Photo: Daniel Gajdamowicz

Not since Sebastien Le Toux’s inaugural stint with the Union has a player so quickly captured the admiration of the Philly faithful.

Against Montreal, Vincent Nogueira was, once again, magnificent. And, like Le Toux before him, Nogueira has won over the fans by pairing production with hard work. His body language demands the ball, he checks back hard, he turns fast, now pass and do it all again. Relentlessly.

Nogueira completed 43 passes against Montreal. Of his 13 incomplete passes, 10 were from corners, throw-ins, chips or crosses. Basically, when he played a pass to feet, that’s what he found.

As the man clearly tasked with running the Union offense, the Frenchman has yet to fully hit his stride. He and Jack McInerney are still reading from different playbooks, and Nogueira’s energy sometimes feels like cover for a team that is not quite sure who goes where, and when they go there.

Watching Nogueira, one can’t help but feel that the team will be built around him whether they want to be or not. He is always on the ball, and were he dropped out of the sky onto any random team, it is hard to believe he would not immediately drift into a pocket of space and demand a quick pass. Nogueira is a tempo-setter and an engine. While the game looks easy to Maurice Edu, all the sweat and dirt of training is apparent in every one of Nogueira’s quick cuts, turns, and short-legged sprints.

After finally getting the goal that his performances deserve, there was no rest for the Frenchman. He was right back at it: Nipping heels, looking for space, and demanding more of his team by playing the game at top speed for the full ninety.

He is Vintensity. And he is a very deserving Player of the Week.