first nine years of his professional career in his native Italy, spending time with Juventus, Empoli and Parma. During that time, he won the Serie A title twice, Serie B once and a couple of Supercoppa Italiana winners’ medals were also added to his collection.
MLS Career & Honours:
- Toronto FC (2015-2018)
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- MLS MVP – 2015
- MLS Best XI – 2015, 2016, 2017
- MLS Golden Boot – 2015
- MLS Newcomer of the Year – 2015
- CONCACAF Champions League Golden Ball – 2018
- CONCACAF Champions League Golden Boot – 2018
- CONCACAF Champions League Best XI – 2018
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- MLS Cup – 2017
- Supporters’ Shield – 2017
- Canadian Championship – 2016, 2017, 2018
He signed for Canadian side Toronto FC prior to the start of the 2015 campaign, and he made an instant impression on the league, as he took the highest individual honour on offer in the league. Giovinco took the MLS MVP award for the 2015 campaign, along with the MLS Newcomer of the Year honour as well, after scoring 22 goals in his debut campaign in the league. Those 22 strikes also saw him awarded the MLS Golden Boot, in arguably one of the greatest ever single-season in the league’s 25-year history.
He also broke the league record for the most combined goals and assists in a single season and was named into the MLS Best XI, the only man from Toronto to be named into the prestigious side. He would make it into the side again following the 2016 campaign, one in which he scored 17 goals and recorded 15 assists, with TFC also winning the Canadian Championship, the Italian’s first piece of silverware during his time in North America.
A year later, and Toronto FC would embark on the greatest ever single-season campaign that Major League Soccer has seen. They took home an unprecedented treble, as they won the Supporters’ Shield and MLS Cup, along with retaining their Canadian Championship crown. Giovinco was instrumental in the whole thing, scoring 17 times during the regular season, along with adding a goal and an assist for the team during the playoffs.
The 2017 MLS Best XI featured Giovinco once more, with the Italian making it three straight years of being named into the team. Following the unprecedented success, two other members of the side were also named into the line-up, in Victor Vazquez and Justin Morrow.
After winning it all in 2017, Toronto then showed their abilities on the continental stage, as they made it to the final of the CONCACAF Champions League. Unfortunately for the Canadian side, they were defeated by Mexican side Guadalajara, but Giovinco took home several awards from the tournament. He was honoured with the Golden Ball for the best performances, while his four goals also saw him tie team-mate, Jonathan Osorio, for the Golden Boot honours. The pair were also named into the tournament’s Best XI.
Toronto won the Canadian Championship for a third straight season in 2018, in what would be the Italian’s final term in Major League Soccer, as he left for the Middle East following the conclusion of the campaign. His four-year spell in MLS came to an end, with Giovinco having scored 68 goals and recorded 52 assists in 114 regular-season appearances, along with scoring five goals and recording five assists in 11 post-season matches. The ‘Atomic Ant’ will forever be a fan favourite in Toronto, and will always be remembered as one of their key men from the treble-winning success of 2017.