DC United earned the biggest win of the MLS week when they beat the New England Revolution 2-1 on Sunday to extend their lead in the Eastern Conference to seven points. Meanwhile, a 2-0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes left the Seattle Sounders in a more vulnerable position as the Vancouver Whitecaps, Portland Timbers and LA Galaxy all won to close the gap at the top of the Western Conference standings. Here is a look at the top individual fantasy performers at each position from this past week in the MLS.
GK: David Ousted, Vancouver
Ousted was the busiest of the MLS goalkeepers this past week as he made four saves in a 2-1 win over the New York Red Bulls – including two penalty kick saves. Ousted became just the third goalkeeper in MLS history to save two penalties in a single game as he turned away Bradley Wright-Phillips both times to help Vancouver steal a crucial three points and close the gap on Seattle for the top of the Western Conference standings. Honorable Mention: David Bingham, San Jose; Josh Saunders, New York City FC
D: Donny Toia, Montreal
Montreal’s defenders were outstanding in their 2-0 win over Orlando City SC thanks in part to the clean sheet bonus they earned. Toia separated himself from the pack with the game-winning goal in that match. Toia scored in the 36th minute to give the Impact the lead before the half and Dominic Oduro added another in added time in order to seal the win. Laurent Ciman earned an honorable mention for his performance but Toia’s game-winning goal made the difference as he ranked as the top fantasy defender in the MLS this past week.
D: Chris Duvall, New York Red Bulls
We usually don’t see fantasy defenders on this list in losses where they allowed two goals but Duvall did have an assist and both four winning tackles and four passes intercepted in the defeat. Ciman and San Jose’s Clarence Goodson were in the mix as well but Duvall’s stats across the board separated him from that tandem. Honorable Mention: Laurent Ciman, Montreal; Clarence Goodson, San Jose
M: Javier Morales, Real Salt Lake
Morales was an absolute beast for Real Salt Lake in their 2-1 win over Sporting KC as he assisted on both of the team’s goals and sent a ridiculous eight successful crosses in to the box. Morales has consistently been one of the best defenders in the MLS this season and it was no different this past week as he dominated again.
M: Matias Perez Garcia, San Jose
The Earthquakes climbed to within a single point of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference with a 2-0 win over the first-place Sounders thanks in big part to the play of Garcia in the attacking third. Garcia registered a goal, an assist and five winning tackles to separate himself as the second-best fantasy midfielder in the MLS from this past week. Honorable Mention: Marco Donadel, Montreal; Jorge Villafana, Portland
F: Chris Rolfe, DC United
Rolfe stepped up in a major way with DC United fighting for a crucial three points against New England as he scored both of their goals and finished with four shots on target. DC needs Rolfe to perform at an elite level on a consistent basis in order to win the Eastern Conference. There was no doubt about it this week he was the most dominant fantasy performer regardless of position.
F: David Villa, New York City FC
Villa has undoubtedly lived up to his reputation since making the move to the MLS and he delivered again for New York City FC again in their 2-0 win over Toronto FC on Saturday. Villa scored both of NYCFC’s goals and that obviously included the game-winning goal and he finished with three shots on target and four winning fouls. New York is set to announce the addition of midfielder Andrea Pirlo this week and there is no doubt that with Villa and Pirlo, they will have a legitimate chance to rally and make the playoffs in the Eastern Conference this season. They are now locked in a four-way tie for fifth place with 17 points. Honorable Mention: Gyasi Zardes, LA Galaxy; CJ Sapong, Philadelphia
