Real Salt Lake have been scoring goals in bunches, and Damir Kreilach is a big reason why.
After nabbing his first career hat trick, the RSL midfielder was voted the Alcatel Major League Soccer Player of the Week by the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) for the Week 27.
Kreilach’s hat trick came in RSL’s 6-2 rout of the LA Galaxy on Saturday at Rio Tinto Stadium — the club’s second straight six-goal outburst.
He put RSL ahead 2-1 in first-half stoppage time when he collected a long ball from Brooks Lennon, flicked the ball to himself and found the back of the net in an impressive display of skill.
Kreilach added two more goals in the second half as RSL ran away with the win, poking in a cross from Albert Rusnak in the 61st minute and completing the hat trick 10 minutes later by finishing off another cross, this time from Jefferson Savarino.
The Croatian international now has 10 goals on the season, which is tied for the team lead, along with six assists.
Riding a three-game winning streak and sitting in fourth place in the West, RSL return to action on Sept. 15 with a home game against Minnesota United FC (9:30 pm ET | TV & streaming info).
The Alcatel MLS Player of the Week is chosen each week of the regular season by members of the North American Soccer Reporters. The organization includes print, television, radio and online journalists who cover domestic men's soccer in the United States and Canada.
