Los angeles: A day after netting his first hat trick in Major League Soccer (MLS), Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) superstar Son Heung-min was named the league's top player of the week. MLS announced on its website Thursday (local time) that Son was voted its MLS Player of the Matchday on the strength of his trifecta of goals against Real Salt Lake on Matchday 34.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Son scored twice in the first half and once more in the second half for LAFC's lopsided away victory in Utah on Wednesday. The hat trick gave Son five goals in his first six appearances in MLS. In those six contests, LAFC have had three wins, one loss, and two draws.

Son is the third player in LAFC history, after Adama Diomande and Carlos Vela, to score five or more goals in their first six games. He's also the seventh LAFC player ever to score a hat trick. LAFC will have a rematch against Real Salt Lake in Los Angeles at 6 p.m. Sunday (local time), or 10 a.m. Monday (South Korean time). Son and his crew can clinch their fourth consecutive trip to the MLS Cup Playoffs with a win or a draw in that return fixture.

In MLS, the nine highest-ranked teams from each of the Eastern and Western conferences qualify for the playoffs, with the top seven in each conference earning a first-round bye. LAFC are currently in fourth place in the west with 47 points and have two matches in hand on the top two clubs in the conference, San Diego FC and Minnesota United FC. The MLS Player of the Matchday is selected through voting by members of the North American Soccer Reporters (75 percent) and by fans through Instagram (25 percent).