Philadelphia Union star Dániel Gazdag netted his third career MLS hat trick to earn MLS Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob Ultra honors for Matchday 28.
The Hungarian international guided his team to a resounding 3-0 victory over Nashville SC on Saturday night. The midfielder opened the scoring in the 10th minute before notching a brace in the 39th minute and completing his hat trick one minute before added time to ensure back-to-back wins for Philadelphia.
With the trio of goals, Gazdag has found the back of the net 14 times this season, which is fourth across MLS. Since entering the league in 2021, he has scored 54 goals and added 28 assists in 110 matches.
Gazdag's eight multi-goal games and three hat tricks are the most in club history. His first goal marked his 80th goal contribution with Philadelphia, joining Sébastien Le Toux (100) as the only players in Union history with at least 80 goals and assists for the club.
Gazdag is the Union's second Player of the Matchday this season and second in as many matchdays, after teammate Tai Baribo received the distinction on Matchday 27. The pair are the first duo to be named MLS Player of the Matchday on back-to-back matchdays since Giorgos Giakoumakis and Thiago Almada of Atlanta United in 2023, as well as the seventh pair of teammates in MLS history to score hat tricks in consecutive games.
Gazdag claims the award for the third time and becomes the only player in MLS and the first player in Union history to earn at least one Player of the Matchday honor in each of the last three seasons.
Following the MLS All-Star Game presented by Target, Philadelphia will open Leagues Cup action when hosting Charlotte FC at Subaru Park on Saturday (8 pm ET | MLS Season Pass).
The MLS Player of the Matchday is selected each matchday of the regular season through both media and fan voting in a process conducted by MLS Communications. A panel of journalists from the North American Soccer Reporters (NASR) comprises 75 percent of the vote, while an X (formerly known as Twitter) fan vote represents the remaining 25 percent of voting. NASR consists of members of print, television, radio, and online media.
