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Orlando City

Orlando City at New York City FC: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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8 years ago

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The eighth meeting of the 2015 expansions teams is in the books, as Orlando City earned its first road win of the season with a 2-1 victory over its sky blue rivals. Orlando looked to be cruising to a 2-0 win until David Villa edged one back for the home team in the 74th minute. It was all hands on deck for the Lions after Villa’s goal, but Orlando’s defensive effort held up until the final whistle of the match.  

Orlando sits atop the Eastern Conference standings with the win. Let’s take a look at the individual performances from the match.  

Starters 

GK, Joe Bendik  7.5 — The first half was quiet for Bendik, but Joe saved Orlando’s keister and all three points with a point-blank save on Villa through traffic in stoppage time. In fact, Bendik’s quiet start to the game looked like a distant memory as he was in constant motion for the final 20 minutes of the match. He kept a lid on things by twice pushing attempts over the crossbar along with a beautiful punch on one of NYCFC’s 12 corners in the match. But the biggest save was undoubtedly the last one that denied Villa. Bendik is worth at least nine points by my count this season so far. He keeps producing time and time again.  

D, Donny Toia, 6 — Toia assisted Larin for his second goal of the game with a curling cross into the box. He picked up possession of the ball after a corner and escaped one marker before finding Larin. Defensively, Toia did a good job keeping Jack Harrison at bay for most of the game. Harrison was able to get some crosses into dangerous areas, but Toia prevented him from getting in behind the back four on the dribble. He had one mental lapse in the game, which resulted in NYCFC’s only goal. He lost track of Villa on the NYCFC free kick and the Spaniard made him pay by chipping a first-time finish from the near post.   

D, Jonathan Spector, 7.5 — Spector continued his solid form for Orlando City since his move from Birmingham City this off-season. Spector won aerial battles and made clearances with both his head and his feet. He supported the outside backs by intercepting passes and making numerous tackles on NYCFC’s wingers. Through the middle, Spector and Redding were a solid unit, and didn’t look out of position for almost the entire match.  

D, Tommy Redding, 6.5 — Redding made a strong case to continue as Spector’s CB partner even as Jose Aja is close to returning from injury. Redding stayed in contact with Spector and kept attackers in front of him the entire match. He was strong in the air when called on and made good decisions when he had the ball at his feet. Redding picked up a yellow card in the second half, but he made the right choice to halt a dangerous looking counter-attack for NYCFC, even though the hosts scored off the ensuing free kick. Kreis will have a difficult decision on his hands when Aja becomes fit again.    

D, Scott Sutter, 6.5 — Sutter continued to join in with the attack like he did against the Red Bulls last weekend, and it paid off today. Sutter provided Larin with a well-weighted pass to open the scoring for the Lions. He had a sound defensive day as well. He seemed to cover the entire right side of the field, many times advancing higher than Johnson, who was playing right midfield. He also helped the team keep possession in wide areas, even though the Lions didn’t have a lot of the ball overall.   

MF, Cristian Higuita, 6 — Higuita retained his starting position on the left side of Kreis’ midfield diamond for this match. He had a quiet match today due to the lack of possession for Orlando on the road. But Higuita was aggressive in the midfield when the team didn’t have the ball. He earned a yellow card for such play, trying to win back possession in the attacking third, but it was good to see him working hard to get the ball back. Offensively, he was part of the build-up to the first Larin goal. He left the game after injuring his shoulder after a tackle from Ethan White—who picked up a yellow on the play.

MF, Antonio Nocerino, 6.5 — Nocerino quietly helped Orlando connect passes in midfield. He balanced that link-up play, but wasn’t afraid to clear the danger when a pass wasn’t on. He provided good cover for the back four that was very compact through the middle of the field, with most of the home team’s threats coming from the wings. He also matched Maxi Moralez who likes to find space in between the back four and defensive center midfielders.     

MF, Will Johnson 6.5 — Johnson is a model of consistency. Wearing the captain’s armband, Johnson never stopped running in this match. Everything we are beginning to expect from Johnson was on display in New York City today, except the stunning goal from last week. Johnson played a slightly narrower role, partly due to the narrow field in Yankee Stadium. He helped Nocerino and Higuita frustrate any passing moves through the middle of the park. NYCFC enjoyed a healthy advantage in possession all day, but Orlando’s midfield held up to the task each time.      

