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Around MLS – A Look At Week 8’s Highlights, Goals and Temper Tantrums

Published

12 years ago

April 20, 2015

It's a sad time in Orlando. After having our lunch money stolen in Columbus, it's excusable to feel down in the dumps. Dejected. Angry, even. Of course, what's the easiest way to feel better about yourself? Why, making fun of others, obviously. Let's have a look at the rest of the MLS action from this past week.

New York City FC 1 – 1 Philadelphia Union

In the 21st minute of this midweek draw between NYCFC (1-2-3) and the Union, Vincent Nogueira was given a deserved yellow for acting that would make Days Of Our Lives casting directors cringe when approaching the final third.

It wouldn’t take long for Mehdi Ballouchy to show that Philadelphia (1-3-3) wouldn’t be the only team with struggles approaching net.

Ballouchy would score in the 57th to give NYC the lead, while C.J. Sapong would equalize just four minutes from stoppage in what surely was a gleefully devastating moment for the Yanks.

Hudson River Blue and Brotherly Game are trying to figure out how to get three points. Join the conversations.

New York Red Bulls 2 – 0 San Jose Earthquakes

After waiting weeks for new DP Innocent to make his presence felt on the pitch, San Jose (3-4-0) was treated to a show, first eating a tackle from Damion Perrinelle, before missing a wide open Chris Wondolowski to put the ball on the keeper.

Following goals from Red Bulls running mates Sacha Kljestan and Mike Grella in front of their hometown New Jersey crowd, Bradley Wright-Phillips was uncharacteristically awful in the box in stoppage time, launching a shot into the stands.

Regardless of the late miss, they're celebrating three points. New York (3-0-2) has the team at Once A Metro still enjoying an undefeated season, while Center Line Soccer sees their losses piling up early.

D.C. United 1 – 1 Houston Dynamo

In just the sixth minute, Alex Lopez blew it wide on a chance that had fans of Houston (2-2-3) banging their heads on the bar.

Later in the first half, a well-built attack up the left side would be ruined for United (3-1-2) when Chris Pontius and Michael Farfan couldn’t link up in the box.

Down 1-0 after Chris Rolfe’s unsaveable free kick goal in the 22nd minute, Dynamo fullback Kofi Sarkodie did everything he could to set Giles Barnes up for an equalizer.

Well, you can lead a horse to water.

Brad Davis and Will Bruin would join forces to equalize in the second half, sending the teams at Black and Red United and Dynamo Theory home with one point apiece.

FC Dallas 3 – 2 Toronto FC

Two things are abundantly clear following this one. For starters, Toronto (1-4-0) has some serious, serious problems along the back four.

Just 27 minutes to allow three goals. Funny, I didn't see the "Big Three" anywhere in that clip.

Secondly, Dallas (4-2-1) needs to beef up their security after allowing a Toronto fan to get into maintenance area.

After some bizarre breaks from the action, Dallas would eventually triumph for three points in a game that took over four hours to complete. The Big D Soccer folks are hiding their embarrassment from the stadium mishap while Waking The Red has an opening for competent defenders.

Colorado Rapids 1 – 3 Seattle Sounders

Four minutes into the game, Lamar Neagle of Seattle broke the hearts of Colorado (1-2-3) with an impossible goal off a post-hitting counter attack from Dillon Powers on the other end.

Late in the game and looking for an insurance goal for their 2-1 lead, Seattle (3-2-1) looked to Obafemi Martins to top the jaw-dropping effort that was the opening goal.

The Rapids defense never stood a chance.

Sounder At Heart gets to celebrate pretty goals, and Burgundy Wave is copying/pasting Toronto's job posting for defenders.

Real Salt Lake 0 – 1 Vancouver Whitecaps

Russell Teibert set the tone early for Vancouver (5-2-1) with an aggressive tackle on Olmes Garcia in the opening minutes.

Garcia would later takes his frustrations out on a quality chance by launching the ball into the nosebleeds.

Jamison Olave would let the physical play get the better of him in the 41st, throwing enough of a fit to land himself a booking.

Sebastian Saucedo lost his composure in the second half with a bad tackle on Mauro Rosales.

