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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Miami FC: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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8 years ago

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Orlando City Head Coach Jason Kreis put it best: “For me this is the most disappointing night I’ve had since I’ve been here with Orlando.”

It was a highly embarrassing performance from the home side where there was no motivation and it was outplayed by an NASL team. All the credit goes to Miami FC, as the South Floridians were clearly the better team.

Here are the grades from tonight’s performance, or lack thereof.

Starters

GK, Josh Saunders, 5: Stefano Pinho was unmarked in the 6-yard box on the first goal. The second goal hit Saunders in his arms and he should have saved it. The third goal he was slow coming over on, but he never had a chance at saving it anyway as Pinho was again unmarked in the 6-yard box. Saunders had no help from his defense, and while he did not have an amazing game by any means — there were also a few poor distributions — he did what he had to do. The second goal he arguably should have kept out, but the end result is well off Saunders’ shoulders. 

D, PC, 5.5: PC had the most passes out of anyone on the field, and the second-most touches. Combined with his 87% passing accuracy, he was one of the better players for the Lions. He also created the most chances for Orlando City, including providing the cross for the first shot of the game for the home side, which did not occur until the final 10 minutes of the first half. 

D, Léo Pereira, 3.5: Pereira had the worst match of all the defenders, and that is saying something in a terribly disappointing 3-1 loss at home. His distribution started out poor, although he did improve as the game went on. Defensively he was slow getting up and left Miami attackers onside on multiple attempts. The final Miami goal was most likely his fault, too, as Pinho ran right past him to find the back of the net. 

D, Jonathan Spector, 4.5: Earning the captain’s band tonight, Spector tried to control the team and be that leader on the field. However, his defense failed to step up and let Miami play with the ball. Players were left unmarked, and there were holes in the defense all night. Spector’s man was the goal scorer on the second goal of the game, albeit on a perfect cross into the box. On the third goal of the game, Pinho was completely unmarked with both Spector and Pereira watching him ease the ball into the back of the net.  

D, Rafael Ramos, 4: Ramos’ biggest moment of the game came on Miami’s first goal of the match. Michael Lahoud had the ball down the Lions’ left-hand side looking to put a cross into the box. Ramos was completely focused on him and missed Pinho running straight by him. Ramos also had many turnovers in the game, and was caught up the field a few times. 

MF, Pierre Da Silva, 4.5: Da Silva played one minute for Orlando City coming into this game, but after playing well for OCB had earned himself a start for Jason Kreis. He only lasted 45 minutes, and in that time it was evident that he just is not ready for first-team action quite yet. He had just 76% accuracy on his 21 passes, which was the least among all Lions besides Hadji Barry, and was slow to the ball on countless occasions. He also was out of position multiple times and through balls were played to where he should have been, resulting in turnovers. 

MF, Servando Carrasco, 5: On the offensive side of the ball, Carrasco was quiet, and did not have much of an effect. He stayed back most of the time and could have ventured forward a little more, particularly at the end of the match. However, he was one of the better defenders on for Orlando City and was not afraid to get stuck in on challenges. 

MF, Antonio Nocerino, 5.5: Nocerino controlled the game for the Lions to start. His 90% passing accuracy was one of the best in the game, and he had the most energy for the majority of the time. 

MF, Luis Gil, 5: Gil had the worst passing accuracy for the Lions (74%), and second-worst of any player in the match, and offensively he was bad. He did manage two shots, and his one shot on target — or half of Orlando City’s shots on target — was a long-range one that went right into the stomach of Daniel Vega. Defensively he was much better though, and forced some turnovers for the opposition. On a night where the entire team played absolutely awful soccer, Gil had moments to forget and moments of success, which is better than many of his teammates can say. 

F, Hadji Barry, 5.5: Barry did not have much of an impact in this game, but much of it was not his fault. The rest of the team could not connect any passes in the final third, resulting in just 11 first-half touches and nine in the second half. His one real chance of the game came in the 62nd minute, but he could not get on the end of the ball. He was very quiet throughout, and a little slow to some balls, but, there were some positive signs from the young forward. 

F, Giles Barnes, 6 (MOTM): Orlando City’s only goal scorer was the best player on the field for the Lions. In the second half, all the Orlando City players’ heads were down, they were standing still, and the body language showed that they had given up. All but Barnes, that is. He kept going right up until the final minute and was rewarded with a goal for his efforts. His two shots on goal could have been better but, just as with Barry, the midfield failed to get the ball to him. 

