Lion Links: 2/26/17

Good morniiiiiiiiiiing Vietnam! And good morning to you fellow Lions! It’s hard to believe that we are now just one week away from the season opener against New York City FC. Saturday was an eventful day filled with very interesting stories, which of course, means very interesting Lion links.

Brek Shea Traded to Vancouver Whitecaps for Giles Barnes

Brek Shea has been a valuable player for Orlando City ever since he was acquired from Stoke City back in 2014. Even though Shea had quite a bit of playing time under former head coach Adrian Heath the last two seasons, last night he was traded to Vancouver. In return we have received Giles Barnes in what can be described as a like-for-like change if Head Coach Jason Kreis decides to use Barnes in a midfield role. It will definitely be very interesting to compare how well these two perform this season for their respective clubs.

Orlando City Beats St. Louis FC 3-1 in Last Preseason Game

In its final match before the season opener, Orlando City played the first game in the new stadium. The game was played against St. Louis FC, a team that currently competes in the USL. Considering the division gap, Orlando City was heavily favored to win, and the Lions certainly did not disappoint.

Even though it was just a preseason game, Orlando City fans should still be very proud of their team’s great performance on the pitch. The game was expectedly dominated by Orlando, but it was still good to see Kaká fire in the first goal ever in the new stadium. Another positive was the new striking pair of Cyle Larin and Carlos Rivas playing excellently. Larin scored the other two goals in the game, both assisted by Rivas. The only negative was that Orlando conceded in the 89th minute, highlighting the club’s defensive issues.

“Well I think that tonight they really looked for each other,” Kreis said of the Larin-Rivas duo. “They both looked extremely dangerous, got themselves in some really good positions for us, and we’ll look to them to continue to do that. As we’ve said, we’re looking to play with two strikers, and we’ve made it pretty clear of that, and we’re looking to put some defensive teams into a tough spot.”

With the New Stadium Finally Being Unveiled Here are Some of the Fans’ Reactions

Based on their comments, it is clear to see that everyone is impressed with the new stadium and is excited to see their team finally take the field in their season opener on March 5.

Keisuke Honda Could Be Heading to MLS

Ever since David Beckham joined MLS, journalists have criticized the league for being purely a retirement home for massive international stars. In recent times those same journalists have been pleased by the key signings of younger international stars like Sebastian Giovinco and Giovani Dos Santos. Keisuke Honda is a player who would also fit this bill if he were to make the move to MLS. According to this report, he is very close to joining the Seattle Sounders.

MLS Jerseys Unveiled

With the MLS season kicking off this weekend, the jerseys from every team have now been unveiled. Sports Illustrated decided to take a look at all the jerseys and critique them based on how they look. One glance at all the jerseys and it is clear to see that our home jersey is one of the most stylish ones. The purple with gold stripes really go together well, and it will be very exciting to see the players in their first competitive game next week wearing the new jerseys.

That’s all for today’s Lion links. Make sure to let me know your thoughts on the Shea-Barnes trade in the comment section. Have a fantastic Sunday!