Lion Links: 7/15/15

What’s up gang? It’s Wednesday which means today is the day Orlando City takes on West Bromwich Albion in a friendly. We’re pretty pumped about the opportunity to face an international opponent and apparently so is Dan Patrick.

Shoutout to @Jared_Smith88 for the photo. Another photo, courtesy of Ochocinco’s Twitter account, shows the former footballer and wannabe futbol-er supporting OCSC as well.

@OrlandoCitySC Tell Kaka my kids& I will see him tomorrow on the pitch… pic.twitter.com/Ze0eegRMw4

— Chad Johnson (@ochocinco) July 14, 2015

So, if you’re at the game today, maybe you’ll get to see Chad Johnson, er Chad Ochocinco, er whatever the hell he’s calling himself. All that being said, let’s get to some links.

Youngsters Getting a Chance

After one of its worst performances of the year, Orlando City will again take a depleted squad into the friendly tonight. This match leaves a big opportunity for the young players, who will hope to take advantage of some time they probably didn’t expect to get. One player to watch for will be 20-year-old Bryan Rochez, who hasn’t played in a few weeks after his visa debacle while on international duty.

Kaká to the All-Star Game

Orlando City midfielder Kaká is unsurprisingly headed to the All-Star game. What is surprising, is that he called it a ‘dream com true.’ Seems like the Brazilian superstar didn’t have the biggest dreams to start with, but it does give some credence to the league that a player of Kaká’s caliber thinks being an MLS All-Star is a dream come true.

Jozy, and Others, Out of Gold Cup

After a less-than-stellar performance in the group stage of the Gold Cup, U.S. striker Jozy Altidore has been sent home for the knockout round, along with Greg Carza and Alfredo Morales.

It’s a big move, but not entirely surprising. Jurgen Klinsmann’s justification of Altidore not being fit is a good one, as the striker just didn’t look like he belonged on the field.

The replacements however are questionable. Joe Corona had a stellar performance with the U.S. in Olympic qualifying a few years back, but DaMarcus Beasley already retired from international play once and Alan Gordon doesn’t strike fear in anyone.

Anyway, I’d like to Clint Dempsey this current roster.

Where You At, Beckham?
After meeting with Miami-Dade County’s mayor over a month and a half ago,it sounds like there hasn’t been much dialogue between David Beckham and Carlos A. Gimenez.

Or any dialogue, really.

Gimenez, says he and Beckham, who has expressed desire in putting an MLS team in Miami, haven’t spoken since the meeting. That’s concerning for fans who want a franchise in Miami, but in all honesty there are plenty of other cities that are more ready for a franchise than Miami.

Turks be Crazy

Robin van Persie, for some reason, signed with Turkish side Fenerbahce this week, and people went nuts.

Just watch the video. It’s got everything short of the guy from Project X who drives a car into the pool.

That’s it for today’s links, guys. Enjoy the game tonight. It’s not on TV or streamed, so GO BUY A TICKET.