The MLS Eastern Conference Final will offer the biggest stage yet for MLS Golden Boot winner Bradley-Wright Phillips and New England’s MVP candidate Lee Nguyen. Wright-Phillips won the trophy for the league’s top scorer with 27 goals, tying the MLS single-season record. Nguyen ignited the Revolution this summer, breaking out with 18 goals, including 10 in the last 11 games of the season, and five assists. Let’s take a look inside those numbers ahead of Sunday’s head-to-head matchup at Red Bull Arena.
★★★ TIMELY SCORING ★★★
While Nguyen had a league-high nine game-winners this season, Wright-Phillips contributed 15 goals in New York’s 13 wins, finding the back of the net at least once in nine victories. He provided six game-winning goals of his own, tied for second in the league.
★★★ GOALS IN BUNCHES ★★★
BWP recorded three hat tricks this season and totaled six multi-goal games. No other player in MLS recorded more than one hat trick. He also registered another multi-point game with a goal and an assist. Nguyen had just three multi-point games, including multiple goals or a combination of goals and assists.
★★★ CONSISTENCY ★★★
After finding the back of the net just once in the first six games of 2014, Wright-Phillips exploded for eight goals in his next four matches. For the rest of the season, he was held off the score sheet just six times in the final 28 games, and only once in back-to-back games. Nguyen was bottled up, without a goal or assist, in 15 matches during 2014.
★★★ EFFICIENCY ★★★
BWP led the league in both goals per game, 0.84, and goals per 90 minutes, 0.94. Nguyen averaged 0.56 goals per contest, fifth in the league, and was not among league leaders in goals per 90. Wright-Phillips 0.87 career goals per 90 ranks second in MLS history, behind only Stern John’s 0.89 mark.
★★★ PLAYOFF GOALS ★★★
Wright-Phillips has three goals in three playoff games this season. He scored twice late in the do-or-die knockout game against Kansas City, and got his second game-winner in the first leg against D.C. He was also credited with an assist on the all-important away goal in the second leg in Washington. Nguyen scored the game-winner in New England’s 4-2 first-leg win over Columbus, and added a goal in the 3-1 win in leg two.
★★★ HEAD-TO-HEAD ★★★
In two head-to-head meetings this season the Red Bulls defense was able to keep Nguyen under wraps. The attacking midfielder was held scoreless in both contests, and registered a total of just two shots on goal. After being a non-factor in the first meeting, Bradley-Wright Phillips provided the game-winner for his 18th of the season on August 2 in Harrison.
