MLS Player Rankings: Keane Takes Top Spot with Week 24 Brace
With so many world-class scorers gracing the pitches of Major League Soccer, every top-notch forward must be able to produce in every single match for their respective side.
One player who is more than capable of doing just that is the LA Galaxy's Robbie Keane, who has been superb since his return from injury in June. Keane again bagged a brace for Bruce Arena's side in Week 24, which led to him retaking the top spot in the MLS Player Rankings.
Below Keane on the list of the league's top 20 players are a trio of New York Red Bulls stars in the top 10 and three new entrants who have flown under the radar recently.
Our player rankings take into account form over the last four matches with the player's most recent performance holding more stock than the other three.
On the Way Out
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All three players who exited the rankings this week did not play in Week 24 because of an injury, a suspension and a bye week.
Players Dropped out of Rankings
Laurent Ciman (Montreal Impact; Previous Ranking: 12)
Kendall Waston (Vancouver Whitecaps; 16)
Mauro Diaz (FC Dallas; 18)
20. Ethan Finlay, RM, Columbus Crew
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Previous Ranking: 17
Ethan Finlay remains on the list for one more week, but he is barely hanging on to a spot in the top 20, thanks to his output in the two matches before the MLS All-Star Game.
The owner of seven goals and 12 assists in 2015 was not able to correct his recent dip in form in Week 24 due to Columbus' bye week. He will receive two chances to do so against New York City FC and Sporting Kansas City in Week 25.
19. Alvas Powell, RB, Portland Timbers
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Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
Consistency is hard to come by at either full-back position in MLS, but Alvas Powell has found a way to bring it to the Portland back four this season.
The Jamaica international is second in the league, with 4.5 tackles per game, and he has been a vital part of the Timbers defense that has held opponents scoreless in the last 273 minutes of league action.
Thanks to Powell's and others' stellar defensive form, the Timbers are three points behind the LA Galaxy in the Western Conference race for first place.
18. Adam Kwarasey, GK, Portland Timbers
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Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
The other key reason why the Timbers are thriving at this point in the season is the play of Adam Kwarasey in net.
Kwarasey has stopped each of the 11 shots he's faced over the last three matches, including five against Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
His Week 24 clean sheet at Rio Tinto Stadium was his 11th of the season. He is the only MLS goalkeeper with more than 10 shutouts.
17. Chris Rolfe, AM, D.C. United
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Previous Ranking: 19
D.C. United were unable to conjure up more late-game magic on Thursday as they dropped an Eastern Conference match to New York City FC at Yankee Stadium.
Chris Rolfe created the Black and Red's lone goalscoring opportunity in the 3-1 defeat. Rolfe moved his assist total to four on the season for the Supporters' Shield leader.
Rolfe should be able to add to his season statistics in Week 25 against a San Jose side he's earned two goals and an assist against in the last three years.
16. Kevin Ellis, CB, Sporting Kansas City
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Previous Ranking: 20
Kevin Ellis did not turn in his best defensive performance of the season on Saturday night, but he did hand Sporting Kansas City a valuable lifeline in the 53rd minute against Vancouver.
Ellis sparked a bit of hope around Sporting Park with his header from close range, but Peter Vermes' side's miraculous comeback would not start until Dom Dwyer's 81st-minute strike.
On the defensive side of the ball, Ellis fared a tad better than the Sporting KC full-backs did against Kekuta Manneh, as he racked up five interceptions and four tackles.
15. Matias Laba, CDM, Vancouver Whitecaps
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Previous Ranking: 15
If you disregard Vancouver's brutal final nine minutes on Saturday, Matias Laba had a decent game limiting the Sporting KC attack to a few strong chances.
Sadly for Laba and his teammates, they conceded on three occasions after the 81st minute and left Sporting Park with an unexpected loss against one of their fellow Western Conference contenders.
The league leader in tackles recorded six in the Whitecaps' defeat that they will look to erase from their memory as soon as possible.
14. Kaka, AM, Orlando City
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Previous Ranking: 11
While we're on the topic of awful matches, let's talk about the debacle that was Orlando City on Sunday.
The Kaka-led attack failed to put a single shot on goal against the Sounders in the 4-0 loss at CenturyLink Field.
While the bad performance against Seattle is troubling, the Lions' more alarming stat should be Kaka's production in front of goal. In four of his last five games, the Brazilian has not placed a shot on target.
13. Sebastian Lletget, LM, LA Galaxy
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Previous Ranking: 10
Sebastian Lletget had a rare bad game for the LA Galaxy in their 2-1 win over FC Dallas at Toyota Stadium.
The 22-year-old American recorded 41 touches and put two shots off target in the victory that boosted LA to the top of the Western Conference standings.
Luckily for Lletget, he has a good chance of getting back on track in Week 25, as NYCFC and their lackluster back four visit StubHub Center.
12. Juninho, CM, LA Galaxy
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Previous Ranking: 9
Despite not having a huge impact on the Galaxy attack, Juninho still dictated the game's pace in midfield on Saturday night.
The 26-year-old central midfielder completed 81.4 percent of his 43 passes and led the Galaxy with 59 touches.
After a Tuesday match in the CONCACAF Champions League, Juninho will set all of his focus on the midfield battle against Andrea Pirlo and Kwadwo Poku of NYCFC.
11. Cyle Larin, FW, Orlando City
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Previous Ranking: 6
Just a few weeks after looking like one of the league's top in-form scorers, Cyle Larin left the pitch in Seattle without a goal to his name for the third straight game.
