Luciano Acosta named 2023 MLS MVP after receiving a HUGE 60% of votes… as he tops 30-man shortlist and beats likes of Lionel Messi, Denis Bouanga and Thiago Almada to the award
- Luciano Acosta has scored eighteen goals and twelve assists in the MLS this season
- Acosta, who previously played for DC United, is flying high at FC Cincinnati
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Luciano Acosta has emerged victorious in the 2023 Major League Soccer MVP vote, beating compatriots such as Lionel Messi and Thiago Almada.
The FC Cincinnati midfielder has had a hugely impressive season with 18 goals and 12 assists to his name, yet he was still able to steer his team to MLS Cup success.
Acosta received a whopping 60.37 percent of the votes, easily beating second-placed LAFC forward Denis Bouanga (14.97%) and Thiago Almada (6.46%).
In a video celebrating his success, the 29-year-old said: ‘I’m very proud of this team.
‘I think everyone deserves something this year. We deserve more. We have to give everything. Let’s go,” before joking, “I don’t want to go to practice. I won the MVP.”
Luciano Acosta holds up the MLS MVP trophy after being voted the league’s best in 2023
Acosta scored 18 goals and also had 12 assists in the MLS regular season
Acosta could still win the MLS Cup, with FC Cincinnati in the final of the Eastern Conference
Acosta and his Cincinnati teammates will face the Columbus Crew in the Eastern Conference Final on Saturday night, and with a win they will host LAFC or Houston Dynamo in the MLS Cup final.
Cincinnati is by far the best team in MLS this season and has already lifted the Supporters’ Shield trophy.
Acosta, meanwhile, is only the sixth player in the league’s history to have three or more seasons under his belt with at least ten goals and ten assists.
Acosta’s compatriot Lionel Messi arrived in MLS this year, but Acosta still won the award
Atlanta United’s young Argentinian star Thiago Almada finished third in the 2023 MVP voting
The Argentinian first arrived in America in 2016, joining DC United from Boca Juniors, where he had gone through the youth academy.
He spent four seasons in Washington before returning south of the border to play two years in Mexico with Atlas.
Acosta then returned to MLS with Cincinnati, where he had three impressive seasons and improved his goal tally every year.
At 6-foot-1, he is one of the smallest players in the league, but he was a very popular pick for the 2023 MVP Award.