Sporting Kansas City goalkeeper Tim Melia has been voted Alcatel MLS Player of the Week by the North American Soccer Reporters for Week 6, Major League Soccer announced today.
Melia set a career-high and regular season club record with 10 saves in Sporting KC’s 2-0 victory over the LA Galaxy on Sunday at StubHub Center. The 31-year-old goalkeeper made seven of his 10 stops in the second half as Sporting KC (4-1-1, 13 points) pushed their unbeaten run to five matches and moved into a tie for first place in the Supporters’ Shield standings.
The defending Allstate MLS Goalkeeper of the Year was in vintage form Sunday, collecting his second straight clean sheet and moving up to third on the League charts with 20 saves this season. Melia’s best moment came in the 43rd minute when he dove at full extension to push Ashley Cole’s swerving shot onto the post and keep the hosts at bay. He was especially busy during the final half-hour, thwarting Romain Alessandrini in the 66th minute before denying second-half substitute Zlatan Ibrahimovic on three occasions in the late stages.
Sunday’s win — highlighted by second-half goals from Daniel Salloi and Johnny Russell —extended Sporting KC’s unbeaten run against the Galaxy to seven matches dating back to October 2015. Manager Peter Vermes’ men have collected four victories and three draws versus LA during that stretch.
Today’s announcement marks the first time a Sporting KC player has won MLS Player of the Week since Week 31 of the 2015 season, when Melia earned the honor for the first time in his career following a six-save performance in a 1-0 triumph against the Portland Timbers on Oct. 3, 2015.
The Alcatel MLS Player of the Week is chosen each week of the regular season by members of the North American Soccer Reporters. The organization includes print, television, radio and online journalists who cover domestic men's soccer in the United States and Canada.
First-place Sporting KC will return home Sunday to host two-time defending Western Conference champion Seattle Sounders FC at Children’s Mercy Park. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. CT on ESPN, Sports Radio 810 WHB and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM. Tickets for the marquee matchup are available on SeatGeek.com or by calling 888-4KC-GOAL to purchase the Coca-Cola Sunday Family Four Pack (four tickets, four Coca-Cola products, four chips and four hot dogs).
