Atlanta United looked like a vintage version of themselves Saturday in a 3-0 win over Southeast rival Charlotte FC, and homegrown Caleb Wiley played a starring role.
The 18-year-old struck for a brace and added an assist – all in the first half – ensuring three big points in the standings for the Five Stripes and Player of the Matchday presented by Continental Tire honors for Matchday 3 of the 2023 season.
Wiley’s three-goal contributions in a single half put him in elite company, slotting among Alphonso Davies and Bobby Convey as the youngest in MLS history to do so.
Wiley got the visitors off to a dream start, capitalizing on a Charlotte turnover by latching onto a ball into space by Thiago Almada and unleashing a left-footed blast with his second touch in the fifth minute.
Wiley then played provider, setting up Luiz Araújo’s 12th-minute strike. He later capped a dominant opening 45 minutes for Atlanta United with his second goal in first-half stoppage time, slotting home a back-post finish from the edge of the six-yard box.
Wiley is the second Atlanta player to win Player of the Matchday this season, joining Almada (Matchday 1). They'll look to make it two wins in a row when hosting the Portland Timbers for a Matchday 4 showdown on Saturday (7:30 pm ET | MLS Season Pass).
The MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Continental Tire is selected each matchday of the regular season through both media and fan voting in a process conducted by MLS Communications. A panel of journalists from the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) comprises 75 percent of the vote, while a Twitter fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio, and online media.