Mattocks would head in the winner in the 80th, keeping Vancouver on pace at the top of the table at the expense of Real (1-2-3).

Shortly after the goal, the official would get his revenge on Olave with a second yellow in the closing minutes of the match.

RSL Soapbox are siding with Olave while Eighty Six Forever are enjoying this nice run of form to open the season.

LA Galaxy 2 – 1 Sporting Kansas City

Baggio Husidic opened the scoring for the Galaxy (3-2-2) with a rebound off a saved attempt from Stefan Ishizaki.

Former Lion Dom Dwyer started the play that would finish with a classy Krisztian Nemeth equalizer.

Second-half substitute and USMNT representative Omar Gonzalez would prove his worth with a workmanlike effort in the box to press the dagger into KC’s (2-2-3) heart.

LA Confidential breaks down the win while The Blue Testament sits on the wrong side of the table early.

Philadelphia Union 1 – 2 New England Revolution

The Union would lose in their second match of the week, falling to the Revolution (2-2-2) in a game they largely appeared to be in control of early.

Cristian Maidana showed off his ability on a free kick minutes before the half to emphatically claim the first half for Philadelphia.

Substitute Teal Bunbury would feed a goal off the boot of Charlie Davies to equalize in the 63rd as momentum was swinging back in the Revs’ favor.

Not content with bouncing one in off someone else’s shoe, Bunbury got to work on his own for the winner in the 76th, receiving service from Diego Fagundez.

The Bent Musket are toasting to Nina's birthday while Brotherly Game are drowning their sorrows over cheesesteaks.

New York City 0 – 1 Portland Timbers

New York (1-4-3) couldn't win their second match either, dropping three points to Portland (2-2-3) in front of their home crowd.

In what was essentially the Adam Kwarasey show, New York pressed for goals but were stopped each time in a dominating showing all throughout the match.

Exhibit A.

Exhibit B.

Exhibit C.

Dairon Asprilla repaid Kwarasey’s work late in the game with a deflected goal off a cluster of poor play at the top of the box.

The final big moment came in the form of Exhibit D in the game's waning minutes.

Stumptown Footy is writing hipster poems about Adam Kwarasey while Hudson River Blue is waiting for Alex Rodriguez' next at bat.

Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 144: Gotham Rewind, Seattle Preview, and More

The Pride finished their home schedule with a loss to Gotham and hope to finish their road schedule with a win in Seattle.

Published

1 week ago

October 28, 2026

Michael Citro

Image of Solai Washington running onto a ball behind the Gotham defense.

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

The Orlando Pride tried to send their fans home happy in their regular-season home finale, but despite an impressive overall performance against the league leaders, the Pride wasted numerous chances in front of goal and paid for two big mistakes at the back in what ultimately ended as a 2-1 loss in a season filled with far too many defeats. Solai Washington did so many things well, but despite a month’s worth of chances, she could only muster one goal. Still, it was a promising outing albeit in a developing story that won’t continue much longer this year.

We discuss the key plays, players, and moments, look back at our score predictions from last week, and select our Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about Marta, the reasons for the Pride’s struggles in 2026, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we look ahead to Sunday’s season finale at the Seattle Reign. The Pride opened their 2026 season with a home loss to the Reign but would like to close it with a road win over Seattle to enter the off-season on a positive note. It won’t be easy, as the Reign are clinging to the last playoff spot and trying to catch rival Portland as multiple teams are trying to catch them. We look at Orlando’s attempt to play spoiler, check back on the series history, compare the teams’ positions in the table, provide our key matchups, and more.

Here’s how Episode 144 went down:

0:15 – The Pride finished their home schedule with a good performance but another poor result against the league’s top team.

20:07 – Our mailbagbox has questions about the GOAT.

38:26 – Seattle was the first 2026 opponent and will be the last 2026 opponent. We preview for the last time this season.

Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 140: Bay FC Rewind, San Diego Preview, and More

The Pride keep their playoff hopes alive by eliminating Bay FC but things get tougher with San Diego visiting Friday.

Published

1 month ago

September 30, 2026

Michael Citro

Image of Jacquie Ovalle dribbling toward the Bay FC defense.