Despite scoring 11 goals in his rookie season, Larin has been too streaky for Orlando City's liking. Before his five goals in two games in July and August, he scored in three consecutive matches in May.
If Larin can't find more consistency in the final third for the Lions, the dream of reaching the play-offs in the club's first season will be thrown out the window.
10. Bradley Wright-Phillips, FW, New York Red Bulls
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Previous Ranking: 13
After making plenty of noise in the scoring column in 2014, Bradley Wright-Phillips has quietly climbed up the Golden Boot standings in 2015.
The English forward netted his third strike in four contests on Saturday in the Red Bulls' 3-0 win over Toronto FC.
Wright-Phillips, who already has more goals this month than he had in August 2014, may not hit 27 goals again this year, but there is still a strong possibility he reaches 20 given his recent output.
9. Cristian Maidana, AM, Philadelphia Union
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Previous Ranking: Not Ranked
Most people would not believe you if you said the league's top assist man plays for the Philadelphia Union.
With his three assists on Sunday in the wild 3-3 affair against Chicago, Cristian Maidana claimed the league lead in the stat category, with 14, which is one more than Benny Feilhaber.
Since joining the Union in 2014, Maidana has five multi-assist games, three of which saw him contribute to three goals. Over the last seven games, the Argentinian has dished out nine of his 14 assists.
8. Matt Miazga, CB, New York Red Bulls
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Previous Ranking: 14
Rarely do we start running out of superlatives for a 20-year-old center-back, but that is exactly the case with Matt Miazga.
A week after shutting down David Villa for the second time this season, Miazga stood firm against the Toronto duo of Sebastian Giovinco and Jozy Altidore, who combined for one shot on goal on Saturday night at Red Bull Arena.
All you need is one stat to prove how valuable Miazga has been to Jesse Marsch's side this season. The Red Bulls have 11 wins, four draws and two losses with Miazga in the starting lineup. During his time away at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the Red Bulls had four losses and one draw.
7. Dax McCarty, CM, New York Red Bulls
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Previous Ranking: 8
The other Red Bull more than deserving of a United States men's national team call-up is captain and midfielder Dax McCarty.
McCarty once again commanded the midfield battle against Toronto on Saturday by making six interceptions and recording the highest number of touches in the match, with 92.
With Miazga, Wright-Phillips and McCarty among the many players in terrific form at the moment, do not be surprised if the Red Bulls make a surge toward the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed and the Supporters' Shield.
6. Javier Morales, CAM, Real Salt Lake
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Previous Ranking: 7
Javier Morales and his teammates in the Real Salt Lake attack did everything they could to produce a goal at home on Saturday, but it just wasn't meant to be.
Despite Morales' high work rate, the Claret and Cobalt fell 1-0 in heartbreaking fashion on former center-back Nat Borchers' late goal, which struck a huge blow to their play-off hopes.
In the club's 10th loss of the season, Morales handed out four key passes and recorded the most touches of any player at Rio Tinto Stadium, with 94.
5. Kei Kamara, FW, Columbus Crew
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Previous Ranking: 2
Kei Kamara rested his shooting boots in Week 24 in preparation for the Crew's busy and important Week 25.
The Golden Boot leader will be relied on to find holes in the open NYCFC defense on Wednesday and breaking down the Sporting KC back four on Saturday in order to keep Columbus in the Eastern Conference's top three.
4. Sebastian Giovinco, FW, Toronto FC
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Previous Ranking: 1
Sebastian Giovinco suffered through what was arguably his most frustrating game as a Toronto FC player on Saturday night.
Miazga and the Red Bulls' back line thwarted Giovinco's runs forward on numerous occasions, which led to the Italian taking just two shots, one of which was on target.
Despite his hat-trick against Orlando on August 5, the month has not treated Giovinco well, as he has just six shots on goal to his name through four games.
3. Benny Feilhaber, CM, Sporting Kansas City
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Previous Ranking: 4
For just under 24 hours, Benny Feilhaber controlled the top spot on the league assist chart, thanks to his dish on Paulo Nagamura's 87th-minute equalizer.
However, the Sporting KC midfielder dropped to second a night later after Maidana's terrific individual performance for Philadelphia.
Feilhaber's late assist against Vancouver extended his streak of contributing to at least one goal to five league matches.
2. David Villa, FW, New York City FC
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Previous Ranking: 5
One has to think David Villa was quite excited on Thursday night when he didn't have to line up across from Miazga again.
Four days after a lackluster performance against the Red Bulls, Villa was one of the most active parts of the NYCFC attack in the club's 3-1 win over D.C. United.
In the 51st minute, Villa earned his sixth assist of the season on Thomas McNamara's goal, while he contributed his 14th goal of the year in the 80th minute to put NYCFC in the lead for good.
In three of the last four games, Villa has produced at least a goal and an assist for the expansion side.
1. Robbie Keane, FW, LA Galaxy
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Previous Ranking: 3
Robbie Keane's production since permanently returning to the starting lineup on June 20 has been nothing short of remarkable.
Keane added two more goals to his season tally on Saturday in the win over FC Dallas. All of a sudden, Keane is now a contender in the Golden Boot race with 13 strikes.
Since the June 20 win over Philadelphia, Keane has played a role in 15 of the Galaxy's 28 goals, including four goals and an assist in the last three league contests.
Joe Tansey covers MLS for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from MLSSoccer.com and WhoScored.com.