Substitutes

D, Tommy Redding (46’), 5.5 : Redding came in for Da Silva at halftime, and played on the right side of a three-man defense. While he has no experience playing with three defenders with Orlando City, he does for the USMNT youth teams. Considering his team was down two goals when he came on, and they were pushing up and in a new system, Redding did not do poorly. He had some crucial interceptions that led to Orlando City counter attacks. 

M, Kaká (63’), 4.5 : Kaká did what only he could do when he came in — brought the crowd to its feet when the home team is down three goals. Every time he was on the ball, The Wall got louder and tried to help bring the Lions some energy. It did not happen, though, and Kaká was underwhelming at best. He attempted to force the ball into the box over and over, and Miami’s defense had no trouble with defending him. He had two shots, but both were long-range and blocked. He mostly stayed on the left side of the field, and did not create the impact that the game needed. 

F, Carlos Rivas (69’), 5 : Well, he played a perfect ball in off a corner that led to Barnes’ goal. For that his rating goes up, but other than that Rivas did not have any impact. He may have been standing around more than he was running, and it looked like he had given up on the game by the time he entered. He did not have a single shot, and as a forward that is not OK. He also had no forward passes in the final third, and just three successful passes in the final third. 

That’s the way I saw the individual performances. Let us know what you thought in the comments section and vote in our poll.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Antonio Nocerino15
PC3
Giles Barnes26
Tommy Redding6
Other21

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Chicago Fire: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions return home looking to bounce back from throwing points away late in Atlanta in the midweek.

Published

10 hours ago

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May 31, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match thread and preview for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (7-3-6, 27 points) and the Chicago Fire (5-5-4, 19 points) at Inter&Co Stadium (7:30 p.m., MLS Season Pass on Apple TV). This is the second and final scheduled meeting between the Eastern Conference rivals in 2025, closing the season series.

Here’s what you need to know about the match.

History

The Lions are 8-5-8 in 21 MLS meetings with the Fire and 8-6-8 in all competitions. Orlando City is 5-2-3 against the Fire at home in the regular season. The teams met 28 days ago, kicking off a busy May against each other at Soldier Field on May 3. Despite Fire goalkeeper Chris Brady getting sent off before halftime for fouling Duncan McGuire and denying him a goal-scoring opportunity, the teams played to a 0-0 draw, as Orlando City simply couldn’t find any precision in front of goal.

These two teams last met in Orlando on June 22, 2024, with the Lions capturing a 4-2 home victory. Facundo Torres scored a brace, with Luis Muriel (from the penalty spot) and Ivan Angulo adding goals to offset a penalty by Maren Haile-Selassie (after a Rodrigo Schlegel handball in the box) and Hugo Cuypers.

The two sides clashed at Soldier Field just a few weeks prior to that on May 29, playing to a 1-1 draw. Torres opened the scoring early with a scrappy goal in traffic, and the Lions should have had a penalty late in the first half when Angulo was clipped while in alone on a goal after rounding the goalkeeper, but the video assistant referee did not overturn the no-call on the field, and referee Malik Badawi did not look at the play himself. The Fire tied the match in the final 20 minutes on a Cuypers goal.

The Lions swept the two-game season series in 2023 by identical 3-1 scorelines. On Aug. 21, Orlando City got goals from Wilder Cartagena, Angulo, and Torres (from the penalty spot) to overcome a 1-0 deficit supplied by Mauricio Pineda, winning 3-1 on the road.

When the teams met in Orlando, the Lions rode a Torres brace to a 3-1 win on July 1. Xherdan Shaqiri pulled a goal back from the penalty spot after a Kyle Smith foul in the box against Brian Gutierrez, but Ramiro Enrique added an insurance goal.

Orlando City claimed a 1-0 victory at Exploria Stadium on April 9, 2022 on Ercan Kara’s first MLS goal. The two sides met at Soldier Field just over a month prior to that match and played, officially, to a 0-0 draw on March 5. The game is another Orlando City match that will live in infamy due to the Professional Referee Organization’s statement after the game that Junior Urso’s goal should not have been overturned upon video review by Ismir Pekmic due to Kara not having clearly and obviously handled the ball in the buildup in any of the available replay angles. Alas…

The teams met in Orlando on Aug. 21, 2021, with a second-half Benji Michel strike lifting the Lions to a 1-0 victory. Tesho Akindele set up the play by forcing a turnover. In that year’s meeting at Soldier Field, the Fire got the better of the Lions to the tune of 3-1 on July 7. Andres Perea scored his first career MLS goal to open the scoring, but a defensive lapse in first-half stoppage allowed Boris Sekulic to equalize just before the break. Chicago rode that momentum, adding goals by Robert Beric and Chinonso Offor.