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Justin Glatt

The Orlando Pride remained perfect on the road against Bay FC with a 3-1 win on Sunday. Deuces were wild, as Haley McCutcheon, who wears jersey No. 2, scored in the second minute of both halves, and her two goals in California gave the midfielder her second brace of both the 2026 NWSL season and her career. Barbra Banda figured heavily in pulling defenders out of position on two of the three Orlando goals and assisted on Jacquie Ovalle’s right-footed thunderbolt in stoppage time to put the game away. But make no mistake, it’s not as if the Pride played well, turning the ball over often and conceding 28 shot attempts to the hosts.

We break down a road win that may have been more exhausting to watch than to play in (although I wouldn’t bet on it), check back on our score predictions, and make our selections for Player of the Match.

This week’s mailbagbox asked us about Haley McCutcheon, where to most strongly place the blame for the Pride’s disappointing season, and more. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

Finally, we looked ahead to Friday, when Orlando will host San Diego Wave FC, looking to both complete a season sweep and to keep its faint playoff hopes alive. We look at the series history, provide our key matchups for the contest, and make our predictions for the final score.

Here’s how Episode 140 went down:

0:15 – The Pride improved to 2-1-1 under Yolanda Thomas, but a lot of good Cosette Morche saves were required to get that second win.

20:00- The mailbagbox asks us to play the blame game.

33:36 – The Pride continue to face California-based competition, but Friday’s opponent is much higher in the table than Sunday’s was.

Orlando City

Orlando City vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Orlando City restarts its 2026 MLS campaign late tonight out west at San Jose.

Published

4 months ago

July 22, 2026

Michael Citro

Image of Braian Ojeda taking a shot in a friendly against FC Dallas.

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Welcome to your match thread for a late night midweek matchup tonight between Orlando City (4-9-2, 14 points) and the San Jose Earthquakes (10-3-2, 32 points) at PayPal Park (10:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the only scheduled meeting between the teams in 2026 and the first time the teams have met since 2024.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s match.

History

Orlando City is 3-1-3 in the previous seven MLS meetings with the Quakes since the club joined Major League Soccer in 2015. The Lions got their only away win in the series in the last meeting and enter tonight 1-1-2 on the road against San Jose.

The teams last met on May 18, 2024, with Jack Lynn coming off the bench to score the game’s only goal. Lynn’s strike in the 89th minute broke the scoreless deadlock and lifted the Lions to a 1-0 victory.

The teams met in Orlando most recently way back on June 22, 2021, with the Lions beating the Quakes down, 5-0. Orlando got things started with an early penalty kick goal by Nani, followed by braces from Benji Michel and Daryl Dike to easily put the game away. The lasting memory from the game is Michel’s celebratory dance wearing a cowboy hat that came out of the stands.

Prior to that Orlando City romp, the last time the teams met was on Aug. 31, 2019 when the Lions got freight trained 3-0 at Avaya Stadium, giving the Quakes their first win in the series. San Jose’s offense came via a Chris Wondolowski brace and an early opening goal by Magnus Eriksson. Orlando looked flat and weary out of the gate.

The Lions were victorious in Exploria Stadium in the 2018 meeting on April 21, a 3-2 Orlando win. It was the first win in the series for either side after three straight draws. Chris Mueller, Sacha Kljestan, and Dom Dwyer gave the Lions a 3-0 lead before Florian Jungwirth pulled two back in the game’s late stages.

The Lions led all of the first three matches in the second half only to see San Jose pull level, with two of those tying goals coming late. In the 2017 meeting, Carlos Rivas finally broke the scoreless tie and gave Orlando City the lead in the 81st minute, but Wondolowski spoiled the Lions’ night with an equalizer two minutes later as the teams drew at Avaya Stadium, 1-1.

In 2016, the Lions were gut-punched in the 94th minute in an emotional match that ended in a 2-2 draw. It was the first home match following the Pulse nightclub tragedy and what appeared to be a storybook ending to a cathartic win turned sour on a last-gasp equalizer by Shea Salinas. Seb Hines — now the Orlando Pride’s head coach — opened the scoring for Orlando, only to see Chad Barrett tie it up. Julio Baptista restored the lead in stoppage time, but Salinas ruined everything.

