Cooper Caps Season with Comeback Player of the Year and MLS Best XI Awards
November 22nd, 2008 . 4:54 pm . By: Buzz CarrickFC Dallas forward Kenny Cooper Jr has been named MLS Comeback player of the year and MLS Best XI. The second leading goal scorer in MLS this year, Cooper’s spot on the Best XI should perhaps not come as a surprise. He was named to the MLS Best XI team at forward next to MLS leading scorer Landon Donovan. In 2007 Cooper had his leg broken on a rough tackle by Tyrone Marshall of the LA Galaxy. Marshall was subsequently traded to Toronto FC, perhaps as a result of the play. Cooper returned to the field late last year and rebounded this season to start all 30 games and score 18 goals to tie Jason Kreis’ franchise goal scoring record. Here’s the PR on the awards. COOPER NAMED MLS BEST XI; COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEARLos Angeles (Saturday, Nov. 22, 2008) – Major League Soccer today announced that FC Dallas forward Kenny Cooper was named to the 2008 MLS Best XI team, and was also named the MLS Comeback Player of the Year. Cooper is the sixth player in team history to be selected to the MLS Best XI team, and second Dallas player to win the MLS Comeback Player of the Year. The Best XI is an annual award recognizing the League’s top 11 players at each individual position on the field – one goalkeeper, three defenders, five midfielders and two forwards. The MLS Comeback Player of the Year recognizes a player who has battled adversity and to returned to perform at the highest level in Major League Soccer. The winner of the Comeback Player of the Year and the Best XI members received the most votes from the media, MLS players and MLS coaches and general managers. The 24-year-old Cooper made a tremendous return to top form in 2008, after missing 19 games in all competitions in 2007 with a broken right tibia suffered eight games into the season. Throughout the 2008 season, he consistently scored key goals for FC Dallas, and remained at the top of the League goal-scoring charts all year. The only FC Dallas player to start all 30 games, Cooper led the team with 18 goals, two behind the 2008 MLS scoring champion Landon Donovan. Fourteen of Cooper’s 18 scores either tied or gave FCD the lead in games (including four game-winners), while the other four increased the team’s lead. As a result, Dallas improved to 19-1-9 all-time when Cooper scores. Cooper was a First XI selection for the Sierra Mist MLS All-Star team that defeated West Ham United, and was twice named the MLS Player of the Week (Week 18 and 19). He was also voted the team’s Most Valuable Player following the season. The previous Dallas players to be named to the MLS Best XI were: M – Ronnie O’Brien (2004); M – Oscar Pareja (2002); F – Jason Kreis (1999); GK – Mark Dodd and D – Leonel Alvarez (1996). Former midfielder Richard Mulrooney was selected the MLS Comeback Player of the Year in 2006. 2008 MLS Best XI:GOALKEEPER (1): Jon Busch (Chicago Fire) 4 Comments Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI Leave a comment |
Way to go, Kenny! You deserved the honors and the extra dough in your pocketbook this year…
And I mean “DESERVES” the extra dough. US currency only, keep the Pillsbury in the fridge…
I knew there weren’t many, but FCD/Burn has only put a total of 6 players on the Best XI in the 13 years of MLS? And 2 of them were in year one. Chi and Col each had 3 just this year!
Good lord, that’s depressing.
Congrats to Kenny, however. Well deserved.
WHOO HOO!!!
WAY TO GO KENNY
you earned it for sure =)