MLS Player Rankings: Giovinco Takes Top Spot After Week 19 Hat-Trick
Sebastian Giovinco once again left followers of Major League Soccer in awe during Week 19 with three goals and an assist for Toronto FC against New York City FC.
The Atomic Ant outdueled fellow big-name offseason acquisition David Villa in an exciting 4-4 draw that was devoid of quality defending for most of the 90 minutes.
Due to his fantastic performance on Sunday afternoon, the front-runner for the Most Valuable Player award is back atop the MLS Player Rankings for the first time since after Week 15.
Continue reading to see who joined the dynamic Italian on the list of the league's 20 best players.
On the Way out
1 of 21
One player who was on the list for longer than he should have been finally exited the MLS Player Rankings after Week 19 along with an underperforming goalkeeper and two absentees from the Portland starting 11.
Players Dropped out of Rankings
Octavio Rivero (Vancouver Whitecaps; Previous Ranking: 9)
Alvas Powell (Portland Timbers; 17)
Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers; 19)
Josh Saunders (New York City FC; 20)
20. Soni Mustivar, CM, Sporting Kansas City
2 of 21
Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
Soni Mustivar has quietly turned himself into an important cog in the Sporting Kansas City midfield over the last month.
The 25-year-old had a breakout performance on Sunday in his side's 1-0 win over Vancouver with 19 tackles. The total was the highest recorded in MLS since at least the start of the 2010 season, per Opta.
The rock in the middle of the park has allowed Benny Feilhaber and Roger Espinoza to take on more forward roles and Sporting KC is reaping the benefits. Peter Vermes' side has won four of its last five matches and has only lost once since April 25.
19. Steve Birnbaum, CB, D.C. United
3 of 21
Previous Ranking: 14
Steve Birnbaum and his D.C. United teammates had the week off to rest up for the challenging contest against FC Dallas on Saturday night.
In order for the Eastern Conference leaders to pull three points out of Toyota Stadium, Birnbaum and the D.C. defense must find a way to contain the dangerous duo of Mauro Diaz and Fabian Castillo.
18. Kaka, AM, Orlando City
4 of 21
Previous Ranking: 15
Kaka was absent from the Orlando City lineup on Saturday due to a red-card suspension and the Lions showed just how much they rely on the Brazilian designated player.
Without the scorer of nine goals in 2015, the Lions failed to put a single shot on target in their 2-0 loss to FC Dallas.
Next up for the expansion side will be a meeting with the New York Red Bulls in Week 20.
17. Matias Perez Garcia, CAM, San Jose Earthquakes
5 of 21
Previous Ranking: 13
Compared to his excellent displays over the last few weeks, Matias Perez Garcia had an average showing against Houston on Friday night.
The 30-year-old Argentinian delivered three key passes to his teammates and attempted one shot on target, but it wasn't enough for the Earthquakes to beat Houston goalkeeper Tyler Deric.
Perez Garcia will receive a chance to replicate his two-assist showing against the Galaxy from June 28 on Friday as San Jose faces LA in Steven Gerrard's MLS debut.
16. Cristian Maidana, AM, Philadelphia Union
6 of 21
Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
In a span of two games, Cristian Maidana has catapulted up to a tie for second in the league in assists alongside Feilhaber.
Two weeks after handing out one assist in the Union's draw with Montreal, a refreshed Maidana contributed to all three of Philadelphia's second-half goals in its victory over Portland at PPL Park.
The best of three came on the last Union strike as Maidana played a crafty give-and-go with Vincent Nogueira.
15. Bradley Wright-Phillips, FW, New York Red Bulls
7 of 21
Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
Last year's Golden Boot winner hadn't put his name in the headlines much this season before Week 19, but that all changed after Bradley Wright-Phillips scored twice in 12 minutes for the Red Bulls.
The goals were the seventh and eighth of the season for the Englishman, who is being overshadowed by a certain Spanish striker in light blue just north of him.
Wright-Phillips has also turned himself into one of the better passers at the forward position this season with six assists in 18 matches. He had two assists in 32 regular-season games in 2014.
14. Sebastian Jaime, FW, Real Salt Lake
8 of 21
Previous Ranking: 16
Before things went south for Real Salt Lake on Saturday, Sebastian Jaime netted his fourth goal in five games for the Claret and Cobalt.
Unfortunately for the forward, he put his team at a disadvantage five minutes after scoring the opening goal of the match in the 79th minute. Jame was sent off in the 84th minute for shoving Colorado's Drew Moor in the face.
Jaime will now be forced to sit out Week 20's Western Conference clash with Houston for a RSL side that has seen its depth tested in recent weeks due to international call-ups.
13. Juninho, CM, LA Galaxy
9 of 21
Previous Ranking: 11
Juninho did not feature in league action in Week 19 for the LA Galaxy, but he did start in the International Champions Cup win over Club America on Saturday.
During the first half of that match, we received a glimpse of what the midfield pairing of Juninho and Gerrard would look like.
The first true test for the new Galaxy central-midfield partnership comes Friday in the California Clasico versus San Jose.
12. Matt Miazga, CB, New York Red Bulls
10 of 21
Previous Ranking: 18
Matt Miazga's terrific string of form continued into Saturday as he dominated the New England attack in the Red Bulls' 4-1 win over their Eastern Conference rival.
The United States U20 international made nine clearances and four interceptions on his way to limiting the Revolution to three shots on target.
Miazga and the Red Bulls will look to win their fourth league match in five games on Saturday as they visit the Citrus Bowl to play Orlando City.
