The rivalry game between Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps turned in to a shootout with the two teams combining for seven goals in a Whitecaps road win on Saturday night. That was the highlight of a busy weekend from a fantasy perspective in the MLS with Sebastian Giovinco delivering another trademark performance despite that it wasn’t enough to deliver the three points for TFC. Here is a look at the top individual performances in MLS fantasy by position from this past weekend.
GK: Travis Worra, DC United
DC United bounced back with its first win in three games thanks in big part to their goalkeeper Worra, who stopped all five shots he faced in a 2-0 win over the New York Red Bulls. United is still looking for his first road win of the year but they have managed to stay in a playoff position through the first 11 games of the season thanks to a .500 record at home and Worra was definitely one of their best players overall this past weekend.
Honorable Mention: Chris Seitz, FC Dallas; Bobby Shuttleworth, New England; Joe Willis, Houston
D: Drew Moor, Toronto FC
Toronto FC failed to earn a point in a 4-3 loss to the rival Vancouver Whitecaps over the weekend but Moor wasn’t shy to push forward on the attack as he finished with a goal and two shots on target. The fact that TFC conceded four goals certainly didn’t help his final total in leagues that punish defenders for goals allowed but his offensive output was enough to make sure he still earned top honors at his position this week.
Honorable Mention: Harrison Afful, Columbus; Ryan Hollingshead, FC Dallas
M: Kekuta Manneh, Vancouver
Manneh was the man of the match for the Whitecaps in their 4-3 win as he scored two goals with an assist and five shots in total in the victory. Manneh went from two points in his first 11 games to five points through 12 games with the big performance and there was no doubt about his position as the top MLS fantasy midfielder in the league this past weekend.
M: Mauro Diaz, FC Dallas
Diaz’s penalty shot in the third minute of a match with the Seattle Sounders would have been enough on its own to secure the victory but FC Dallas got another goal rom Michael Barrios in the 80th minute to make it a 2-0 final. Diaz’s goal stood as the game-winner and was just enough to help him edge out his competition in a relatively quiet weekend for MLS midfielders overall.
Honorable Mention: Michael Barrios, FC Dallas; Lee Nguyen, New England; Christian Bolanos, Vancouver
F: Sebastian Giovinco, Toronto FC
The fact that Giovinco scored two goals, finished with three points and had six shots on target should have been enough to deliver the victory for Toronto FC against the Whitecaps on Saturday night. However, TFC was an absolute mess in its own end and a late goal from Pedro Morales in the 72nd minute was the difference in a 4-3 loss. It wasn’t enough to bounce Giovinco from the top spot on this list as the diminutive forward posted the best overall MLS fantasy score this past weekend. Giovinco is up to eight goals and five assists with 63 shots through the first 10 games of the season and it’s impossible to ignore the fact that he has pretty much carried the Toronto attack on his back over the first couple of months of the season.
F: Pedro Morales, Vancouver
The game-winning goal and an assist was enough to give Vancouver the edge in a 4-3 win over TFC over the weekend as Morales edged out New York City FC’s David Villa and Alvario Saborio of DC United with the second-best MLS fantasy score at his position this past weekend. Morales has five goals and two assists through his first nine games of the year and his offensive contribution has been a big reason why the Whitecaps rank second in the MLS in scoring this season with 20 goals.
Honorable Mention: David Villa, New York City FC; Alvario Saborio, DC United; Dom Dwyer, Sporting Kansas City
