Liga MX Player of the Week: Brian Fernández

Necaxa’s Brian Fernández was named Liga Bancomer MX Player of the Week for Jornada 5 by a poll of Liga MX English-language writers and broadcasters.

Fernández had two goals in Necaxa’s 4-1 rout on Friday evening against Puebla. The loss even resulted in Puebla coach Enrique Meza being let go of his position on Feb. 3.

In the first goal, a long ball via Alexis Peña from the back prompted Fernandez to turn on the jets and speed down the field with the ball before chipping it over Nicolas Vikonis to give Necaxa the lead.

Then, just a few minutes after the second half whistle, Fernandez struck again and began the play before again sprinting toward the area, where a beautiful pectoral assist from Eduardo Herrera set the Argentine up for his second and Necaxa’s third goal of the night.

“Fernandez has been a key component of Necaxa’s sudden resurgence. In a span of three years, Fernandez has gone from drug suspensions in Argentina to scoring in bunches in Liga MX.” - Eric Gomez, ESPN

Besides the two goals, which came from a perfect two shots on target, Fernandez also had two accurate crosses, one clearance and dribbled past defenders once, all good for an 8.2 match rating from SofaScore.

After his second score, in a moment of pure class, Fernandez lifted up his jersey to reveal some written words on his athletic shirt underneath that read, “For my brother. Strength. E. Sala” in memory of the late Argentine footballer Emiliano Sala.

Fernández’s three goals has him one goal behind leading Liga Bancomer MX goalscorers Rogelio Funes Mori and Leonardo Ramos.

Fernandez’s brace came at a perfect moment for Los Rayos, and Guillermo Vazquez’s side currently sits second on the league table with 10 points and is one of two remaining unbeaten teams after five Jornadas, albeit Necaxa has one less game played.

For more information on Liga MX and to keep up with the Player of the Week poll, follow @FMFSoM on Twitter.