Happy Tuesday, everyone! Orlando’s teams were firing on all cylinders this weekend, as Orlando City and the Orlando Pride combined to take all six points on offer. Orlando City beat the Philadelphia Union on the road by a score of 3-2, while Adriana’s penalty kick saw the Pride safely to a 1-0 win over Bay FC. As usual, we have a lot to discuss today, so let’s get after it.

Three Lions Earn Recognition After Win

A trio of Lions have been recognized for their efforts in Saturday’s win, as Luis Muriel is in the starting lineup of the MLS Team of the Matchday, with Nico Lodeiro and Pedro Gallese on the bench. Muriel led the way for Orlando on the scoresheet with a brace, while also doing some creative work in addition to the scoring. Lodeiro assisted on all three Orlando City goals, as he turned in an outstanding performance in the midfield. Gallese made two big saves from open play, and stonewalled what would have been an equalizer by Daniel Gazdag from the spot to preserve all three points for Orlando City. Here’s hoping the good performances continue.

Luis Muriel Up for Weekly Honors

The recognition didn’t stop with the Team of the Matchday for Muriel though. The Colombian striker was also nominated for MLS Player of the Matchday, although the award ultimately went to Christian Benteke. While he missed out on Player of the Matchday honors, it’s hard to argue with Benteke’s hat trick that saw D.C. United beat Atlanta United 3-2, and I’m sure Muriel will take Orlando’s victory over personal honors any day of the week. Muriel also received a nomination for MLS Goal of the Week. Which goal he was nominated for should come as little surprise, with his thunderous left-footed strike to open his Orlando City account getting the nod.

Blackburn Rovers Still After Duncan McGuire

It seems that Blackburn is still interested in Duncan McGuire, as the English team is said to be sending someone stateside to scout him this week. If Orlando City has its way, that interest won’t matter, as the club has reportedly offered him a new contract (paywall) with improved terms from the last one offered to the young striker. It’ll be interesting to see how things play out after a move to England collapsed so spectacularly during the January window. If McGuire keeps scoring at the rate he has so far this season then he’ll presumably have bigger fish than Blackburn chasing his services.

Jesse Marsch Takes Canada Job

Jesse Marsch has been named the new manager of the Canadian Men’s National Team. Out of a coaching job since his time managing Leeds United ended back in 2023, Marsch will take over for John Herdman, who left the post last summer to take the reins at Toronto FC. Marsch’s appointment could add an extra level of intrigue to games between Canada and the United States Men’s National Team, as Marsch has been critical of Gregg Berhalter at times. While he will be in charge of Canada for this summer’s Copa America, the USMNT and Canada find themselves on the opposite side of the bracket, and the only way they will meet is in either the final or the third-place game.

Americans in Midweek Action

Speaking of the USMNT, a number of American players will be in action this week, so make sure you have everything noted on your calendar. On Wednesday, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Celtic will win the Scottish league if they beat or draw with Killie, while Weston McKennie, Tim Weah and Juventus square off against Atalanta in the Coppa Italia final. Thursday sees Josh Sargent and Norwich City take on Leeds United in the second leg of the Championship Playoff semifinals, while Friday will see Daryl Dike’s West Brom play the second leg of its semifinal against Southampton, although Dike will miss out through injury.

Free Kicks

• Oscar Pareja says Robin Jansson’s injury isn’t as bad as initially feared, but didn’t elaborate much more beyond that.

• In an interesting decision, ESPN has the Orlando Pride at third in its NWSL power rankings, although CBS Sports managed to do slightly better, and has the Pride in second.
• Meanwhile, Orlando City is up to 18th in ESPN‘s MLS power rankings.
• Former Lion Nani is a free agent after a year playing in Turkey.

That’s all I have for today. Vamos Orlando!

