2023 MLS Aces Year End Awards
As another Major League Soccer season comes to an end, it means a lot of things. Titles have been given out, the MLS Cup Playoffs are almost here, but most importantly… THE MLS ACES TEAM OF THE SEASON AND YEAR END AWARDS ARE HERE!!! Every year, the MLS Aces Awards have changed a bit. This season, there weren't too many changes from the 2022 version outside of the people asked to vote. This isn’t a decision made by one person, this is a vote that incorporates everyone from MLS Aces as well as respected people from around Major League Soccer. The one thing that has remained the same, if any vote does end up in a tie… well MY vote does break that tie since well… I’m the MLS Aces Founder. It’s my one and only perk, please let me have this. Below are the MLS Aces award winners from this season, come back tomorrow for the breakdown of our MLS Aces Team of the Season article:
2023 MLS Aces Newcomer of the Year: Let’s start off easy with some of the lesser prestigious awards but still just as valuable! Let’s start with the 2023 MLS Aces Newcomer of the Year. This award is given to a player who has played the best in their first season within Major League Soccer. After preliminary voting, the five finalists for this award were Giorgos Giakoumakis from Atlanta United, Amine Bassi from the Houston Dynamo, Lionel Messi from Inter Miami CF, Joao Klauss from St. Louis City SC, and Roman Burki from St. Louis City SC. And the winner is…
Lionel Messi - Inter Miami CF
I mean… I get why people are going to be mad at this. I get why people are going to be thrilled about this. But look, Messi has to be the Newcomer of the Year. Yes, Lionel Messi only played in 5 MLS games scoring 1 goal and recording 2 assists. But, he also arrived within the new Leagues Cup break helping a complete turnaround of Miami from a club perspective. He would win the Leagues Cup, winning the club’s first ever trophy, and sending them to their first ever trip to CONCACAF Cup. He would also send Miami to their second ever final, inevitably losing in the U.S. Open Cup Final. Ultimately, Messi has helped put Inter Miami CF on the global map. This is a new era of Major League Soccer due to the arrival of the Argentine legend and he has to be the ultimate MLS Aces Newcomer of the Year.
2023 MLS Aces Comeback Player of the Year: This award had the smallest number of finalists for our cast of voters to vote for. Instead of the typical five that you will see for other awards, this award only had three finalists; Houston Dynamo’s Corey Baird, Houston Dynamo’s Hector Herrera, and Sporting Kansas City’s Alan Pulido. In maybe one of the shocking votes, your winner is…
Alan Pulido - Sporting Kansas City
Alan Pulido failed to play in a MLS game in 2022 due to injury. The record signing player for Sporting Kansas City surely took a major fall backwards in fans eyes after being out with a long term injury again. But… 2023 had a different vibe for the former Mexican International. Pulido came out in 2023 with over 25 games played and 14 league goals. Outside of that, he also added on an additional 3 assists for Sporting Kansas City. As we head into Decision Day, Pulido could add on some more to that season total, but he surely has done all he can to try and make Sporting Kansas City a MLS Cup Playoffs team.
2023 MLS Aces Young Player of the Year: The word young may mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. In terms of this award, the Young Player of the Year refers to a player that is aged 21 years or younger. The finalists we had for this award this season were; Atlanta United’s Caleb Wiley, Chicago Fire’s Brian Gutierrez, FC Dallas’s Alan Velasco, Inter Miami CF’s Benjamin Cremaschi, and New York Red Bulls’s left-back John Tolkin. The winner?
John Tolkin - New York Red Bulls
The 2023 MLS All Star left-back has truly come into his own at a ton of levels in the past year or so, this MLS season was just icing on the cake for that. The 21 year old USMNT international has now played his second truly strong MLS season in a row, European eyes have to be on this kid. Tolkin played in 32 games this season (roughly 2,900 minutes) and was easily the best player on an underperforming Red Bulls team that still has some playoff hopes heading into Decision Day. Tolkin was able to score 2 goals and record 9 assists in all competitions.
2023 MLS Aces Rookie of the Year: The now defunct MLS award continues on within MLS Aces. The MLS SuperDraft is very much a roster acquisition tool within MLS, now more than ever especially with clubs looking to fill their MLS Next Pro rosters as well. We had a smaller, but still overly successful crop of rookie talents coming in from the NCAA. The finalists were; Andrew Privett from Charlotte FC, Patrick Agyemang from Charlotte FC, Moise Bombito from the Colorado Rapids, Duncan McGuire from Orlando City SC, and Emeka Eneli from Real Salt Lake. And our winner by an overwhelming vote is…
Duncan McGuire - Orlando City SC
A few things seem inevitable when it comes to SuperDraft picks in MLS. Real Salt Lake will find a diamond in the rough and in the case we saw in 2023, Orlando City knows how to draft strikers. From Cyle Larin, to Daryl Dike, and now Duncan McGuire, the Lions most successful strikers in their history come from the MLS SuperDraft. McGuire was electric in 2023, scoring 11 goals and 3 assists across 1,300+ plus minutes of MLS action this season. His performance also carried into the international window as he was selected into the latest US U-23 camp that is coming together for pre-Olympic trials.