MF, Giles Barnes 5.5 — Jason Kreis started Barnes at the top of the diamond for the second straight week. He tried to drive the team forward into attack, but there were long stretches of the match when he didn’t see the ball in attacking areas. He spent most of his time chasing the possession of NYCFC midfielders. Barnes managed to win free kicks for Orlando, which helped the team regain its shape and take a breather defensively.   

F, Carlos Rivas, 7.5 — Rivas caused trouble early and often for NYCFC’s back four, forcing Moralez into a professional foul and a yellow card in only the second minute of the match. He fizzed a free kick that missed the near post in the 10th minute that was a lot closer than the match commentators gave him credit for. Rivas also helped set up the first goal for OCSC when he found Sutter with a through ball that set up the assist. The Colombian continued to harass defenders throughout the match. In the last 10 minutes of the game, he helped Orlando keep possession by holding up play in the NYCFC half. He also won valuable free kicks in the final minutes with his hold-up play to relieve some pressure on Orlando’s defensive posture.

F, Cyle Larin, 8 (MOTM) — We saw a vintage Larin performance this Sunday afternoon from the Canadian. Larin started the match looking bright and active. He was more involved in pressing opposing defenders than in any match so far this season. And Sutter rewarded him for his efforts in the 31st minute. Rivas connected with Sutter, who found Larin at the near post for the one-touch finish. Orlando’s other outside back provided Larin with his second goal. Toia’s cross found Larin who out-muscled Rodney Wallace to head in his second of the match. He also won a metric ton of free kicks by drawing fouls.

Substitutes

MF, Luis Gil (64’), 5.5 — He came in for Higuita after he picked up a shoulder injury. Gil entered the game as NYCFC started to dominate possession, and spent most of his minutes defending the onslaught of NYCFC attacks. His energy helped the team close out the three points on the road.

MF, Servando Carrasco (83’) 5.5 — Kreis swapped Barnes for Carrasco to add some more defensive stability to the final minutes of the match. Carrasco jumped in alongside Nocerino, Johnson, and Gil to close out the match. Nothing fancy about his play during the last minutes of the match — it was safety first with everything. In the end, it got the job done.

MF, Matias Perez Garcia (90’+3’), NA — MPG got a short run-out to waste a few seconds with a substitution for Rivas, and he got only a few touches at the end of the game.

Those are my ratings from a huge road win. How did you see the individual performances? Vote for your MotM in the poll below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Joe Bendik91
Jonathan Spector35
Cyle Larin136
Carlos Rivas7
Tommy Redding5
Scott Sutter4
Other1

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/22/25

Pedro Gallese earns recognition, Americans in midweek action, English promotion update, and more.

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10 hours ago

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April 22, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Well it wasn’t the worst weekend that Orlando soccer has ever had, but it certainly wasn’t the best either. Fortunately, all three of Orlando’s teams will be back in action soon, so there’s no need to dwell on the past too much. Let’s take a moment to wish a happy birthday to the Orlando Pride’s Brianna Martinez, as well as to Kaká! Now, it’s time to turn our attention to today’s links.

Pedro Gallese Earns Weekly Recognition

Pedro Gallese kept a third clean sheet in a row and Orlando City’s third clean sheet of the year in the team’s scoreless draw on the road against CF Montreal. In recognition of his efforts during the match, Gallese was named to the bench of the latest edition of the MLS Team of the Matchday. El Pulpo made six saves to blank a Montreal team that intently searched for a breakthrough, and made a couple of truly excellent second half stops that kept the score level. Congrats to Pedro and keep up the good work!

Americans in Midweek Action

A number of Americans will be playing games during the working week, and there are some big matches to keep an eye on. The main event is on Wednesday, when Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan face Inter Milan in the second leg of the Coppa Italia semifinal, which is tied 1-1 after the first leg. Also on Wednesday, Chris Richards, Matt Turner, and Crystal Palace will play Arsenal in the Premier League. Thursday then has Malik Tillman, Richy Ledezma, and PSV Eindhoven playing FC Twente in the Eredivisie, while Johnny Cardoso and Real Betis play Valladolid in La Liga action.

English Promotion Update

Following results in the EFL Championship on Monday, Leeds United and Burnley have both secured promotion to the Premier League for next season. Both teams won their respective games and are each on 94 points, and with just two matches left, third-placed Sheffield United has no way to catch them. The other promoted side will be determined after the promotion playoffs, which would feature Sheffield United, Sunderland, Bristol City, and Coventry City if the season ended today. Meanwhile in League One, Wrexham’s 2-1 victory over Blackpool meant the Dragons retook second place and the automatic promotion spot that comes with it. If they beat Charlton on Sunday and Wycombe Wanderers drop points against Leyton Orient, then Wrexham would secure promotion to the Championship.

