Another trophy for Thomas Müller in Canada – the former world champion played a major role in the Canadian championship and set a record all his own. Hany Mukhtar also had reason to celebrate a title.
Thomas Müller has led the Vancouver Whitecaps to their fourth consecutive Canadian Cup victory. The 36-year-old former national team player contributed a goal and an assist to the 4-2 win over local rivals Vancouver FC and can now call himself Canadian champion.
With 35 titles to his name, the 2014 World Cup winner is now the most successful German footballer ahead of his long-time teammate Toni Kroos.
Goal number 300
Müller set up Ali Ahmed for the early lead in the fifth minute. Then, in the tenth minute, the long-time Bayern pro converted a penalty kick to make it 2-0—his 300th goal of his professional career. In the last four competitive games, he has been directly involved in eight goals (five goals, three assists).
Canadian Ahmed (37th minute) and Ryan Gauld (83rd minute), who came on as a substitute for Müller, scored the other goals for the MLS team. Thierno Bah (35th minute) and Nicolas Mezquida (85th minute) scored for Vancouver FC from the Canadian league in front of 18,372 spectators.
With the Whitecaps, he has now also qualified again for the Champions Cup of the North and Central American association CONCACAF, which is comparable to the Champions League in Europe. There, the Whitecaps lost the final against CD Cruz Azul 0-5 in July.
Mukhtar scores in US Open Cup final
Meanwhile, Nashville SC won the US Open Cup, thanks in part to striker Hany Mukhtar. The former Hertha player scored the opening goal in the 2-1 victory over MLS rivals Austin FC in the final (17th minute). Myrto Uzuni, who had previously missed a penalty (21st minute), equalized shortly before the half-time whistle. But once again, Sam Surridge came through. The Englishman, who is just behind Lionel Messi (24) in the MLS with 22 goals, decided the game with a penalty (60th minute), but was sent off with a second yellow card deep into stoppage time.
For Nashville, it was the first title in the franchise’s ten-year history. “That gives us extra confidence for the rest of the season,” Mukhtar hopes. Currently sixth in the Eastern Conference, his team has not yet secured a place in the playoffs.