2023 MLS Coach of the Year: Now let’s start to get into some of the “big boy” awards. The MLS Aces Coach of the Year in 2022 was a landslide, falling into the hands of the Union’s Jim Curtin. But this season, the vote was surprisingly much closer than I thought. Our five finalists were; FC Cincinnati’s Pat Noonan, Houston Dynamo’s Ben Olsen, Orlando City’s Oscar Pareja, the Philadelphia Union’s Jim Curtin, and St. Louis City’s Bradley Carnell. Only three of these five men received votes, but ultimately, the winner was…
Pat Noonan - FC Cincinnati
I mean I respect what Carnell has done year one with St. Louis and what Ben Olsen did winning the U.S. Open Cup with Houston… but was it going to be anyone other than Noonan? The FC Cincinnati manager has been fantastic ever since being hired ahead of the 2022 season. But Noonan took this club to new levels in 2023, leading the entire MLS regular season pack and winning the Supporters' Shield. Heading into Decision Day, Noonan has a chance to lead Cincinnati to a total of 71 points (currently sitting on 68 points) which would be tied with the 2018 New York Red Bulls for 3rd most all time. Even if the club loses, their 68 points would leave them tied with the 1998 LA Galaxy for 6th all time.
2023 MLS Aces “Uncle Sam Nelson” Goalkeeper of the Year: For those who don’t know, our podcast co-host “Uncle” Sam Nelson is a former goalkeeper and still to this day a goalkeeper fanatic. We have dedicated this award to his love for the position between the sticks. The 2023 version of the award saw five finalists in; FC Cincinnati’s Roman Celetano, Houston Dynamo’s Steve Clark, Inter Miami CF’s Drake Callender, Orlando City SC’s Pedro Gallese, and St. Louis City SC’s Roman Burki. Well not to give it away, the winner is someone we’ve named already in this article…
Roman Burki - St. Louis City SC
The 32 year old Swiss goalkeeper was someone who not only was a finalist for this award, but (spoiler) is a finalist for the 2023 MLS Aces Newcomer of the Year and 2023 MLS Aces MVP awards. The 2023 All Star will surely finish atop the MLS charts within MLS played, top in MLS goalkeeping charts in saves, goals allowed on average, save percentage, and wins. His impact and presence for St. Louis City SC has led to one of the greatest inaugural seasons in MLS history. . As the winner of this award, Burki will also get the spot for the 2023 MLS Aces Team of the Season in net.
2023 MLS Aces “Daryl Grove” Defensive Player of the Year: The late and great Daryl Grove, former co-host of the famous Total Soccer Show was an avid rec league soccer player and the Englishman was always a defender. The impact that the Total Soccer Show, Daryl, and Taylor has had on American soccer and soccer podcasting is unmatched… and that is why we are dedicating this award to him. The five finalists for this award were; FC Cincinnati’s Alvaro Barreal, FC Cincinnati’s Matt Miazga, the Philadelphia Union’s Jakob Glesnes, the Union’s Kai Wagner, and St. Louis City SC’s Tim Parker. The winner is…
Matt Miazga - FC Cincinnati
Another award goes to the Queen City and FC Cincinnati. USMNT centerback Matt Miazga takes home the award after a wildly successful season with Cincinnati. The overall defense of Cincy in 2023 has been one of the best in the league, and leading that is the 28 year old American. Heading into Decision Day, Miazga is sitting just under 2,300 minutes played in MLS. His arrival in 2022 has led into an overall 2023 season lead through a stout backline and confident Miazga. With Miazga winning this award, he is automatically placed into the MLS Aces Team of the Season.
2023 MLS Aces Most Valuable Player: The final award of the year is here… the MLS Aces MVP. Now the term MVP is highly debated across sports, and to be honest with you reader, I didn’t give the voters any parameters around voting. But, ultimately, the winner of this award is going to be looked at as the best player from this 2023 season. The five finalists for the award this year were; Atlanta United’s Thiago Almada, FC Cincinnati’s Luciano Acosta, Houston Dynamo’s Hector Herrera, Nashville SC’s Hany Mukhtar, and St. Louis City SC’s Roman Burki. We had the 2022 winner make the finalists (Mukhtar), we had someone already win two awards make the finalists (Burki), but did either win? Well, the winner is…
Luciano “Lucho” Acosta - FC Cincinnati
Award number three goes to someone from Cincinnati!!! Star Argentine midfielder Lucho Acosta takes home the MLS Aces MVP after a Supporters’ Shield winning season. The coaching in Noonan has been great, the defense from Miazga and company has been wonderful, but the attack has been nothing but spectacular behind Acosta. The 29 year old had a league leading goals + assists sitting at 29. He sits with 16 goals and 13 assists heading into Cincinnati’s Decision Day action. This club would not be in the position they are in atop the regular season standings without Lucho sitting in the middle of their park. He has hit game winners, he has motivated as a captain, and done everything in between. Without a doubt this man is the deserved 2023 MLS Aces Most Valuable Player.
