For the second time in the last three weeks, Real Salt Lake reigns supreme in AT&T Goal of the Week voting.
After Yura Movsisyan’s Rocky Mountain Cup winner against the Colorado Rapids in Week 25, it was Joao Plata’s turn to take the honors.
Last week in RSL’s mid-week match with the LA Galaxy, Plata got Salt Lake started on the way back from a 3-1 deficit when he scored his second goal of the match in the 67th minute. Tony Beltran crossed the ball in from the right side for Yura Movsisyan at the edge of the six-yard box. With one touch, Movsisyan left the ball for Plata just inside the box for a rocket shot that beat Brian Rowe, sneaking under the crossbar to cut the lead to 3-2. Juan Manuel Martinez later added the equalizer to keep RSL unbeaten at home this season at 8-0-6.
Plata beat out goals by Toronto FC’s Jozy Altidore and New England’s Juan Agudelo before topping Sporting Kansas City’s Roger Espinoza in the final. He is the third RSL player to take home the honors, joining Movsisyan in Week 25 and Javier Morales in Week 22.
With nine goals and 11 assists this season, Plata has thrived in RSL’s new-look attack, joined by Movsisyan and Martinez to make one of the most volatile attacking cores in the league.
