MLS Player Rankings: Shipp Edges Trio of Players for Top Spot
For the first time this season, four players made a legitimate argument to be named the top player in our weekly MLS Player Rankings.
Few things separated the quartet of Harry Shipp, Sebastian Giovinco, Javier Morales and Octavio Rivero from each other, but only one could be named to the No. 1 position.
Because this is a cumulative ranking of the top 20 players in MLS, Shipp earned the small edge over the three stars of the league.
Continue reading on to see who finished behind Shipp in this week's edition of the MLS Player Rankings.
On the Way out
1 of 21
Three big names dropped out of the rankings due to inefficiency on the pitch and a lack of playing time in league action. The fourth is a goalkeeper who was on the wrong end of the final score on Saturday night.
Players Dropped out of Rankings
Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy; 14)
Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC; 16)
David Villa (New York City FC; 17)
Tyler Deric (Houston Dynamo; 20)
20. Blas Perez, FW, FC Dallas
2 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 13
A week after missing FC Dallas' match against the Seattle Sounders due to international duty, Blas Perez appeared as a substitute in the 3-1 defeat to the Portland Timbers in Week 5.
In 28 minutes off the bench, the Panamanian failed to take a single shot against the host Timbers.
Perez, who has not scored since March 14, will look to break his brief dry spell in front of goal versus Colorado in Week 6.
19. Brek Shea, LB, Orlando City
3 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: Not Ranked
Brek Shea is beginning to fend off the critics of his move to left-back thanks to his strong play for Orlando City.
Shea turned in a splendid shift on the left wing for the Lions in their 1-0 loss to D.C. United on Friday night.
The United States men's national team defender swung in a few dangerous crosses, and made a goal-line clearance in the 68th minute before Orlando fell on a late D.C. strike.
18. Fernando Aristeguieta, FW, Philadelphia Union
4 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: Not Ranked
Another player who delivered a strong performance before his team collapsed in stoppage time in Week 5 was Fernando Aristeguieta.
The Philadelphia Union forward showed his strength in the box on the club's second goal of the night, as he outmuscled Matt Besler on a free-kick.
The league leader in shots and co-leader in shots on target also displayed a flaw in his game on Sunday night, as he lacked any speed on a few occasions.
Fortunately for the Union, Aristeguieta has continued to produce thanks to his physical nature in the box, which will cause problems for the rest of the season.
17. Benny Feilhaber, CM, Sporting Kansas City
5 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: Not Ranked
Benny Feilhaber took sole possession of the top spot on the assist chart in the 94th minute of Sporting Kansas City's come-from-behind win over the Union.
Feilhaber whipped in a corner that found the head of Matt Besler before Krisztian Nemeth finished his shot into the back of the net.
His set-piece delivery also allowed Sporting KC to earn their first goal of the match in the 16th minute.
Feilhaber's four assists are one better than the totals of Shipp, Javier Morales, Michel and Pedro Morales.
16. Pedro Morales, AM, Vancouver Whitecaps
6 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: Not Ranked
For the third consecutive game, Pedro Morales tallied an assist in a victory by the Vancouver Whitecaps.
On the club's 56th-minute opener against the LA Galaxy, Morales played a ball to Kekuta Manneh on the left wing, which allowed the young winger to sprint forward and score.
The distributor of 12 assists in 2014 may not face as much pressure to provide in attack this season due to the development of Manneh and the arrival of Rivero up top.
15. Kelyn Rowe, LM, New England Revolution
7 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 19
A week after he scored on two occasions, Kelyn Rowe contributed to another goal in the New England Revolution's 2-0 win over Colorado.
In the 18th minute of the match at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, Rowe lofted a perfect ball from the right wing into Juan Agudelo, who proceeded to score his first goal of the year.
Rowe has now played a role in three of the four strikes netted by the MLS Cup runner-up in 2015.
14. Fanendo Adi, FW, Portland Timbers
8 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 18
Fanendo Adi notched his first assist of the season on Portland's game-clinching goal in the 87th minute.
The Nigerian forward, who also has three goals to his name, sprung Diego Chara with a pass from midfield and created the third Timbers goal in the victory over FC Dallas.
Adi, who has played a role in a goal during three of the last four games, will look to make a meaningful impact up top against Orlando City on Sunday.
13. Ike Opara, CB, Sporting Kansas City
9 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 10
Ike Opara had arguably his worst game of the season at the back for Sporting KC on Sunday night.
The commanding defender saw his side get dominated by the Union for the majority of the match before Sporting struck for two goals in stoppage time.
In the 3-2 victory, Opara made five interceptions, four clearances and three tackles.
Of the defenders who have participated in five matches, Opara is third in clearances per game with eight, which is the ninth-best total in the entire league.
12. Chris Wondolowski, FW, San Jose Earthquakes
10 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 7
Lined up in an odd role on Sunday night, Chris Wondolowski made a minimal impact for the Earthquakes against Real Salt Lake.
The 32-year-old, who started behind the forward trio, recorded 31 touches and failed to fire a single shot in the 1-0 defeat.
Wondolowski will look to get back on track in Week 6 against a Vancouver side he put two goals past on May 3, 2014.
