Defenders just can’t give up chances. Over the course of 90 minutes, great attacker are going to generate enough opportunities on their own. Teams can’t afford to have individual mistakes make it easier for the opposition.
That’s why those errors get judged harshly in PST’s weekly awards. When DeAndre Yedlin gets caught on the ball in the first half against Sporting Kansas City, a mistake that lead to a chance within seconds, it’s was enough to knock him to honorable mentions in our first Team of the Week. As strong as Yedlin was in week one, if you had a whole back line making similar errors, you’d give him far more good chances than similar defenses. Mistakes tend to outweigh the series of smaller contributions defenders make throughout matches.
That’s what made this week’s Player of the Week honor so difficult. San Jose’s Víctor Bernárdez was certainly the weekend’s big hero, scoring twice in Saturday’s final 30 minutes to help pull the Earthquakes even with the league’s best team (spoiler alert), but he also played a part in two big Real Salt Lake chances. When Joao Plata’s feint bought the RSL forward extra time ahead of his team’s second goal, it was Bernárdez’s lack of effort to get back in position that allowed the Ecuadorian to exploit the space closer to the spot. And in the second half, Álvaro Saborío beat the Honduran badly on a ball that ended up off the base of Jon Busch’s post.
At the other end of the field, however, Bernárdez more than made up for those mistakes. The 2012 Defender of the Year assisted on Chris Wondolowski’s sixth minute opener. In the 75th minute. his headed finish off a set piece pulled San Jose within one, while his 95th minute winner through a desperate RSL defense earned the Earthquakes a 3-3 draw.
All of which still makes his choice as Player of the Week a skeptical one. Jermaine Defoe had two goals in Seattle, but he also was allowed to click it into cruise control for 67 minutes. Seattle’s part in his brace meant his level of difficulty was low. Maurice Edu and Michael Bradley had strong days in their respective midfields, while Bernárdez teammate Shea Salinas may have been the best player on the field at Buck Shaw on Saturday. Consider the San Jose winger a close second this week. (Even as I type this, I want to give Salinas the award.)
Ultimately, we couldn’t ignore Bernárdez. It’s not just that he scored goals. They were big goals, scored against the best team in the league - a team that’s going to make other defenders look back this season. In a week were there was no clear Player of the Week winner, Bernárdez Goonie-ism serves as the tiebreaker.
This season’s Player of the Week winners:
| PST Award | MLS Award | |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Will Bruin, Houston Dynamo 2g, 1a vs. New England | Nick Rimando, Real Salt Lake 8 saves, PK save at LA |
| Week 2 | Victor Bernardez, San Jose Earthquakes 2g, 1a vs. Real Salt Lake | Jermain Defoe, Toronto FC 2 goals at Seattle |