The Lions were 0-4-4 in the eight meetings before smashing the Fire 4-1 in Orlando on Sept. 19, 2020. Orlando City withstood two Chicago penalties and saw two Fire goals overturned by video review in that rain-soaked match. (Weird things usually happen when Chicago visits Orlando.) The Lions got goals from Chris Mueller, Nani, Urso, and Michel, while Chicago had only a Beric penalty to show for an otherwise good offensive performance.

The last meeting of 2019 was the last time the Fire won on the road in the series. It was a debacle for the Lions, who lost defender Robin Jansson to a back/neck injury early and shipped a handful of goals in a 5-2 home loss in the regular-season finale. Orlando got goals from Akindele and Michel but largely played like a team that couldn’t wait to end its season. Chicago got an own goal from Orlando’s Smith and strikes from CJ Sapong, Aleksandar Katai, and Przemyslaw Frankowski (twice) in the rout.

Orlando City was seconds away from a road win on March 9, 2019 before Sapong’s free header in the 95th minute leveled things in a 1-1 draw in Chicago. Dom Dwyer scored Orlando’s goal.

In 2018, the Fire swept the season series. Orlando fell 2-1 at home on May 26, 2018, with Alan Gordon’s wondergoal breaking a 1-1 deadlock. The return leg in Chicago that September was an abysmal performance by Orlando in a 4-0 Fire victory.

Chicago went 1-0-1 in 2017, with the teams playing to a 0-0 draw on June 4, 2017, with the Lions reduced to nine men. The previous 2017 meeting was the Fire’s 4-0 beatdown of Orlando on June 24 of that year. David Accam figured in all four goals, with a hat trick and an assist on Nemanja Nikolić’s goal.

The teams split the points in 2016, drawing both meetings. Cyle Larin and Accam traded goals in a 1-1 draw in Orlando on March 11. The Fire again came from behind to draw, 2-2 in the return leg that August.

The teams met once in Orlando in 2015, with the Lions and Fire battling to a 1-1 draw. You may recall that five-hour, weather-delayed affair with Eric Gehrig’s own-goal canceling out an Accam strike. The other three meetings came in Chicago, with City winning 3-2 and 1-0 in MLS matches and falling 3-1 in U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal action.

Overview

The Lions are coming off a brutal 3-2 come-from-ahead loss at Atlanta United on Wednesday. City led 2-1 with less than a quarter of an hour to play on goals by Cesar Araujo and Enrique, when the former lost his cool and put his hand on the neck of Mateusz Klich, who had shoved him down from behind after the whistle. Araujo was immediately sent off and Klich, who should already have been on a yellow card earlier in the match, was cautioned. Atlanta used the man advantage to turn the game around, snapping the Lions’ 12-game unbeaten run.

Orlando City is 5-1-2 at home in 2025, and will need to play tonight’s match without Araujo, as well as without Oscar Pareja, who was sent off after Atlanta tied the game for leaving his penalty area. The club appealed his red card but the appeal was denied, so the head coach will not be on the touchline for tonight’s match.

Chicago has lost its last two matches in the regular season, and the Fire are playing their fourth of five consecutive matches on the road in all competitions. The last match was a 3-1 loss to New York City FC at Yankee Stadium, with the Fire seeing two men sent off, although only one of them — Gutierrez — will miss tonight’s match after Dje D’Avilla’s appeal for his second yellow card was upheld and the suspension overturned. Chicago brings a respectable 4-4-0 road record into the proceedings tonight.

Beating Chicago means trying to contain Cuypers, who paces the Fire with eight goals to go along with two assists. Midfielders Jonathan Bamba and Philip Zinckernagel both looked dynamic in the first meeting before Bamba was sacrificed for the backup goalkeeper after Brady’s red card. Zinckernagel has five goals and four assists on the season, with Bamba chipping in two goals and six assists. Orlando City will need to maintain its recent defensive form — at least when playing with 11 men — to return to the win column and close out the month strong.

“We know that Chicago Fire’s attack is very dangerous. [Hugo] Cuypers is near the top of the league in scoring, [Jonathan] Bamba is really fast, and [Philip] Zinckernagel is good on the ball,” said Orlando City Assistant Coach Diego Torres ahead of the match. “They have more players who can play the number 10 or in the midfield. Other teams have found the focus defensively when Chicago has the ball, and that’s the same for us. Their movement and tactics are very interesting, and we worked with the players to let them know that these are their tactics. Gregg [Berhalter] is a good coach in this situation [with the ball], but he’s also prepared without the ball. Their defending has a good shape and creates good ball recovery. Chicago is dangerous and playing very well without the ball in this moment. We have to be creative to score more goals than Chicago. If we have a clean sheet again, it will be even better.”

