NEW YORK — Javier Morales' banner week was iced on Friday.
The Real Salt Lake midfielder began the week basking in a 2-0 victory over East powerhouses Columbus Crew, a game in which he tallied both goals—and it was his first strike that has earned him the AT&T Goal of the Week honor for Week 20.
Morales collected a short corner that rolled toward the top left corner of the box. Seeing space, the Argentine one-timed his effort toward the far post. The perfectly placed rocket caromed off the inside of the wood and into the net, breaking the deadlock.
WATCH: Morales scores off the post
The goal garnered 46.3 percent of the fans' vote, easily beating out Philadelphia's Danny Mwanga (27.32 percent) and San Jose's Chris Wondolowski (18.11 percent). New York's Joel Lindpere (6.2 percent) and New England's Ilija Stolica (2.07 percent) also tallied votes.
Check out all of Week 20's Goal of the Week nominees here.
Morales added another goal against Columbus—a well-taken free kick—to take his tally to six on the season. He was named MLS Player of the Week on Monday for his efforts.
This is Morales' second Goal of the Week honor of 2010. The 30-year-old collected the award in Week 1 for another long-ranged wonder strike, this time against San Jose.
Morales' RSL won their first-ever CONCACAF Champions League match on Wednesday, edging Panama side Árabe Unido, 2-1, to open the tournament's group stages. The reigning league champions have a break this weekend, but they return to action on Aug. 28 when they host Toronto FC. RSL remain unbeaten at home this season.
