Who should be TheCup.us Players of the Tournament?

With the 2024 Qualifying Rounds well under way, it’s time to put the finishing touches on the 2023 edition of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. The Houston Dynamo, under the direction of Ben Olsen, lifted their second Cup last month after dropping Inter Miami, 2-1, at DRV PNK Stadium. For Olsen, it was his second Open Cup title as a manager – the first coming a decade earlier, in 2013, with DC United.

While an MLS team did lift the Cup, the lower divisions of the US Soccer pyramid kept the magic alive in the 108th edition of the US Open Cup. Across 97 matches in the tournament proper, there were 11 “cupsets.” Notably, the Birmingham Legion and Pittsburgh Riverhounds kept that magic going all the way to a joint exit in the Quarterfinals.

Following each year’s competition, TheCup.us honors a player with the distinction of being named the “Player of the Tournament” for their outstanding performance on the pitch. Additionally, TheCup.us added a Lower Division Player of the Tournament beginning in 2012 with the goal of honoring players from lower division squads (Open Division, Division 3 and Division 2) who made the most of their opportunities, helping their teams make memorable runs in the tournament that year.

The award is voted on by TheCup.us staff, a select panel from the North American Soccer Reporters, and select backers from TheCup.us’ Patreon. If you’d like to vote in this poll, please consider a pledge of $10 or more and help us continue to cover the US Open Cup and its long history.

Additionally, we encourage everyone to read over each players’ tournament resume and make your case for who you think should win the award in the comments or on social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).

With all that out of the way, let’s meet our 2023 finalists, first for the Overall Player of the Tournament, and then for the Lower Division Player of the Tournament:

2023 TheCup.us Player of the Tournament Nominees

Alvaro Barreal (FC Cincinnati, MLS, Div. 1)

Barreal helped FC Cincinnati reach all the way to the Semifinals for the second time in club history and the first time since joining MLS. In the Third Round, he came off the bench in the 61st minute and assisted on the lone goal of the derby match with Louisville City FC (USL-C) in the 85th minute. The next round, Barreal went the full 90 while again assisting on the match winner in the 56th minute in a 1-0 triumph over New York City FC (MLS). While he was limited in action in the Fifth Round (Round of 16), he did come off the bench in the 73rd minute and then scored the deciding PK in a 1-1 (5-3 PK win) draw at New York RedBulls (MLS).

In the Quarterfinals, he had the magic touch. In a 3-1 win over Pittsburgh Riverhounds (USL-C), he entered the match as a 60th-minute substitute and almost immediately scored the match winner in the 71st minute – a goal that was nominated for FIFA Goal of the Year. He then assisted on the third goal of the match.

In the Semifinals, he went 105 minutes in a 3-3 draw before his team fell, 3-3 (4-5 PK), to Inter Miami CF (MLS). For the tournament, he scored one goal and had two assists.

Amine Bassi (Houston Dynamo FC, MLS, Div. 1)

A member of the 2023 champions, Amine Bassi was a pivotal member of the squad with two goals and a tournament-high four assists. While he was fairly quiet in the Third and Fourth Rounds, he did play 73 minutes and assisted on one goal in a 4-0 win over Minnesota United FC (MLS) in the Fifth Round to help his team through.

In the Quarterfinals, he again went 73 minutes and scored the opening goal via penalty in a 4-1 road win over Chicago Fire FC (MLS). His best match was the Semifinal win over Real Salt Lake (MLS), going the full 120 minutes in a 3-1 extra time home victory that saw him assist on all three tallies. In the Final, he started, played 84 minutes, and scored the game-winning goal in the 33rd minute on his second PK conversion of the tournament as the Dynamo lifted their second Open Cup trophy with a 2-1 win over Inter Miami CF.

Andrew Tarbell (Houston Dynamo FC, MLS, Div. 1)

Another member of the 2023 US Open Cup-winning team, Andrew Tarbell was a steadying presence in goal for the Dynamo. While spending the entire regular season as the backup to Steve Clark, Tarbell was crowned the team’s Open Cup goalkeeper and he played in all six matches. In that Cup run, he collected three clean sheets for the Dynamo and posted 15 saves while giving up just three goals.

In the Third Round, Tarbell was largely untested against the Tampa Bay Rowdies (USL-C) in a 1-0 win. However, in the Fourth Round he stood tall and parried away four shots while securing another 1-0 win over Sporting KC (MLS) – the Dynamo played with only 10 men from the 35th minute on in the victory. In the Fifth Round (Round of 16), Tarbell posted his third consecutive clean sheet with a three-save performance in a 4-0 win over Minnesota United FC (MLS).

In the Quarterfinals, he collected four saves in a 4-1 road win over Chicago Fire (MLS) before turning around and playing 120 minutes in a 3-1 extra time home win over RSL (MLS) – posting one save. In the Final, he went the full 90 in another three-save performance against Inter Miami to secure the club’s second US Open Cup title.

 

2023 TheCup.us Lower Division Player of the Tournament Nominees

Juan Agudelo (Birmingham Legion FC, USL-C, Div. 2)

Juan Agudelo started every match of Birmingham’s Quarterfinal run, scoring three goals – including a match winner – and adding an assist as the Legion became the first Alabama club in the tournament’s 108-year history to reach the Quarterfinals. His assist was on a match winner as well, a 1-0 cupset of Charlotte FC (MLS). Agudelo was one of just nine players to score three or more goals in the tournament.

In the Second Round, Agudelo bagged a brace as the Legion secured a 4-1 win over Chattanooga Red Wolves SC (USL-1). In the Fourth Round, he started and played 73 minutes while scoring the opening (and match-winning) goal in the 20th minute against Memphis 901 FC (USL-C). After his assist helped secured passage over Charlotte FC, the Legion’s first win over an MLS side in club history, he went the full 90 in a 1-0 loss to eventual runner’s up Inter Miami.

Prosper Kasim (Birmingham Legion FC, USL-C, Div. 2)

Prosper Kasim started all five matches in the Legion’s march to the Quarterfinals, scoring two goals and one assist. One of his goals will forever be remembered as it was the match winner against Charlotte FC to not only give the Legion their first-ever triumph over an MLS foe, but also leading Birmingham to heights that no other Alabama-based side has ever ascended in the tournament.

In the Third Round, a 1-1 home draw that needed a 4-3 penalty kick win to secure passage to the next round, Kasim scored the Legion’s only goal against Chattanooga FC (NISA). Against Memphis 901 FC (USL-C), he assisted on the 3rd goal in a 3-0 win. He then scored the lone goal in a 1-0 cupset of Charlotte FC (MLS) in the Fifth Round (Round of 16) before going the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 loss to Inter Miami (MLS) in the Quarterfinals.

Arturo Ordonez (Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, USL-C, Div. 2)

A member of the only other USL Championship side to reach the Quarterfinals, Arturo Ordonez appeared in every match. He was the anchor defensively for a Riverhounds side that posted three clean sheets – a team who reached the Quarterfinals for the first time since 2001.

Those three shutouts were rattled off in quick succession. The Third Round was a 2-0 win over the Maryland Bobcats (NISA) before starting and going the full 90 in a 1-0 “cupset” on the road against the New England Revolution (MLS) in the Fourth Round. Not satisfied with one MLS scalp, Ordonez then went the distance again in a consecutive 1-0 shutout of an MLS team, the Columbus Crew. He then started and played 90 minutes against FC Cincinnati, the eventual MLS Supporters’ Shield winners, in a 3-1 road loss.