Lionel Messi a finalist for third straight MLS MVP award

WASHINGTON: Major League Soccer revealed its finalists on Thursday for eight individual season-ending awards, including five finalists for the Landon Donovan MVP Award that include the favorite in Lionel Messi and 17-year-old sensation Cavan Sullivan.

Messi’s stellar play for Inter Miami earned him the league’s MVP trophy in each of the past two seasons, with Sullivan making his mark during a breakout season for the Philadelphia Union.

Messi had a league-best 26 goals during the regular season, with 17 assists that ranked second. The other three players vying for MVP honors are Evander of FC Cincinnati, Guilherme of the Houston Dynamo and ⁠Hany Mukhtar of Nashville ⁠SC.