Transfer Rumor Roundup

Transfer rumors continue to fly thick and fast as we approach the business end of most European seasons, so let’s take a look at a few items worth catching up on. Manchester United is said to be keen on signing 17-year-old Argentine Franco Mastantuono from River Plate. Liverpool is reportedly interested in signing winger Ademola Lookman from Atalanta, although the Reds would likely face competition from several other Premier League teams. Finally, Bayer Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro has revealed that he and Xabi Alonso have a gentleman’s agreement that if a team the Spaniard used to play for is interested in hiring him as its coach, then the club will not hinder the process. The statement has led to renewed speculation that Alonso will be named Real Madrid coach if Carlo Ancelotti leaves in the summer.

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That’s all I have for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Orlando City’s Focus On Youth Development Showing In The First Team

Orlando City is seeing more and more players promoted from the academy, through OCB, and into the first team.

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1 day ago

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April 21, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Orlando City began its academy in the USL Pro days with the goal of developing players for the first team. It took nearly a decade to begin seeing youth development bear fruit, but it’s becoming apparent early in the 2025 season.

Prior to 2019, Orlando City signed four players to Homegrown Player contracts. Tommy Redding, Tyler Turner, and Harrison Heath never played in the academy and the other, Mason Stajduhar, developed primarily at Chargers Soccer Club in Tampa.

Orlando City signed arguably its first true Homegrown Player when the club inked Benji Michel to a first-team contract. The following off-season, the Lions added David Loera and Jordan Bender. Mikey Halliday signed in July 2020. All of the players came through the academy before signing first-team deals. 

So what changed?

Part of it was the growth of the academy. It takes several years to begin producing players. Another major factor was the hiring of Luiz Muzzi on Dec. 18, 2019. Muzzi came from FC Dallas, a club known for promoting from its academy. He brought in Ricardo Moreira, who shares his vision of developing young talent for the first team.

And it’s not only Muzzi and Moreira. Former Orlando City head coach Adrian Heath rarely attended OCB games. James O’Connor only went to one, and that was to see his former teammate, Dennis Chin, who was playing with the opposing Richmond Kickers. The Orlando City boss left when Chin came off.

Oscar Pareja and other first-team coaches have been at several games, far more than their predecessors. That’s largely to do with the games’ location at the training facility, which is another factor in OCB’s development. The 2019 team trained over 40 miles away from the first team. The move to Kissimmee has the first team, OCB, and the development academy under one roof. It’s another display of the club’s more recent commitment to youth development.

Undoubtedly, the transformation of OCB under Muzzi and Moreira has also impacted Homegrown talent coming through. The team’s 2016 and 2017 rosters were primarily made up of first-team reserves and USL lifers. The 2019 team had many players from the Soccer Institute at Montverde Academy (SIMA), many of which were young but ineligible for Homegrown status.

Things began to change in 2020. The roster shifted to include more academy players and that’s only grown. This year, 15 OCB players came out of the academy, two were drafted, and eight are outside signings on MLS NEXT Pro deals. Other than Jhon Solis and first-team goalkeeper Carlos Mercado, everyone to appear for the team is 23 years old or younger.

The focus on giving OCB spots to academy graduates is now seen in the first team. Players like Thomas Williams, Javier Otero, Alex Freeman, Colin Guske, and Gustavo Caraballo have been regulars on the MLS team sheet. Injuries to first-team regulars has seen them receiving regular playing time.

The poster boy for this change is Freeman. The right back came out of the academy and spent a couple of years at OCB before signing his first-team contract. He won the starting role early in the 2025 regular season.

Many players joined the club later in their development, but we’re seeing some come through having been nearly fully developed at the Orlando City Academy. Guske and Caraballo joined at 13 years old, the youngest age group of the development academy. Both signed first-team deals for this year.

The midfield duo continue to play with OCB most games but are also on the first-team roster almost weekly. The only reason they weren’t in Montreal Saturday night is because they were helping the club’s U-18 team reach (and then win) the Generation Adidas Cup final.

With Muzzi and Moreira at the helm, more players continue to come through. U-18 captain and OCB starter Jackson Platts appears to be well on his way to a first-team contract. So does fellow U-18 and OCB starting forward Justin Ellis.

This past weekend saw another academy product make his first-team debut. Zakaria Taifi took over at right back for OCB when Freeman moved up to the first team this year. Signing a short-term deal Saturday, he came on as a late substitute to help the 10-man Lions see out the scoreless draw.

