NEW YORK (Monday, August 17, 2026) – Nashville SC forward Hany Mukhtar was voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob ULTRA for Matchday 20 of the 2026 MLS season.
In a clash between the top two teams in the Supporters’ Shield standings, Mukhtar scored twice, including the game-winning goal, as part of Nashville’s 4-1 victory over Inter Miami CF (Watch Highlights From His Performance Here). Mukhtar’s goals were the 89th and 90th of his MLS regular-season career, making him just the 14th player in MLS history and the second active player to reach 90 career regular-season goals (Josef MartÃnez). Mukhtar also scored the 20th game-winning goal of his career, and is now one of three active players with at least 20 game-winning goals and 15 game-winning assists.
With the victory, Nashville SC remains the only MLS team that is unbeaten in regular-season home matches in 2026, sporting a 9-0-1 record and outscoring opponents 29-10. The club also has a five-point lead in the Supporters’ Shield standings over Inter Miami CF and has the best goal differential in the league at plus-24.
In a 1-1 game, Mukhtar received a pass from new signing Elias Saad, turned onto his left foot and found the bottom corner of the net to put Nashville in front in the 49th minute (Watch Here). The former Landon Donovan MLS MVP winner scored the fourth goal of the match in the 63rd minute, capitalizing on a mistake from the Miami goalkeeper and passing the ball into the open net (Watch Here).
This is the second time this season Mukhtar has been named MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob ULTRA (Matchday 14). Mukhtar becomes the eighth player in MLS history to win the award at least 10 times, joining Landon Donovan (19), Jeff Cunningham (14), Lionel Messi (14), Bradley Wright-Phillips (12), Chris Wondolowski (11), Dwayne De Rosario (10), and Josef MartÃnez (10).
Mukhtar and Nashville continue their Supporters’ Shield surge when they travel to face Red Bull New York on Wednesday, August 19 at Sports Illustrated Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET, MLS on Apple TV).
The MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob ULTRA 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 Instagram fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio, and online media.
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