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FC Cincinnati Midfielder Luciano Acosta Named MLS Player of the Month Presented by CELSIUS© Essential Energy for August 2023

September 1, 2023 - Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release


NEW YORK - FC Cincinnati midfielder Luciano Acosta was voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Month presented by CELSIUS® for August 2023.

Acosta, who also took home the honors in July 2023, became the first player since Atlanta United's Josef Martínez in July and August 2019 to win the award in consecutive months. This is the fourth time in his career that Acosta has taken home Player of the Month presented by CELSIUS accolades and he trails only Martínez, Landon Donovan, and Carlos Ruiz, all with six honors apiece, for the most in MLS history. FC Cincinnati has taken home four of the most recent 13 Player of the Month awards since the start of the 2022 season (Acosta, June 2022, July 2023, August 2023; Brenner, September/October 2022).

After winning MLS Player of the Month in July, Acosta continued his strong stretch of play with one goal and three assists across three matches in August, which tied for the most goal contributions in the league over the span. He also scored the game-tying goal in the club's 2-1 victory over Atlanta United on August 30, which helped Cincinnati become the first team to clinch their spot in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs.

The 29-year-old midfielder is in the midst of a career season with Supporters' Shield leading and Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs bound FC Cincinnati and has firmly entrenched himself in the Landon Donovan MLS MVP race. Acosta is currently tied with reigning MVP Hany Mukhtar atop the Golden Boot presented by Audi leaderboard with a career-best 13 goals this season and leads the league with 24 goal contributions (13 goals, 11 assists). He joins Philadelphia's Dániel Gazdag (10 goals, 10 assists) as the only MLS players with at least 10 goals and 10 assists in 2023.

After clinching a playoff berth on Matchday 29, FC Cincinnati returns home to TQL Stadium with their unbeaten home record (12-0-1) in league play on the line as they host road warriors Orlando City SC on Saturday night (7:30 p.m. ET, MLS Season Pass).

MLS Player of the Month presented by CELSIUS is voted upon by a panel of select national media members in a process conducted by MLS Communications.

2023 MLS Player of the Month Presented by CELSIUS® Winners

Month(s) Player Club

February/March Thiago Almada Atlanta United

April Cristian Espinoza San Jose Earthquakes

May Hany Mukhtar Nashville SC

June Alan Pulido Sporting Kansas City

July Luciano Acosta FC Cincinnati

August Luciano Acosta FC Cincinnati

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