11. Lloyd Sam, RM, New York Red Bulls
11 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 11
It is hard to blame Lloyd Sam, or any New York Red Bull, for their lack of playing time in the early stages of the 2015 season.
Sam and his teammates were left watching the action from home for the second time this season just three weeks after sitting out Week 2.
The Red Bulls will return to action on Saturday night, when they face D.C. United at RFK Stadium in a rematch of the 2-0 Red Bulls win on March 22.
10. Kei Kamara, FW, Columbus Crew
12 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 9
The Columbus Crew also fell victim to the scheduling oddities of MLS, as they were left on the sideline for the second time in three weeks.
The bye week meant that Kei Kamara was unable to continue his strong start to the year, which has seen him put seven shots on target and score one goal.
Kamara and the Crew will face a massive test in Week 6, as they will play in Vancouver on Wednesday before travelling to New England for a Saturday match.
9. Mix Diskerud, CM, New York City FC
13 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 8
Mix Diskerud was handed his first break of the new season, as New York City FC was one of four teams off in Week 5.
Entering Saturday's clash with Philadelphia, Diskerud is averaging the third-highest amount of passes in the league, with 70.5 per game.
Diskerud's command of the game in midfield could help NYCFC dominate at PPL Park against the struggling Union.
8. Clint Dempsey, FW, Seattle Sounders
14 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 12
Despite losing the lead in the Golden Boot race, Clint Dempsey still played a key role in a goal this weekend.
Dempsey provided Obafemi Martins with an assist on the Nigerian's 39th-minute goal against the Houston Dynamo at CenturyLink Field.
Although he has only played 267 minutes this season, Dempsey has been extremely efficient with three goals and two assists.
7. Obafemi Martins, FW, Seattle Sounders
15 of 21Week 4 Ranking: 15
Martins turned plenty of heads with the lone Seattle goal on Saturday night, as he spun around a defender and slotted the ball past Tyler Deric.
The move straight out of a video game left the entire Houston defense in shock, and extended Martins' scoring run to three games.
In three regular-season matches against Week 6 opponent LA in 2014, Martins earned three assists.
6. Bradley Wright-Phillips, FW, New York Red Bulls
16 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 5
It's hard to drop Bradley Wright-Phillips more than a spot this week because his inactivity was caused by the schedule makers.
Luckily for fans of the Red Bulls, the team doesn't have another bye week until the middle of June, which means Wright-Phillips can begin to find a rhythm up top for Jesse Marsch's team.
5. Kaka, AM, Orlando City
17 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 1
Compared to his first four games, Kaka struggled in Orlando's frustrating loss to D.C. on Friday night.
The Brazilian did make three key passes, but he only attempted one shot throughout the match in which the Lions failed to find the finishing touch.
If the expansion side can't find a true scorer at the forward position over the next few weeks, the pressure will grow on Kaka to score the goals himself.
4. Octavio Rivero, FW, Vancouver Whitecaps
18 of 21Week 4 Ranking: 4
Sometimes it's easy to forget the little things that forwards do right in the age of flashy superstars.
On his fourth goal of the season, Rivero made a brilliant run on the left side of the penalty area after he laid the ball off to Nicolas Mezquida.
Instead of giving up on the play following his pass, Rivero looped around the occupied LA defense and tapped home a rebound.
The 66th-minute strike was the lone shot on goal recorded for the Golden Boot leader, which is why we kept him at the No. 4 position this week.
3. Javier Morales, AM, Real Salt Lake
19 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 6
As we said last year in this weekly piece, Javier Morales is MLS' version of fine wine. He just gets better with age.
The 35-year-old Argentinian scored off his own rebound in the 44th minute of Real Salt Lake's 1-0 win over San Jose, but his most important contribution came on the other end of the field.
With the rest of his teammates caught up the pitch in the 60th minute, Morales made a goal-saving challenge before the RSL defense tracked back and ended the San Jose move forward.
Since 2012, Morales has recorded 22 goals and 34 assists. In his first four seasons, he earned 17 goals and 34 assists, per Chris Kamrani of the Salt Lake Tribune.
2. Sebastian Giovinco, AM, Toronto FC
20 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 2
Giovinco barely missed out on the top spot in the closest race for the No. 1 position yet this season.
The small Italian scored in the 20th minute of Toronto FC's loss to the Chicago Fire on Saturday, and he assisted on Benoit Cheyrou's 54th-minute goal.
In the defeat, Giovinco made 51 touches, three key passes and completed 78.4 percent of his passes.
Through four games, the designated player has one goal, two assists and 17 shots.
1. Harry Shipp, AM, Chicago Fire
21 of 21
Week 4 Ranking: 3
If you've watched Shipp in each of the five games he has played this season, it is hard to argue against his claiming of the No. 1 spot.
Shipp recorded two assists in Chicago's win over Toronto, and he attempted five shots for a club who have looked like a functional soccer team over the last two weeks.
Before the entire Fire team got its act together, Shipp was the player who made sure it didn't go down without a fight.
One thing to watch in regard to Shipp's production over the next few weeks is the potential drop off in form he may experience. After his hot start in 2014, the midfielder fizzled out for most of the summer.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from MLSSoccer.com and WhoScored.com.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
