May 25, 2013
138
Games Today




San Jose Earthquakes' Chris Wondolowski Named Volkswagen MLS Most Valuable Player

November 29, 2012 - Major League Soccer (MLS) San Jose Earthquakes

SAN JOSE, Calif. - San Jose Earthquakes forward Chris Wondolowski was named the Volkswagen MLS Most Valuable Player for the 2012 season today. He will accept the award at 1 p.m. PT at The Home Depot Center and will participate in a press conference following the event.

Wondolowski is the first player in club history to win league MVP honors. In 2010, he was a finalist along with LA Galaxy forward Edson Buddle and eventual MVP David Ferreira of FC Dallas. The only other players in club history to be named a finalist for the award were Jeff Agoos in 2003 and Dwayne De Rosario in 2005.

Wondolowski's 27 goals this season tied the League's all-time single-season record and won him a second Budweiser Golden Boot award. The plethora of goals helped the predatory striker set an MLS mark for game-winning goals with 11. He also became the only player in MLS history to score the most regular season goals in three consecutive seasons. His dominance throughout the season earned him four MLS Player of the Month awards, a feat unrivaled through league history.

The Danville native led the Earthquakes to their second Supporters' Shield in club history, just a year removed from finishing 14th overall in MLS.

Since entering MLS in 2005, Wondolowski has recorded a total of 68 league goals, 64 of which came after moving from Houston to San Jose in the middle of the 2009 season. He ranks 20th all-time in MLS goal scoring, two behind Cobi Jones.

The award was voted on by media, MLS players and MLS club management based on regular season performance. The other two finalists were Sporting Kansas City midfielder Graham Zusi and New York Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry. Below is a breakdown of the voting for the top four candidates:

VOLKSWAGEN MLS MVP VOTING

Player (Club) % of Club Votes % of Media Votes % of Player Votes Weighted Total

Chris Wondolowski (SJ) 91.23 96.97 70.83 259.03

Thierry Henry (NY) 0 3.03 11.46 14.49

Graham Zusi (SKC) 3.51 0 3.13 6.64

Brad Davis (HOU) 3.51 0 0 3.51

All-Time MLS Most Valuable Players:

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 GÃ"mez - 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 ChacÃ"n - 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

• Discuss this story on the Major League Soccer message board...
• Digg this story
• Add to Del.icio.us


Major League Soccer Stories from November 29, 2012


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.