Giorgos Giakoumakis opened his 2024 ledger in a big way on Saturday evening.
After being held off the scoresheet during Atlanta United's season-opening 1-0 loss at the Columbus Crew, Giakoumakis was the main attraction during his team's 4-1 win over the New England Revolution at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, recording his first MLS hat trick.
The Greek international striker also set another milestone: 20 regular-season goals in fewer than 2,000 minutes, just the fifth player in MLS history to set that mark.
So, was the Matchday 4 performance a message sent to the rest of MLS's core of strikers?
"I don't need to send any message. They know me and I know them, the strikers who are really dangerous for the Golden Boot," the 29-year-old said after Atlanta's home opener was played before 67,727 fans.
A slow start overcome
Giakoumakis scored all three of his goals in the second half, but he and his teammates weren't lacking for chances in the opening 45 minutes.
Head coach Gonzalo Pineda, when asked what changed in the interval, mentioned Giakoumakis' "patience" and "confidence" as key in eventually finding the scoresheet, along with the match "opening up" in the second half.
"He scored the first one, then the next one came, then the [third] one came, and I think it was a positive reward for him," Atlanta's manager said. "He works very hard defensively, and then he was able to score a hat trick."
Pineda spotlighted Giakoumakis' second goal of the night, and Atlanta's third of an evening: a great team goal that started deep in New England's end and finished with a perfect header from a timely Brooks Lennon cross.
"We proved last year that we have a good connection, and he knows exactly where I am going to be, so it was something that I was waiting for," Giakoumakis said.
Team first
Giakoumakis has finished as the top scorer in his league twice: first with VVV-Venlo in the Eredivisie in 2020-21 and a season later as the joint goals leader in the Scottish Premiership with Celtic FC.
While adding a third Golden Boot to his name is his desire, it pales in comparison to Atlanta's on-field success. Last year, he was in the hunt with 17g/3a in 27 matches.
"I will try to score every single game. That's my main job and I'm really happy when I do it," Giakoumakis said. "But the most important is to win week in, week out. [It's] teammates first, I really mean that. It sounds like a cliché, but that's the important thing.
"If I win the Golden Boot and the team doesn't do well at the end of the season, I won't be happy ... I need a good combination of collective and individual success."
Giakoumakis' message echoed that of his head coach.
"I'm very happy for him scoring three goals, but I'm happy because it helped us to win today. That's the most important thing," Pineda said. "Team comes first, so [I'm] very happy. It's a reward for everyone."
