Saba Lobjanidze's first career MLS brace guided Atlanta United to a much-needed 3-1 win at Inter Miami CF, earning him Player of the Matchday honors for Matchday 17.
Lobjanidze struck a pair of long-range goals as the Five Stripes snapped a nine-game winless streak at the expense of the Supporters' Shield-leading Herons, whose own 10-game unbeaten run came to a halt at Chase Stadium.
In his first full MLS season, Lobjanidze has seven goal contributions (4g/3a), tied for the club lead with Giorgos Giakoumakis. Wednesday's display also gave Atlanta their first-ever road win at Miami in seven all-competition matches.
Set to participate in this summer's UEFA Euro 2024 tournament, Lobjanidze is Atlanta's second Player of the Matchday of 2024, after Giakoumakis took home Matchday 4 honors. He's also the first Georgian to win the award since Vako Qazaishvili did so with the San Jose Earthquakes in Matchday 17 of the 2019 season.
Atlanta and Lobjanidze return home Sunday afternoon to take on Eastern Conference rivals Charlotte FC at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (4:45 pm ET | Apple TV - Free, FOX, FOX Deportes).
The MLS Player of the Matchday 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 an X (formerly known as Twitter) fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio, and online media.
