The already solid case for Hany Mukhtar being the league's best player has gotten that much stronger, with Nashville SC's star midfielder winning the MLS Player of the Month award for May 2023.
Mukhtar, the 2022 Landon Donovan MLS MVP and Golden Boot presented by Audi winner, led the league with six goals and two assists in May. His red-hot form guided the Coyotes to a 4W-0L-1D record in that span, good for second place in the Eastern Conference and the overall Supporters' Shield standings.
Highlighted by a May 6 hat trick against Chicago Fire FC, Mukhtar contributed to eight of Nashville's 11 goals during the month, including the game-winners over the Fire and Charlotte FC (May 20). He had at least one goal contribution in four of the club's five matches.
Mukhtar's 16 goal contributions (nine goals, seven assists) this season are tops in MLS, while the 28-year-old is second in the 2023 MLS Golden Boot race. With his brace against Charlotte, the German became the fifth-fastest player in league history to reach 50g/30a, achieving the milestone in 93 regular-season games. Since the beginning of the 2022 season, Mukhtar has contributed to 50 of Nashville’s 74 goals (67.6%) – the highest percentage for a player contributing to a specific team over a two-season span in league history.
With their star Designated Player leading the way, Nashville won four straight home games for the first time in club history, while setting a team record for most victories (four) and points (13) in a single month. The Coyotes were just one of three MLS teams – along with FC Cincinnati (5W-0L-0D) and the Philadelphia Union (5W-0L-1D) – to go undefeated with at least four wins in May.
This is the second MLS Player of the Month award for Mukhtar, who previously received the accolade in August 2022. He's the first player to earn the prize in consecutive seasons since Valentín "Taty" Castellanos did so with New York City FC in 2020 (August and October/November) and 2021 (October/November). Mukhtar is just the fifth player to earn the honor in back-to-back seasons since the start of 2010, joining Castellanos, Josef Martínez (2017-19), Robbie Keane (2012-13), and Chris Wondolowski (2010-12).
Nashville visit FC Dallas Saturday night (8:30 pm ET | Apple TV - Free) in Matchday 17 action. Should he score at Toyota Stadium, Mukhtar would become the first player in club history to record at least 10 goals in three straight seasons.
