Antoine Griezmann scores twice against Real Salt Lake and wins MLS Team of the Week honors for Week 22

With ten minutes left on the clock, Orlando City needed a moment of quality. Enter Antoine Griezmann, who slipped into a scramble inside the Real Salt Lake box and finished with his right foot to swing the match back in the Lions' favor. Earlier, in the 53rd minute, he had already scored the equalizer. Two goals, a game decided, and an award that arrived a little late: the Frenchman was named MLS Player of the Week for Week 22.

It might seem strange that this is the first time Griezmann has picked up the honor. In the end, there's not much mystery to it: the former Real Sociedad, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona forward has only been in Major League Soccer since July 7, and in that short span he's already racking up numbers that carry real weight. With the brace against Real Salt Lake, he now has 3 goals and 2 assists in 6 matches for Orlando City, all as a starter and, for added merit, against opponents fighting for playoff spots. Add to that another goal in the Leagues Cup, and it's clear the Frenchman has wasted no time making his mark in Florida.

The number that has Orlando City fans most excited is the bigger picture: since the 2018 World Cup winner arrived, the club has picked up 10 points and now sits in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, the last spot that grants access to the play-in. Before his signing, things looked very different: 14 points from 15 matches and outside the postseason picture entirely. The difference is obvious, and there's no need to oversell it.

A club starting to make this award a habit

Griezmann isn't the first Orlando City player to earn this distinction this season. Argentine midfielder Martin Ojeda had already won it back in Week 11, meaning two players from the same team have now been recognized this year, which says plenty about the level this squad is showing.

With this award, the Frenchman also joins an exclusive club: World Cup winners who have been named MLS Player of the Week. That list includes Lionel Messi, who has won it 14 times, along with names like Thierry Henry (six), David Villa (four), Thiago Almada (three), Youri Djorkaeff (two), and with one apiece, Kaka and Thomas Muller. Put that way, it's quite the company to keep.

The truth is Griezmann arrived in MLS with the label of a proven European star, and in just six matches he's already showing why. The brace against Real Salt Lake was the clearest evidence yet: he showed up exactly when his team needed him, first to level the score and then to win it. And in a league where every point on the table can end up deciding who plays in the postseason and who watches from home, goals like these count double.