We’ve got a race on our hands for the Herbalife 2016 LA Galaxy Player of the Year award. Vote here!

Yesterday afternoon, it appeared Jelle Van Damme had the upper hand over the popular Giovani dos Santos.



How is a center back beating out dos Santos, who is not-so-quietly having a MVP season with 14 goals and 12 assists?



Both are genuine contenders, but its hard to argue Jelle Van Damme doesn’t deserve the honor. The big Belgian center back has been absolutely vital to LA’s success this year, anchoring the back line and leading a stingy Galaxy defense that has conceded a slim 1.15 goals per game this season.



Van Damme has also been a revelation in attack, recording four assists and tormenting opposing defenses with his swashbuckling runs, precision passes and inch-perfect long balls. There have been times this year when the defender has been the Galaxy’s most dangerous offensive threat. With a bit more luck, Van Damme could have half a dozen goals.



That being said, the fans love golazos, and when I last checked this morning, Dos Santos had overtaken the lead with a slim 51% advantage to Van Damme’s 35%.