Paulo Nagamura stole the headlines – and three points – for Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night, scoring in the 87th and 94th minutes to give his team a dramatic, come-from-behind 4-3 win against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
The veteran midfielder raked in another accolade on Tuesday after being voted MLS Player of the Week for Week 24 of the 2015 season by the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR).
Sporting looked all but done as Saturday’s game moved into its final stages, trailing Vancouver 3-1 with just 10 minutes left in the match. But Dom Dwyer ignited a furious comeback in the 81st, pulling SKC within one when he finished off a Krisztian Nemeth cross.
Nagamura took things from there, collecting a Chance Myers pass at the top of the box and firing a first-time right-footer into the bottom corner to equalize in the 87th minute (watch here).
The 32-year-old Brazilian made a bit of history seven minutes later, heading home a Soni Mustivar cross to send the delirious Sporting Park crowd into hysterics and give SKC the victory (watch here). The goals helped SKC become just the second team in MLS history to erase a two-goal deficit after the 80th minute and record a win in regulation.
SKC, which leads MLS in points per game (1.82), will return to action on Wednesday, when they host the San Jose Earthquakes at Sporting Park (8:30 pm ET, MLS LIVE).
The MLS Player of the Week is selected each week of the regular season by a panel of journalists from NASR. The group consists of members of print, television, radio and online media.
