Major League Soccer (MLS) announced Thursday that Toronto FC forward Sebastian Giovinco has been named the Etihad Airways Player of the Month for August. He becomes the first player in club history to receive Player of the Month honours in back-to-back months. Giovinco also becomes the first player to earn consecutive Player of the Month selections this season. The last player to be named Player of the Month back-to-back was Jack McInerney in 2013 as a member of the Philadelphia Union.

Giovinco finished the month of August with four goals and three assists in six matches. On August 5 against Orlando City SC, Giovinco scored his second Tripletta (Italian for hat trick) of the season, with the third goal establishing a new club record for single-season MLS goals with 16. His free kick goal in the 56th minute also earned him his first AT&T MLS Goal of the Week honors for Week 23. 17 days later in the final meeting of the season against Orlando, Giovinco scored another free kick and registered an assist on Justin Morrow’s goal that had a buildup of 43 passes.

In August, Giovinco further extended his club record for combined points (goals and assists) to 29 points, with 17 goals and 12 assists, having surpassed the previous club record of 19 points last month. He presently holds Toronto FC’s franchise records for the most goals (17) and assists (12) in a single season. Giovinco is currently tied for second in goals scored in club history with Danny Koevermans (17 goals). In addition, Giovinco was named MLS Player of the Week three times this season (Weeks 13, 14, 19). He has also been named to the MLS Team of the Week eight times this season (Weeks 9, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 23).

Voting for MLS Player of the Month presented by Etihad is open to the public. The five final nominees are chosen by MLSsoccer.com editorial staff.