The two teams also drew in the first meeting, a 1-1 affair at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, with the Lions down to 10 men after Brek Shea was sent off in the first half. Kaká and Wondolowski each scored from the penalty spot four minutes apart in that initial meeting.

Overview

The teams meet tonight to get their post-World Cup portion of the season started. Orlando City has been terrible on the road all season long, keeping only one MLS opponent under two goals all year away from home and allowing five goals twice (at New York City FC and Nashville) and six goals twice (at LAFC and in the team’s most recent match away at FC Cincinnati just before the break).

Orlando City is a putrid 1-6-1 on the road this season, and now the Lions must face the Western Conference co-leaders tonight before coming home to face Supporters’ Shield-leading Nashville SC at home on Saturday. They’ll have to play at least tonight’s game without Martin Ojeda, who is out with a thigh injury sustained some time between his first-half goal a week ago in a friendly against FC Dallas and the time the availability report dropped on Tuesday.

But it isn’t all bad news for the Lions, who should have both Antoine Griezmann and Dike in the lineup. Griezmann was the club’s highly prized and widely publicized summer Designated Player signing, while Dike’s return to Orlando came together more recently, following his departure from West Bromwich Albion. They’ll help the club’s offense, but the attack hasn’t been the issue in 2026 — it’s been the historically porous defense, which is on pace to shatter the MLS record for goals conceded.

Meanwhile, San Jose is one of the first half of the season’s biggest surprises, as the Quakes have been outstanding in 2026. Scoring 34 goals while conceding just 15, San Jose is among the league leaders in goals scored (tied for third), goals conceded (third), and goal differential (+19, third).

The Earthquakes are 4-2-1 at home and are coming off a 3-1 road win at Portland in their last game prior to the World Cup break. San Jose boasts Golden Boot challenger Preston Judd, who leads the Quakes with 11 goals, adding two assists in his 15 appearances. Ousseni Bouda has chipped in five goals and three assists. Niko Tsakiris leads the team with seven assists to go along with his two goals, but he’s still recovering from a lower body injury and is not available tonight. However, the arrival of Timo Werner (four goals and five assists in just seven games) has truly elevated Bruce Arena’s Quakes, and he’ll need to be one of the main focal points for the Orlando defense.

To have any shot at taking something from this game, the Lions will need to play better road defense than they have all season. Orlando can score goals, but with Ojeda out, Griezmann will need to adapt quickly, and someone other than the team’s leading scorer will need to find the net.

The Lions will play without Ojeda (thigh), Joran Gerbet (knee), Nolan Miller (knee), Colin Guske (international duty), and Clovis Archage (international duty). In addition, Marco Pasalic may or may not have returned to the team after the World Cup. He was not in training Monday, although interim head coach Martin Perelman said he expected the Croatian back soon. The Earthquakes will be without Nonso Adimabua (lower body), former Lion Earl Edwards Jr. (lower body), DeJuan Jones (lower body), and Tsakiris (you guessed it, lower body…come on, San Jose).

Match Content

Our most recent PawedCast includes our key matchups and score predictions for tonight’s match.

Official Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Adrian Marin, David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Eduard Atuesta, Tiago.

Forwards: Justin Ellis, Antoine Griezmann.

Bench: Javier Otero, Bernardo Rhein, Tahir Reid-Brown, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Luis Otavio, Harvey Sarajian, Tyrese Spicer

San Jose Earthquakes (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Angus Gunn.

Defenders: Jamar Ricketts, Reid Roberts, Daniel Munie, Benjamin Kikanovic.

Defensive Midfielders: Beau Lerouox, Ronaldo Vieira.

Attacking Midfielders: Timo Werner, Nick Fernandez, Ousseni Bouda.

Forwards: Preston Judd.

Bench: Jonathan Gonzalez, Dave Romney, Paul Marie, Jack Skahan, Jack Jasinski, Ian Harkes, Francesco Montali, Max Floriani, Darius Johnson.

Referees

REF: Elijio Arreguin.
AR1: Adam Wienckowski.
AR2: Mike Nickerson.
4TH: Timothy Ford.
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 10:30 p.m.

Venue: PayPal Park — San Jose, CA.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the match. Go City!