Torres will coach the team in Pareja’s absence.

The Lions will be without Araujo (suspension), Nico Rodriguez (thigh), Wilder Cartagena (Achilles), and Yutaro Tsukada (knee), while Gustavo Caraballo (lower leg) and Duncan McGuire (upper extremity) are listed as questionable.

In addition to Gutierrez, Chicago will be without Sam Rogers (torso), David Poreba (lower body), and Carlos Terán (lower body). Additionally, former Lion Chris Mueller has been away from the team for non-injury reasons following the birth of his second child. Chase Gasper (lower body) and Mauricio Pineda (lower body) are questionable.

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.

Defenders: David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, Alex Freeman.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Joran Gerbet, Eduard Atuesta, Marco Pasalic.

Forwards: Martin Ojeda, Luis Muriel.

Bench: Javier Otero, Rafael Santos, Zakaria Taifi, Kyle Smith, Thomas Williams, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, Gustavo Caraballo, Shak Mohammed, Ramiro Enrique.

Chicago Fire (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Chris Brady.

Defenders: Andrew Gutman, Jack Elliott, Christopher Cupps, Jonathan Dean.

Midfielders: Mauricio Pineda, Rominigue Kouame, Sergio Oregel.

Forwards: Jonathan Bamba, Hugo Cuypers, Philip Zinckernagel.

Bench: Jeff Gal, Omar Gonzalez, Kellyn Acosta, Maren Haile-Selassie, Leonardo Barroso, Sam Williams, Dje D’Avilla, Tom Barlow, Omari Glasgow.

Referees

Ref: Ricardo Fierro.
AR1: Ian McKay.
AR2: Ben Pilgrim.
4th: Joshua Encarnacion.
VAR: Shawn Tehini.
AVAR: Craig Lowry.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the game. Go City!

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Opinion

Predicting Orlando City’s June Results

It’s time to take a glimpse into the future and predict how Orlando City will fare during the month of June.

Published

1 day ago

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May 30, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

We’re almost to the end of what’s been an extremely packed month of May for Orlando City. After the conclusion of Saturday’s match against the Chicago Fire, the Lions will have played nine matches in the span of 28 days. OCSC has basically played a match every three days, which is an absurd pace. Other than two recent blemishes, Orlando has mostly handled it exceedingly well though, and June presents a much lighter schedule for our brave heroes.

The Lions play just three games next month and will have two weeks off between Saturday’s match against the Fire and their next game. Without any further ado, I will now attempt to peer into the crystal ball and predict the results of Orlando’s three games in June.

Saturday, June 14 — at Colorado Rapids

Orlando will return to action after a two-week layoff by hopping on the purple plane and flying west to take on Colorado. The Rapids are currently eighth in a crowded Western conference table with 22 points, and they are 10 points off the Vancouver Whitecaps at the top of the table. They’ve put together a pretty even season so far with a record of 6-6-4 (W-L-D). The biggest problem for Colorado has been scoring goals, as the Rapids only have 18 goals in 16 games and have been held scoreless five times in the league. They have this week off, and won’t return to action until June 7, when they host Austin FC. I give Orlando City the edge in this match, and hopefully that extra rest will help the good guys hang tough at altitude. The Lions have been defensively sound recently — when they’ve had all 11 men on the field — while also still being able to put the ball in the back of the net several times a game. Shutting down Djordje Mihailovic is going to be key, but I like Orlando’s chances given its recent form and the fact that the Lions will be well rested.

Prediction: Orlando City 3-1 Colorado Rapids.

Wednesday, June 25 — at St. Louis City

I refuse to capitalize every letter in “City” in St. Louis City’s name, because frankly I think it’s a ridiculous stylistic choice. The team also hasn’t been very good this year, so it doesn’t deserve me catering to it in that manner. St. Louis is currently 2-8-5 and only truly woeful campaigns by CF Montreal and the LA Galaxy are saving it from leading the Wooden Spoon race with 11 points. It makes Colorado look like an offensive juggernaut, as it’s only scored 11 goals in 15 games. St. Louis isn’t bad defensively, as it’s only conceded 20 goals, but it’s always going to be a struggle when you average scoring just 0.73 goals a game. Its form was enough to get Head Coach Olof Mellberg fired, and he lasted just over six months on the job. The club hasn’t won since a March 15 match against the Galaxy and has a tricky upcoming slate, with a home match against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday, an away game against the Portland Timbers on June 8, and a home match against the Galaxy on June 14. With a week and a half between the Colorado match and this one, I once again like Orlando City in this game. Unless St. Louis can find its shooting boots, I don’t see it offering much threat against a rested Orlando defense that has come on strong since a shaky start to the year.

