TAMPA, Fla. – The USL Championship announced the Team of the Week for Week 28 of the 2024 regular season on Tuesday, with Hartford Athletic goalkeeper Renan Ribeiro voted the Championship Player of the Week presented by Konami eFootball after recording 10 saves across two shutouts as Hartford continued its push toward the postseason positions in the Eastern Conference.
An offseason arrival, the Brazilian has been one of the keys to keeping Hartford’s postseason chances alive late in the season. He starred for the side last Wednesday night in a seven-save shutout on the road against Memphis 901 FC that earned the side a point in a scoreless draw before adding another three saves in a comfortable 3-0 victory against Miami FC on Saturday night.
Ribeiro’s two performances earned a -1.86 Goals Prevented mark over the week as his strong individual campaign continued. The 34-year-old – who previously played for Portuguese giant Sporting CP and Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia – is tied for third in the Championship with 81 saves and has posted seven shutouts in 20 appearances while notching a save percentage of 78.6%, goals-against average of 1.07 and an overall Goals Prevented mark of -7.48.
Ribeiro earned 77 percent of the ballot to claim the award. Loudoun United FC midfielder Florian Valot finished second on 23 percent after a standout display in his side’s 4-2 victory against Birmingham Legion FC that saw him score once on two shots and record six chances created.
The Championship’s Player of the Week is selected by the USL National Media Panel, which is made up of representatives from each media market in the Championship.
USL Championship Team of the Week – Week 28
GK – Renan Ribeiro, Hartford Athletic: The Brazilian shot-stopper posted 10 saves across two shutouts in the week, including a seven-save performance against Memphis 901 FC on Wednesday night, to record a -1.86 Goals Prevented mark.
D – Yanis Leerman, Loudoun United FC: Leerman recorded one assist and had three chances created while completing 98 of 111 passes and defensively won 5 of 7 aerial duels and made eight recoveries, two interceptions and two clearances in his side’s 4-2 victory against Birmingham Legion FC.
D – Sean Totsch, Louisville City FC: Totsch notched the assist on LouCity’s only goal against FC Tulsa and was key as the side posted a second consecutive shutout without allowing a shot on target as he won 9 of 12 aerial duels and made one interception and two recoveries.
D – Joe Farrell, Hartford Athletic: The veteran center back went the full 90 minutes in each of Hartford’s shutouts over the week and found the net in their 3-0 win at Miami FC while completing 64 of 66 passes and recording three clearances and three recoveries at Pitbull Stadium.
M – Jack Gurr, Sacramento Republic FC: The English wingback notched both assists as Sacramento took a 2-0 victory against Phoenix Rising FC, recording two big chances created among three chances created overall and winning 2 of 2 tackles and 3 of 5 duels.
M – Florian Valot, Loudoun United FC: The French midfielder scored once and recorded two shots and six chances created in Loudoun’s 4-2 comeback victory against Birmingham Legion FC while also completing 42 of 52 passes and making eight recoveries.
M – Jack Blake, Indy Eleven: The English midfielder recorded one assist and five chances created in Indy’s 3-1 victory against El Paso Locomotive FC and completed 27 of 35 passes overall while making nine recoveries and one interception.
M – Isaiah Johnston, Loudoun United FC: The Canadian scored his first goal of the season, completed 51 of 58 passes and 2 of 3 dribbles while making nine recoveries and winning 5 of 9 ground duels defensively in United’s victory against Birmingham Legion FC.
F – Marlon Santos, Memphis 901 FC: The Brazilian forward scored a pair of goals to lead 901 FC to a 3-0 victory against North Carolina FC while completing 10 of 11 passes and winning 5 of 6 duels.
F – Mamadou Dieng, Hartford Athletic: The 20-year-old forward bagged another pair of goals in his side’s 3-0 victory against Miami FC to move to nine tallies this campaign while completing 13 of 16 passes and recording two chances created.
F – Zach Ryan, Loudoun United FC: United’s captain recorded a goal and assist in his side’s 4-2 win against Birmingham Legion FC to move to 10 goals this season and had three shots on target out of six shots overall while completing 15 of 18 passes.
Coach – Ryan Martin, Loudoun United FC: Martin’s side rallied to take victory from a halftime deficit for the first time since October, 2019 in its 4-2 victory against Birmingham Legion FC as United moved back above the playoff line with seven games to go in the season.
Bench – Colin Shutler (OC), Oscar Jimenez (MEM), Devon Amoo-Mensah (DET), Emerson Hyndman (MEM), Maxi Rodriguez (DET), Maalique Foster (IND), Romario Williams (IND)
Tag(s): Team of the Week Videos Orange County SC Sacramento Republic FC Louisville City FC Oscar Jimenez Florian Valot Romario Williams Maxi Rodríguez Sean Totsch Zach Ryan Indy Eleven Memphis 901 FC Jack Blake Loudoun United FC Hartford Athletic Maalique Foster Marlon Santos Prazeres Joey Farrell Jack Gurr Detroit City FC Devon Amoo-Mensah Colin Shutler