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MLS: Serna Named 2002 MVP
Top Scorer Diallo Finished Runner Up
December 16, 2002
Diego Serna of Detroit was named Most Valuable Player of MLS in an extremely close race over Los Angeles’ Mamadou Diallo. Serna and Diallo tied for the league lead in goals with eight but Diallo became the first player to lead the league in goals and assists as he took the scoring title with 23 points to Serna’s 18 (8 goals, 2 assists.) However, Serna led Detroit to an all time best 10-3-1 record and a 10 point cushion over the second best teams in the league. Los Angeles barely made the postseason with a 5-5-4 record. Diallo’s Los Angeles teammate, Chris Armas, had six assists and played dominant soccer as the Express’ defensive midfield. He finished third in the MVP race.
Zach Thornton of New York won the Goalkeeper of the Year award in another close race against Detroit’s Joe Cannon. New York picked up Thornton from Boston in an off season trade and he led the league with an 0.71 goals against average but he really paid dividends with an MVP performance in the MLS Cup final to lead New York to their first league championship. Cannon posted on 0.79 goals against average.
The Rookie of the Year race was not close as Detroit’s Rodrigo Faria won the award. Coming off the bench for almost all of the season, Faria set a rookie record with 6 goals and added an assist. Mark Lisi, a defensive midfielder with New York finished second and Ryan Suarez, a reserve defender with Los Angeles was third.
Pablo Mastroeni of New York was named Defender of the Year. He led all defenders with 4 points on 4 assists as the former midfielder showed his ability to get forward and create chances for his teammates. Mastroeni was also the league’s most consistent tackler and as a result of his all around play he was the highest rated player in MLS this season. Carlos Llamosa of Los Angeles finished second and Maurizio Wright of Detroit finished third.
Glenn Myernick of Detroit was named Coach of the Year for the second time in three seasons. He led Detroit to an MLS record 10-3-1 mark and 31 points.
The top two MVP candidates, Serna and Diallo, headlined the MLS Best 11 team. Chris Armas anchored a midfield that included Preki of San Diego, Detroit’s Manny Lagos, and Steve Ralston of San Diego. On defense, Zach Thornton and Pablo Mastroeni were joined by Maurizio Wright of Detroit, Orlando Perez of New York, and Mike Petke of New York as the Panthers dominated the backline for the second consecutive season.
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