Prediction: Orlando City 2-0 St. Louis City.

Saturday, June 28 — vs. FC Cincinnati

OCSC wraps up June by returning home to play one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference on short rest. It isn’t ideal, but it isn’t the worst thing in the world either. Cincy has been good this year, compiling a record of 9-4-3 and 30 points to sit second in the East. New signings Evander and Kevin Denkey have been as good as you would expect, as Evander has seven goals and five assists in 14 appearances, and Denkey has nine goals in 15 games. As a team, Cincinnati has scored 24 goals and conceded 22, so it’s been a balanced campaign to this point. It’ll be coming to the end of a stretch of three straight road games, as Cincy will be away to the New England Revolution on June 14 and then at CF Montreal on June 25, so it’ll also be traveling on short rest. That said, aside from the Philadelphia Union, Cincy is the toughest team the Lions will have faced in MLS play, and stopping both Evander and Denkey is far from an easy task. This reeks of a draw that has a couple of goals for each team, so that’s what I’ll be going with.

Prediction: Orlando City 2-2 FC Cincinnati.

There you have it. I’ve scrutinized the tea leaves and you now know what the path ahead holds for the Lions. Be sure to check back in at the end of June so you can marvel at how stunningly accurate my forecast was. Until then, feel free to either disagree or tell me how crystal clear my visions are down in the comments. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 5/30/25

Orlando City players called up, Orlando Pride sign Simone Jackson, USWNT gets ready to play China, and more.

Published

2 days ago

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May 30, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Happy Friday! It’s been a bit of a brutal week, but we’ve made it through. Our reward is an exciting weekend of soccer to enjoy to close out the month. I’ll be spending most of the weekend working, but it should still be a nice next few days. Let’s dive right into today’s links from around the soccer world.

Lions Called Up For International Duty

Orlando City goalkeeper Pedro Gallese was predictably called up for Peru’s CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers. Peru is ninth in the standings and will take on Colombia June 6 before hosting Ecuador on June 10.

Defender David Brekalo was called up by Slovenian for a pair of friendlies against Luxembourg and Bosnia and Herzegovina. These matches will help prepare Slovenia for World Cup qualifying this fall against Sweden, Switzerland, and Kosovo.

A few Young Lions are also heading to Europe for the UEFA Friendship Cup in Switzerland. The U.S. will represent Concacaf at the U-18 tournament, and OCB players Justin Ellis, Colin Guske, and Jackson Platts were called up for it.

Orlando Pride Sign Simone Jackson

The Orlando Pride signed forward Simone Jackson to a contract through the 2028 season. Jackson played at the University of Southern California for four years, recording 22 goals and 13 assists in 75 games, and trained with the Pride during the preseason. Internationally, she’s represented the U.S. at various youth levels and scored a goal in the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. The 22-year-old gives Orlando some helpful depth up front and can develop her game learning from some of the best attackers in the sport as well.

USWNT Prepares For Friendly Against China

The United States Women’s National Team will take on China Saturday at Allianz Field in St. Paul, MN in the first of two friendlies during this international window. Orlando Pride defenders Emily Sams and Kerry Abello were both called up to join a young roster as the team builds a foundation before the 2027 Women’s World Cup. Goalkeeper will continue to be a position to watch, as opportunity knocks for Phallon Tullis-Joyce, Mandy McGlynn, and Claudia Dickey to stake a claim as the team’s starter. Following this match, the USWNT will take on Jamaica in St. Louis on Tuesday before a pair of friendlies against Ireland later in June.

Denver’s NWSL Team Hires First General Manager

Denver’s NWSL team hired Curt Johnson to serve as the club’s first general manager. He will have the opportunity to build the team’s roster and staff from the ground up before the team takes the field as an expansion side in 2026. Johnson left the North Carolina Courage in December and was the chief soccer officer when the club dominated the league in 2018 and 2019. It looks like a solid hire in my opinion and I’m interested to see what kind of team he puts together in Denver.

Free Kicks

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

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