Nashville SC midfielder Hany Mukhtar on Tuesday was named the 2022 Landon Donovan MLS MVP.
The honor came after Mukhtar won the MLS Golden Boot during his record-breaking season.
Mukhtar led the league with 34 goal contributions (23 goals, 11 assists), which was tied for the fifth most in a single season in MLS history. He scored or assisted on 65.4 percent of Nashville SC’s goals, the most by a player in MLS this season. Mikhtar helped Nashville finish fifth in the Western Conference and earn a berth in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
The standout midfielder recorded 21 goals and seven assists in his final 22 games of the season, which culminated in a league-high 11 goals since the start of August. The German playmaker enjoyed a historic August, becoming the fourth player in MLS history to total at least 12 goal contributions (eight goal, four assists) in a calendar month. With Nashville fighting for a playoff spot down the stretch of the season, Mukhtar recorded 10 combined goals and assists as part of its club-record four-game winning streak from Aug. 21 to Sept. 3.
Mukhtar also has earned several other accolades since joining Nashville in 2020. That included a MLS Best XI (2021), one player of the month award and six player of the week honors.
Mukhtar became the first German-born player and the first in Nashville SC history to be named MVP. He is also the sixth European-born player to win the award since 2000 and the third consecutive after Carles Gil (2021) and Alejandro Pozuelo (2020). Mukhtar also was the fourth player in the last decade to win MVP honors and the Golden Boot in the same season.
He was the first player to lead the league in goal contributions in consecutive seasons since Sebastian Giovinco from 2015-16.
Mukhtar finished ahead of Austin FC forward Sebastián Driussi and Philadelphia Union goalkeeper Andre Blake. LA Galaxy forward Javier “Chicharito” Hernández and LAFC forward Cristian “Chicho” Arango were fourth and fifth, respectively, in the final voting results.
The MVP award has been presented since 1996 to the individual determined by a poll of players, club technical staff and the media to be the most valuable to his club.
|
PLAYER |
MEDIA |
CLUB |
TOTAL |
Mukhtar, Hany (NSH) |
29.90% |
78.00% |
36.20% |
48.03% |
Driussi, Sebastián (ATX) |
16.10% |
13.00% |
21.30% |
16.80% |
Blake, Andre (PHI) |
8.40% |
2.40% |
12.80% |
7.87% |
Hernández, Javier ‘Chicharito’ (LA) |
2.90% |
0.00% |
4.30% |
3.60% |
Arango, Cristian ‘Chicho’ (LAFC) |
5.50% |
0.80% |
4.30% |
3.53% |
A full list of previous Landon Donovan MLS MVP winners can be found below:
Landon Donovan MLS MVP Winners |
||
Season |
Player |
Club |
2022 |
Hany Mukhtar |
Nashville SC |
2021 |
Carles Gil |
New England Revolution |
2020 |
Alejandro Pozuelo |
Toronto FC |
2019 |
Carlos Vela |
Los Angeles Football Club |
2018 |
Josef Martínez |
Atlanta United FC |
2017 |
Diego Valeri |
Portland Timbers |
2016 |
David Villa |
New York City FC |
2015 |
Sebastian Giovinco |
Toronto FC |
2014 |
Robbie Keane |
LA Galaxy |
2013 |
Mike Magee |
Chicago Fire |
2012 |
Chris Wondolowski |
San Jose Earthquakes |
2011 |
Dwayne De Rosario |
D.C. United |
2010 |
David Ferreira |
FC Dallas |
2009 |
Landon Donovan |
LA Galaxy |
2008 |
Guillermo Barros Schelotto |
Columbus Crew |
2007 |
Luciano Emilio |
D.C. United |
2006 |
Christian Gómez |
D.C. United |
2005 |
Taylor Twellman |
New England Revolution |
2004 |
Amado Guevara |
MetroStars |
2003 |
Preki |
Kansas City Wizards |
2002 |
Carlos Ruiz |
LA Galaxy |
2001 |
Alex Pineda Chacon |
Miami Fusion |
2000 |
Tony Meola |
Kansas City Wizards |
1999 |
Jason Kreis |
Dallas Burn |
1998 |
Marco Etcheverry |
D.C. United |
1997 |
Preki |
Kansas City Wizards |
1996 |
Carlos Valderrama |
Tampa Bay Mutiny |
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