Hello, Mane Landers! It was a good weekend for our teams as both Orlando City and the Pride won their respective matches. I was busy at Under Armour all weekend, as well as managing the broadcast operations for the NISA league’s matches. There is plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Lions Pick Up Key Road Win at Philadelphia Union

On Saturday, Orlando City held on for a 3-2 win on the road against the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park. Luis Muriel scored his first two MLS goals for the Lions, and Duncan McGuire added one. Nico Lodeiro had an assist on all three goals for the Lions, recording his 15th career multi-assist game. Orlando snapped its two-game losing streak and three-match winless skid. 

It was a very tense match, with Orlando City enduring a Robin Jansson injury, two penalties for the Union — in which Daniel Gazdag converted one but got his second attempt saved by Pedro Gallese — and 19 minutes of stoppage time to hang on for the win. Orlando City moves up to 11th in the Eastern Conference with 12 points. The Lions will have a quick turnaround with a match Wednesday at Inter&Co Stadium against Inter Miami.

Luis Muriel Discusses His First Goals for Lions

Orlando City forward Luis Muriel shared some insight on what it meant to him to finally score for the Lions in their recent matchup against the Philadelphia Union over the weekend. 

“It’s been a long time coming. I’ve been waiting for that to happen,” Muriel said post-match through a translator.

“I think the adaptation of the league was something that I was really trying to get as quickly as possible. … My teammates and this group are just so hard-working, so to be able to have that and have them pushing me is great.”

Muriel delivered two goals for the Lions in their 3-2 win over the Union. Orlando Head Coach Oscar Pareja stated that scoring those two goals is very important for Muriel’s confidence and that he hopes this is just the start. 

Pride Win at Home against Bay FC

The Orlando Pride won their sixth straight match on Saturday at Inter&Co Stadium against NWSL newcomers Bay FC with a 1-0 win. Adriana’s first-half penalty conversion was the lone goal in this match, as the Pride got their ninth straight result this season. The Pride remain undefeated in league play, keeping their unbeaten streak alive at nine matches. The Pride are tied with the Kansas City Current for first place in the NWSL table with 21 points. Orlando will head out west Sunday to take on Seattle Reign FC.

MLS Weekend Roundup

We had Rivalry Week in matchday 13 action in Major League Soccer. Let’s start in Ohio with FC Cincinnati pulling out a 2-1 win against rival Columbus Crew. Cincinnati had never beaten the Crew in Columbus and avenged its playoff loss from last season. St. Louis City defeated the Chicago Fire 3-1, with Joao Klauss scoring twice. FC Dallas edged past Austin FC 2-1, and the Houston Dynamo also won 2-1 against Sporting Kansas City. The San Jose Earthquakes, New York City FC, Inter Miami, and D.C. United all won their matches with a 3-2 scoreline over Colorado Rapids, Toronto FC, CF Montreal, and Atlanta United, respectively. Christian Benteke scored three goals for D.C. United. Charlotte FC won 1-0 over Nashville SC, the New York Red Bulls won 4-2 against the New England Revolution, and LAFC cruised past Vancouver Whitecaps with a 3-0 win. The LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake match ended in a 2-2 draw, and the lone Sunday matchup was the Cascadia Cup, which saw the Seattle Sounders edge past the Portland Timbers 2-1. 

EPL Title Race to go to Final Day; Burnley Relegated

Manchester City crushed Fulham 4-0 on Saturday, while Arsenal defeated Manchester United 1-0 on Sunday to take the Premier League title race to the final day. Arsenal is in first with 86 points while Manchester City is second with 85 points. Manchester City plays at Tottenham tomorrow and will close out its season finale against West Ham, while Arsenal faces Everton. Burnley lost 2-1 to Tottenham over the weekend and joins Sheffield United in being relegated to the EFL Championship. Luton Town needs help, needing a win at Fulham and a Nottingham Forest loss to Burnley, and making up an inferior goal difference, which stands at 12, to avoid relegation on the final day of the Premier League season this Sunday.

