Despite loss, Saborio earns Player of the Week award as a consolation prize By Steven Sandor Posted on July 29, 2013 Comments Off on Despite loss, Saborio earns Player of the Week award as a consolation prize 0 822 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Alvaro Saborio PHOTO: LEON7 It is rare, very rare, that the MLS Player of the Week comes from a team that didn’t get even a single point out of its game(s). But Real Salt Lake Alvaro Saborio’s hat trick outshone the fact that his team, for the second week in a row, lost a game to a stoppage-time goal. Saborio’s hat trick came in a 4-3 loss to New York Red Bulls, but his superlative individual accomplishment didn’t go unnoticed by the membership of the North American Soccer Reporters. Saborio scored his first goal on a penalty. But, with his team down 2-1 on the road, the Costa Rican went to work, he got the equalizer, then hit a shot into the top corner after beating two defenders. Those goals turned a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead. But, Fabian Espindola would convert his second penalty kick of the game, and Dax McCarty’s diving header in stoppage time gave the Red Bulls the win. How The 11 voted: Saborio. Really, his performance was head and shoulders above the rest, so the fact that his team lost the game in question wasn’t an issue. After all, the Player of the Week is an individual award.
