Orlando City vs Columbus Crew: Player Grades and Man of the Match

Well, that was bad. Orlando City dropped a 4-1 match to the Columbus Crew, who were tied for the worst team in the league coming into the match. The back line play was horrendous. The lack of adjustments was startling. And the attack was uninspired. Realistically the final should have read closer to 6 or 7-1.

These grades are going to be a good time.

Starters

GK, Joe Bendik, 6 – I mean, he gave up four goals. But most of those were due to the lack of help from the back line. He didn’t do anything to make himself stand out, but there were no egregious mistakes.

D, Kevin Alston, 4 – Was a black hole of suck in the attack. He just doesn’t have the capability to be a threat, whether it be in one-on-one situations or facilitating with his passing. Most of the Crew’s threats came from Boden’s side, but Alston wasn’t mistake-free either. He was in the vicinity with Redding for the Crew’s first goal, and someone should have been able to stop Kamara. There needs to be better communication there.

D, Seb Hines, 4 – Scored an own-goal in the 22nd minute. Got clowned by Kamara in the 44th minute. So yeah, it was bad. Unlike the other defenders, he at least brought chances with his head during Orlando’s attacking opportunities.

D, Tommy Redding, 4 – Got beat by Ola Kamara on a through ball that led to the first goal by Ethan Finlay. Made up for it with a diving play in the 22nd minute to keep Kamara from scoring on a cross from Finlay.

D, Luke Boden, 4 – Got beat horribly by Finlay in the 22nd minute for what should have been the second goal, if not for a great diving play by Redding. No worries, though. Hines put it in the net for Columbus on the ensuing corner. Got destroyed by Finlay all night.

To sum up the defense tonight, this is what Orlando City looked like.

MF, Matias Perez Garcia, 6.5 (MOTM) – Had the team’s first shot on frame, though it was from distance and right at the keeper. Had a terrific back heel to Luke Boden in the 40th minute. Boden botched it, but it was still worth a mention here. Was subbed off in the 66th for Brek Shea.

MF, Servando Carrasco, 5.5 – Didn’t see a ton one way or the other from Carrasco. Which probably made him one of the best Orlando City players on the field on this night. He did assist the Larin goal, but it wasn’t a special pass. The strike from Larin is what made that goal. Either way, Carrasco handled himself well on a night when many Lions did not.

MF, Kevin Molino, 6 – Had a beautiful long ball to Cyle Larin that created a dangerous opportunity. Had a nice shot on frame in the 18th minute that was saved by a sprawling Steve Clark. He was one of the best players on the field for Orlando City, though at times he disappeared, as the Lions seemed to have no desire to play through him.

MF, Tony Rocha, 5 – Took too many unnecessary gambles that didn’t pay off. Only lasted 45 minutes before Jason Kreis took him out for Carlos Rivas. The only thing saving him is he didn’t turn the ball over in any bad positions.

MF, Kaka, 5.5 – Made a brilliant play on a ball from MPG and beat a defender to find a lane for a shot that went just wide right. He and MPG continue to show a connection. Had a bad giveaway in the 15th minute that should have led to some sort of shot given OCSC had a 3-on-2 on the right side of the box. Gave away the ball on another intriguing opportunity two minutes later while looking for Molino down the left flank. Tried to do too much too often. Was nice to see him all over the field though. Almost bullied his way to a goal, fighting off a Crew defender in the 70th minute, but Steve Clark saved the shot.

F, Cyle Larin, 5.5 – Had 11 touches in the first half. That’s not going to get it done. But it’s hard to blame him for too much tonight. The attack really didn’t make an effort to try to get him the ball in good positions. Gave a nice pass to Rivas in front of the net in the 64th minute. Rivas couldn’t handle it. One of the few times he received the ball in front of the net, Larin put it in the back of the net in the 79th minute to make it 3-1. Funny how it works when you get the ball to your best scorer.

Substitutes

MF, Carlos Rivas (46′), 5 – Almost immediately received a yellow card and will now serve a suspension. Had one good opportunity in the 62nd when he took a shot from about 25 yards out and it was nowhere close to the net.

D, Mikey Ambrose (46′), 5 – Ambrose also got a yellow, shortly after Rivas received his. Was better than Boden on the left side, though he got caught being up too far and couldn’t track back, but Hines was in position to help out.

MF, Brek Shea (68′), 5 – Received a warm reception coming on the pitch. Showed some nice ability to stay on the ball despite pressure pretty much immediately. Didn’t have much time to really impact the game.

There you have it. Awful game in a big situation. On to the next one. Vote for your player of the game below and let us know what you thought of the performances.

Polling Closed