In a departure from past seasons, fans now have a say in the selection of MLS Player of the Week.
Supporters can show their Sporting colors today and #VoteGerso using the hashtag on Twitter, with fan votes accounting for 25% of the weighted MLS Player of the Week ballot. Votes casted by North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) will make up the other 75% of the vote.
Gerso is one of four MLS Player of the Week candidates alongside Houston Dynamo winger Alberth Elis, Toronto FC debutant playmaker Alejandro Pozuelo and LAFC forward Carlos Vela.
Sporting cruised to a record-breaking 7-1 win over the Montreal Impact on Saturday at Children's Mercy Park, thanks in part to Gerso's scintillating performance in attack. The diminutive winger assisted first-half goals to Krisztian Nemeth and Felipe Gutierrez while wreaking havoc on the Montreal backline, using his game-changing pace to put defenders on their toes while recording game-highs in dribbles completed (four), fouls won (five) and duels won (nine).
"I think Gerso has the best movement, right now, off the ball in the league," Sporting Manager Peter Vermes said Saturday after the match. "He was a big reason why we were successful today. I can’t take away from the rest of the guys. Their desire to move off the ball was definitely above what we’ve been doing. Hopefully we can keep building off of this."
With an emphatic victory under their belts, Gerso and Sporting will now shift their attention to the Concacaf Champions League Semifinals versus Mexican giants CF Monterrey. The first leg of the series is slated for Thursday at world-class Estadio BBVA Bancomer in Guadalupe, Mexico, kicking off at 9 p.m. CT with an English-language live stream on YahooSports.com and a Spanish-language broadcast on Univision Deportes. Sporting will then host the decisive return leg on Thursday, April 11, at 8 p.m. CT. Tickets for that match remain available at SeatGeek.com.
The 28-year-old Gerso has thrived in the 2019 Champions League thus far, notching two goals and two assists in the competition.
