Sporting Kansas City forward Johnny Russell came up clutch during Decision Day, and he’s been rewarded with MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Continental Tire honors for Matchday 38.
Facing a win-or-go-home clash vs. Minnesota United FC, SKC’s captain scored twice in a 3-1 home win that helped the club clinch the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed in the Audi 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Russell opened the scoring in the 28th minute before solidifying all three points in the 78th minute, sandwiching Rémi Walter's goal (31') and booking a postseason return for Peter Vermes’ squad.
Russell’s brace was his seventh career multi-goal game for SKC, and he’s scored in each of his last three matches to spark their playoff rise. The Scotsman finished the 2023 regular season with eight goals – his third consecutive season hitting the back of the net at least eight times.
Russell is the second Kansas City player to be named MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Continental Tire this season, joining Alan Pulido on Matchday 18. This is the fourth time Russell has earned the honor in his career.
Up next, Kansas City host the West’s single-elimination Wild Card match against No. 9 San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday evening (9:30 pm ET | MLS Season Pass). The winner advances to a Round One Best-of-3 Series against No. 1 St. Louis CITY SC that begins Oct. 29 at CITYPARK.
The MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Continental Tire 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 a Twitter fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio, and online media.
