(The Sports Xchange) – Portland Timbers midfielder Diego Valeri was named Major League Soccer’s Most Valuable Player on Monday.

Valeri received the honor by vote of the league’s club managers, media members and current players. The other nominees included Atlanta United’s Miguel Almiron, Toronto FC’s Sebastian Giovinco, Chicago’s Nemanja Nikolic and NYCFC’s David Villa.

The 31-year-old Valeri recorded an MLS-record nine-game goal-scoring streak from July 29-Sept. 24 and finished with 21 on the season, trailing only Nikolic and Villa.

Valeri also had 11 assists in 32 games for Portland (15-11-8), which finished with the most points in the West before falling in the conference semifinals to the Houston Dynamo.

He is the third Argentine to win MVP honors after Christian Gomez in 2006 and Guillermo Barros Schelotto in 2008.