First-team absences have provided opportunities for many young players. If several weren’t at the Generation Adidas Cup, it could be more. Regardless, the last few years have shown a big step forward for the club.

The shift in recent years is more than the pride of seeing local kids representing the hometown team. They’ve been an essential part of the 2025 campaign. The club hasn’t had to use a short bench or dip into outside emergency signings. Instead, the Lions call up kids they know, making it easier to seamlessly place them into the team.

There will be times where several injuries will occur to experienced players. Orlando City is prepared for this more now than ever before, and it’s because of the players coming through the academy and playing with OCB. We’re already seeing it early in this 2025 season.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/21/25

Another scoreless draw for Orlando City, a home loss for the Pride, a championship for the OCSC U-18 squad, and more.

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1 day ago

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April 21, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope you all had a great holiday weekend with family and friends. I managed to watch a few soccer games while work kept me busy. Our Lions picked up another draw for the third week in a row, the Pride lost, and OCB was off this weekend. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Lions Draw CF Montreal on the Road

Orlando City and CF Montreal split the points in a scoreless draw at Stade Saputo on Saturday. It’s the third consecutive week that the Lions could not get a win with another scoreless draw. It’s the second straight match that Orlando had to play down a man as Rafael Santos was sent off in the second half after receiving a second yellow card. Still, the Lions extended their unbeaten run to six matches and are seventh in the Eastern Conference table with 13 points. After the match, Major League Soccer issued a statement after being informed a fan used discriminatory language towards a player during the match.

Orlando City will return to Inter&Co Stadium Saturday to take on Atlanta United.

Orlando City Signs Two Players to Short-Term Deals

Before Saturday’s match against CF Montreal, Orlando City announced the club had signed defender Zakaria Taifi and midfielder Riyon Tori to short-term contracts. Both players were on the bench for Saturday’s match. Tori did not play, but Taifi came off the bench late in the second half to make his MLS debut. Tori has played with OCB and has made three appearances. Taifi has made 42 appearances, starting 21 matches for OCB, scoring one goal and adding three assists.

Orlando City Signs Four Assistant Coaches to New Contracts

Orlando City announced on Friday that the club has renewed the contracts of First Assistant Coach Diego Torres, Second Assistant Coach Martin Perelman, Goalkeeper Coach Cesar Baena, and Fitness & Performance Coach Fabian Bazan. This news comes just days after the club announced that Head Coach Oscar Pareja will remain with the Lions under a new three-year contract through the 2028 MLS season. Together, the coaching staff has played a key part in the recent success of the Lions over the last five seasons, making five consecutive MLS Playoff appearances, two appearances in the Concacaf Champions Cup, and winning the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The Lions also set club records for wins and points, scoring 308 goals across all competitions with a plus-44 goal differential in 202 competitive matches.

Pride Fall to Washington Spirit at Home

The Orlando Pride fell to the Washington Spirit 1-0 at Inter&Co Stadium Saturday to suffer their first loss of the season. The Pride dominated most of the match, but in the 63rd minute, Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse gave the ball away in front of the goal, and Gift Monday capitalized to score the winning goal for the Spirit. Late in the second half, it looked like the Pride had scored the equalizer; however, after video review, it was determined that Kylie Nadaner backed into Aubrey Kingsbury on the play, impeding the goalkeeper from catching the ball, and the tying goal was waved off. With the Kansas City Current’s win over the Houston Dash over the weekend, Orlando drops to second in the NWSL table. The Pride will return to action Friday at Inter&Co Stadium to face Angel City FC.

Orlando City U-18 Team Wins Generation Adidas Cup Championship

The Orlando City U-18 and U-16 squads played over the weekend in playoff matches in the Generation Adidas Cup at IMG Academy. In the quarterfinals on Friday, Omar Robbana scored the lone goal in the U-18 squad’s 1-0 win over Real Salt Lake.

The U-18 squad followed that up by defeating Santos Laguna 3-0 in the semifinals. Justin Ellis scored twice and Gustavo Caraballo added a goal.

On Sunday, Caraballo scored the winning goal in extra time to seal a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids in the U-18 Championship final.

On Friday, the U-16 team defeated Bayern Munich 1-0 in the quarterfinals.

The U-16 squad defeated the New England Revolution 4-3 on penalties after a scoreless draw in the semifinals on Saturday.

The U-16 squad’s run for a championship trophy came to an end with a 3-1 loss to Inter Miami in the U-16 Championship final on Sunday.

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

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