MLS Team of the Week: Philadelphia, Montreal Pairs Impress in Week 12
The bizarre results we witnessed across Major League Soccer last weekend continued in Week 12, as parity reigned supreme across North America.
The Philadelphia Union and Montreal Impact both earned impressive victories against two of the top sides in the league, while the Colorado Rapids pulled out a much-needed home victory against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
One team that is used to being represented at least once in our MLS Team of the Week also stood out in Week 12, as Sporting Kansas City took four points from a tough two-game stretch.
Two players from Philadelphia, Montreal and Sporting KC earned top marks after Week 12 as well as one standout midfielder from Colorado.
Due to a few extra-strong showings up top, we opted to use a 4-3-3 formation this week.
Continue reading to see which players qualified for our latest MLS Team of the Week.
GK: Evan Bush, Montreal Impact
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Evan Bush survived an offensive onslaught from FC Dallas over the final 15 minutes at Stade Saputo on Saturday in order to secure a second consecutive home win for Montreal.
Bush made a total of seven saves, including a terrific leaping effort in the 88th minute on a headed shot sent in by Blas Perez.
The seven denials were the most made by Bush this season, and his highest total since October 5, 2014 against Chicago.
RB: Steven Beitashour, Vancouver Whitecaps
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One of the few bright spots for the Vancouver Whitecaps team on Saturday was the play of Steven Beitashour at right back.
Beitashour did his job on the flank by silencing Colorado's Juan Ramirez. The Rapids winger only made 46 touches and produced a single shot, which went off-target.
The 28-year-old Iran international totaled six interceptions, four clearances and two tackles in Vancouver's 1-0 loss at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.
CB: Laurent Ciman, Montreal Impact
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A week after shutting down the Real Salt Lake attack, Laurent Ciman helped hold the dangerous FC Dallas offense to one goal at Stade Saputo.
The Belgian, who has turned out to be one of the top defensive acquisitions of the offseason, made 10 clearances and five interceptions during the Impact's second win of the year.
Ciman and the Montreal back four will look to carry their form into Week 13, when they visit the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park.
CB: Andrew Farrell, New England Revolution
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A rare set of circumstances put the New England Revolution down to nine men with 32 minutes remaining in their clash with D.C. United.
Thanks to the tremendous effort put in by Andrew Farrell and others, the Revs were able to retain a point from the Eastern Conference showdown.
Farrell's extra motor came from the rest he was handed on Wednesday night, as he sat out the trip to Sporting Park in preparation for Saturday's match.
“It was one of the best efforts I’ve seen from our team since I’ve been here. It felt good to be on the field with the guys giving it their all," Farrell said, per the club's official website.
LB: Fabinho, Philadelphia Union
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No one outside of the Philadelphia Union locker room believed Fabinho would silence Lloyd Sam for 90 minutes at Red Bull Arena on Sunday night. But that is exactly what the replacement left-back did in the Union's 2-0 victory.
The 30-year-old, who was filling in for an injured Raymon Gaddis, limited the dynamic Sam to zero shots during Philadelphia's first-ever win at Red Bull Arena.
Fabinho led the team in interceptions with six, and he contributed five clearances to the Philadelphia cause.
"That's Fabinho's best game in a Union uniform," Philadelphia manager Jim Curtin said, per Philly.com's Jonathan Tannenwald.
CM: Brian Carroll, Philadelphia Union
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Fabinho wasn't the only Philadelphia player who surprised us with a terrific performance at Red Bull Arena.
League veteran Brian Carroll limited Sacha Kljestan's impact to a minimum throughout the Union's third win of the 2015 season.
Carroll, who made five tackles and five clearances, held the United States international to zero shots on target and a single key pass.
Not only did the shocking showing hand the Union more momentum during a difficult stretch of matches, it also provided the Philadelphia fans with hope that wasn't there a few weeks ago.
CM: Benny Feilhaber, Sporting Kansas City
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The league leader in assists had a busy Week 12, as he earned four points with Sporting Kansas City against New England and Seattle.
Benny Feilhaber scored from the spot and provided two assists in Sporting KC's massive 4-2 win at home over New England on Wednesday. The American lofted a free-kick on to the head of Krisztian Nemeth in the 39th minute before he sprung an attack from the middle of the pitch in the 46th minute.
Feilhaber also starred in the 0-0 draw against the Seattle Sounders on Saturday night at CenturyLink Field, as he provided Sporting KC with an impressive effort in every aspect of the game. He almost scored a game-winning goal in the 90th minute, but he was denied by Seattle goalkeeper Stefan Frei.
Feilhaber's two assists on Wednesday allowed him to tie his highest single-season total in the stat category before the calendar flips to June.
CM: Lucas Pittinari, Colorado Rapids
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Lucas Pittinari allowed Colorado fans to leave Dick's Sporting Goods Park with smiles on their faces for the first time in a while on Saturday night.
The defensive midfielder finished off a splendid pass from Gabriel Torres in the 51st minute to hand the Rapids a rare advantage at home. When the final whistle blew, the Rapids earned their first home win since July 25, 2014.
Pittinari also made a major impact on the defensive side of the pitch, as he made six tackles and two interceptions against a Vancouver side that only produced four shots on goal.
FW: Sebastian Giovinco, Toronto FC
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With Jozy Altidore out due to injury, Sebastian Giovinco slotted into the main forward role and shined for Toronto FC.
The little Italian netted the lone goal of the Reds' 1-0 victory in the fifth minute. After receiving a pass from Luke Moore near the top of the penalty area, Giovinco lashed a shot into the right corner of the net.
From that point on, the record signing did everything in his power to score a second for Toronto FC. Although he couldn't bag a brace on Saturday, Giovinco still turned in one of the top performances of Week 12.
FW: Krisztian Nemeth, Sporting Kansas City
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Krisztian Nemeth has been a critical part of the Sporting KC attack all season, but most of the fans around the league weren't aware of that until Wednesday night.
The Hungary international recorded two goals and an assist in the national spotlight against New England at Sporting Park, while he led the line in fine fashion against Seattle.
In 180 minutes of play in Week 12, Nemeth attempted nine shots and made four key passes during a crucial two-game stretch for the fifth-place team in the Western Conference.
FW: Kei Kamara, Columbus Crew
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Kei Kamara continued his scoring spree for the Columbus Crew on Friday night, as he placed the ball in the back of the net from close range on two occasions.
The Sierra Leone international knocked in his eighth goal of the season in the eighth minute, when he connected with an Ethan Finlay cross from the right wing.
He nodded his ninth goal of the campaign past Chicago goalkeeper Jon Busch in the 55th minute after he broke away from Jeff Larentowicz on a corner kick.
After 12 weeks of play, Kamara has a two-goal lead over Clint Dempsey and Chris Wondolowski in the Golden Boot race.
Bench
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GK: Adam Kwarasey (Portland Timbers)
RB: Eric Gehrig (Chicago Fire)
CB: Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City)
CM: Luke Mulholland (Real Salt Lake)
CAM: Ignacio Piatti (Montreal Impact)
FW: Alvaro Saborio (Real Salt Lake)
FW: David Accam (Chicago Fire)
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from MLSSoccer.com and WhoScored.com.