Free Kicks

• USMNT midfielder Christian Pulisic scored twice for AC Milan over the weekend, snapping the team’s six-match winless streak with a 5-1 victory over Cagliari.
• Manchester United Women cruised past Tottenham with a 4-0 win to seal their first English Women’s FA Cup trophy. 
• Bayer Leverkusen shut out VfL Bochum 5-0 and extended its unbeaten run to 50 consecutive matches across all competitions. 
• Bologna has secured its first UEFA Champions League appearance at the expense of AS Roma’s 2-1 loss to Atalanta. 
• FC. St. Pauli has clinched promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time in 13 years after a 3-1 win against VfL Osnabruck.
• FC United of Manchester won 4-0 against the Prague Raptors to win the Fenix Trophy for the second time in three years. 

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday and I’ll see you next time.

Happy Friday! I don’t have many plans for the weekend beyond working and looking after my friend’s cat, but I’m hoping it’s a fairly relaxing next few days. Both Orlando City and the Orlando Pride are in action tomorrow night, so make sure to plan your weekend accordingly. For now, let’s get to today’s links!

Orlando City Prepares for the Philadelphia Union

After a tough loss at home to FC Cincinnati, Orlando City hits the road for a tough match against the Philadelphia Union tomorrow night. The Lions showed plenty of fight in that loss, which included a red card to Rodrigo Schlegel and injuries to both Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Rafael Santos. Head Coach Oscar Pareja spoke about the matchup against the Union and stated that Thorhallsson is in concussion protocol and that both he and Santos are day-to-day heading into this match.

The Lions at least won’t have to worry about Philadelphia forward Julian Carranza in this match, as he will miss it due to yellow card accumulation. Both teams have struggled in recent weeks, with the Lions winless in their last three games and the Union winless in their last four. Orlando managed to beat the Union on the road last year and will need to do it again to climb up the Eastern Conference standings.

Angelina Will Be Evaluated Weekly for Return

Orlando Pride midfielder Angelina had a successful arthroscopic procedure on her knee and will be evaluated by the club’s medical team for a return to the field on a week-to-week basis. She suffered the injury late in the Pride’s 4-1 win over the North Carolina Courage, and rookie Ally Lemos filled in for her in the team’s 1-0 win against Racing Louisville. Angelina signed with the Pride this past off-season and has been a major reason why the Pride are undefeated in 2024. The Brazilian has done well on both sides of the ball and has a goal and an assist to her name so far, while bringing stability to the midfield. Hopefully, she returns to the Pride’s midfield sooner rather than later.

Philadelphia Union Sign 14-Year-Old Cavan Sullivan

The Philadelphia Union have a penchant for developing young players and have now signed 14-year-old midfielder Cavan Sullivan to a Homegrown Player contract that will last through 2028. Sullivan, who is the brother of Quinn Sullivan, is now the fifth-youngest signing in MLS history. He excelled in the past two Generation Adidas Cups with the Union and made his debut for Philadelphia Union II earlier this year. When he turns 18, he will reportedly be transferred to Manchester City as well, so it will be interesting to see how he does in MLS until then.

Leverkusen and Atalanta Reach Europa League Final

Bayer Leverkusen and Atalanta both got the job done in second legs at home to advance to the Europa League final. The match in Germany between Leverkusen and Roma was a wild one, with Leverkusen managing yet another late comeback to draw 2-2 and advance on aggregate after winning the first leg. The draw extended Leverkusen’s unbeaten streak to 49 games and it can secure a treble by the end of the month. In the other semifinal, Atalanta cruised to a 3-0 win over Marseille. The Italian club will have a chance at silverware in the Coppa Italia final against Juventus on May 15 before the Europa League final on May 22 in Ireland.

Free Kicks

• Enjoy these sights and sounds from the Pride’s gritty win over Racing Louisville.

• Olivier Renard is no longer the vice president and chief sporting officer of CF Montreal, with the two sides agreeing to part ways.
• PSV Eindhoven reportedly won’t be exercising the option to sign American right back Sergino Dest, who joined the Dutch club on loan from Barcelona last year.

• Legal action could be coming FIFA’s way if it continues adding competitions to an already congested schedule for men’s soccer.
• James Benge of CBS Sports believes that this year’s Borussia Dortmund side is the most surprising team to make the Champions League final.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!