11. Laurent Ciman, CB, Montreal Impact
11 of 21
Previous Ranking: 12
Earning the title of league's best center back will not be an easy task for any worthy contender if Laurent Ciman continues to play like he did on Saturday.
The Belgian is one of a few players who can currently make a legitimate case to be named the top player at the position. Miazga and Omar Gonzalez are two of his main contenders.
In Montreal's 3-0 win over Columbus on Saturday, Ciman helped limit the dangerous Crew front line to five shots on goal.
10. Mauro Diaz, AM, FC Dallas
12 of 21
Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
The highest debutante on this week's list is FC Dallas playmaker Mauro Diaz.
Diaz added a goal and an assist to his season totals in the Hoops' 2-0 win over Orlando City on Saturday. In his last three contests, Diaz has recorded two goals and two assists.
On top of his four goals and six assists in 2015, Diaz is averaging two key passes per game. All three numbers are expected to rise as Diaz finds his form as the summer heats up.
9. Sebastian Lletget, LM, LA Galaxy
13 of 21
Previous Ranking: 8
In the Galaxy's win over Club America on Saturday, Sebastian Lletget played the first half alongside the Galaxy starters.
Lletget began the second half on the bench as manager Bruce Arena opted to get a look at some young guys and rest the first team ahead of two key clashes in a pair of competitions this week.
The Galaxy will visit RSL in the quarterfinal round of the U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday before hosting San Jose in the latest edition of the California Clasico at StubHub Center on Friday.
8. Robbie Keane, FW, LA Galaxy
14 of 21
Previous Ranking: 7
As if you needed another reason to confirm that Robbie Keane is rounding into form at the right time for the Galaxy, he delivered a wonderful piece of skill on Saturday against Club America.
Although we can't reward him here because the goal took place outside of league action, we still have to give credit to Keane for his brilliant first touch before scoring LA's first goal of the night.
7. Fabian Castillo, LM, FC Dallas
15 of 21
Previous Ranking: 4
Fabian Castillo was unable to extend his scoring streak to four games against Orlando City, but he was one of the more active attackers on the pitch with 42 touches.
Despite flashing some individual skill throughout the match, Castillo failed to put a shot on goal for the first time as a starter since May 15.
Entering Week 20's match with D.C., Castillo has three goals and two assists in six games against Eastern Conference opposition.
6. Krisztian Nemeth, FW, Sporting Kansas City
16 of 21
Previous Ranking: 10
For the first time this season, Krisztian Nemeth put a shot on goal that didn't strike the back of the net.
Entering Sunday's match against Vancouver, the Hungarian forward had sent all seven of his attempts on target past opposing goalkeepers. That changed in the second half of Sporting KC's win over Vancouver, as high eighth shot on goal in 2015 was stopped by David Ousted.
Although he lost that rare statistical landmark, Nemeth did record his third assist of the year on the lone goal of the match scored by Kevin Ellis in the 52nd minute.
5. Benny Feilhaber, CM, Sporting Kansas City
17 of 21
Previous Ranking: 6
Benny Feilhaber's most important contributions to Sporting KC usually come in the final third, but he used his noggin to make a key play in front of his own goal on Sunday.
Feilhaber made a superb goal-line clearance in the 13th minute on a Tim Parker shot off Cristian Techera's corner kick.
On Monday, Feilhaber was one of three Sporting KC players to be named to the MLS All-Star Fan XI. He was joined by Matt Besler and Graham Zusi.
4. Ethan Finlay, RM, Columbus Crew
18 of 21
Previous Ranking: 2
The entire Columbus Crew attack suffered from a rough night at the office at Stade Saputo on Saturday in an Eastern Conference loss to Montreal.
The league leader in assists was only able to muster one key pass and 29 touches during his 90-minute shift in the 3-0 defeat.
On top of that miserable performance, Ethan Finlay was nowhere to be seen when the All-Star Fan XI was unveiled on Monday night.
3. Kei Kamara, FW, Columbus Crew
19 of 21
Previous Ranking: 1
Shame on all of us for not voting the league's top scorer into the MLS All-Star Game.
Kei Kamara, who is experiencing a career year in Columbus, was snubbed of a starting spot for the July 29 match against Tottenham Hotspur as Clint Dempsey, Obafemi Martins and David Villa claimed the positions. The good news for the scorer of 12 goals is he should be added to the squad sooner rather than later.
In his Week 19 match against Montreal, Kamara failed to fire any of his five shots on target. He will look to get back on track in Week 20 in two clashes against the Chicago Fire.
2. David Villa, FW, New York City FC
20 of 21
Previous Ranking: 3
Villa was able to strike twice in the eventful eight-goal thriller between NYCFC and Toronto on Sunday that was supposed to feature Frank Lampard before he pulled out with a late injury.
The two goals recorded by the Spanish legend marked the third time in four games that he bagged a brace for the expansion side. He also earned his highest shots-on-goal total of the season, as six of his attempts challenged Toronto goalkeeper Chris Konopka.
Villa should be able to extend his fabulous scoring run into Week 20 as NYCFC visits struggling New England on Saturday.
1. Sebastian Giovinco, FW, Toronto FC
21 of 21
Previous Ranking: 5
It is not an exaggeration when we claim Giovinco could have scored five or six goals on the condensed pitch at Yankee Stadium.
Before he recorded his nine-minute hat-trick, Giovinco hit the bottom-right part of the post from the spot, which was one of his seven shots on the day.
Giovinco's three goals in the first half entered him into the Toronto record book as he became the first Red to score three goals in a game, per the club's Twitter account.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from MLSSoccer.com and WhoScored.com.
