Orlando City vs. New England: Player Grades and Man of the Match

I will go ahead and say it. That was absolutely not the result we were hoping for, nor was it the result we needed. There were only one or two moments in the match when we needed every moment to be a statement. Unfortunately, the statement that was made on the pitch is not something I care to repeat at this time. Let’s just go ahead and march through the player grades and the Man of the Match.

Starting XI

GK, Joe Bendik, 5 — Not a great night to be a keeper. Bendik had a great save on Bunbury in the 13th minute, followed a few minutes later by a good save in the 16th on a Kei Kamara shot. And then the wheels seemed to fall off. Can’t completely blame the four goals on Joe. He ended with three saves.

D, Donny Toia, 6 — Held his own fairly well on the left hand side. Was out of position a few times, but upon a closer look, a number of times he was out were because he was covering for a teammate who was even further out of position. Fouled Nguyen in the 62nd just outside the box which almost led to a schoolyard tricky goal. Had two key passes in the second half, one of which ended in a shot that went wide.

D, Leo Pereira, 4 — Cannot count the number of times he was out of position. Came out too far on the initial Kamara goal, and made almost an identical mistake leading to his third. Never looked comfortable during the match.

D, Jose Aja, 3.5 — Beautiful flick to give Dom a great shot, but that is the extent of it. The wrestling match with Bunbury in the 66th minute that got the first yellow was the death knell for the match. That meant both CBs were on yellows, against an offense that can take advantage of that. And then the second yellow…

D, Scott Sutter, 6 — Sutter had another Sutter night. He did his job, tracked back well, moved forward well, did well on and off the ball, and was just a consistent body on the pitch. He once again put forward a consistent night.

M, Giles Barnes, 6 — Barnes had a decent night, and was one of the few players that seemed to have a little hustle. He had one shot on goal, and switched well with Powers across the middle.

M, Antonio Nocerino, 5.5 — Decent night for Noce, including moving a bit more forward than usual. As always, the animated defensive mid was barking orders until being subbed off. Had a great ball into the box for a streaking Kaká, but nothing was made of it.

M, Dillon Powers, 6.5 (MOTM) — In a match where nothing was perfect, Powers stood out as someone trying to make an impact. He was all over the field, scrambling, passing, attacking, dropping back on defense, and getting himself into position to attempt two shots, with one being on goal. Yes, he had a couple errant passes, but who didn’t? The newest player to start for Orlando this season stood out as the one player with heart and drive, which is why he is my Man of the Match.

M, Kaká, 5.5 — Captain had a rough night. Seemed to be out of sync with a number of players for minutes on end, and then there would be moments where it all seemed to click. I am still trying to figure out why he is playing 90 minutes, as he just looked tired after about 70.

F, Carlos Rivas, 5.5 — Like Kaká, Rivas’ performance was all over the place. Had a great run in the 15th minute that led to nothing, and showed great strength in the 60th to shrug off defenders but his control failed him and he gave the ball away. On a positive note, no balls were sent into the upper deck.

F, Dom Dwyer, 6 — Dom had a nice run in the eighth, but was shouldered off the ball. Had a great chance in the 32nd after the beautiful flick from Aja, but still has not opened his account in Orlando. Had a critical save in the box as well in the 64th minute. A tale of two halves as well for Dom as he was pushed around the first half by the Revs’ defenders, and then in the second half, after obviously hulking up, was knocking CBs down with the slightest touch.

Substitutions

M, Will Johnson (64’), 5.5 — Coming on for Noce, to obviously try to add a little offensive spark to the match, Will didn’t have quite the impact we needed. He was solid, and in typical Wildman Will fashion, was all over the pitch for 26 minutes with no key passes or chances created.

D, Victor Pagliari Giro (72’), 5 — PC came in to add some attack from the LB position. He was able to get forward a few times, earning a corner kick on one such foray, but without leading to any serious attack. Not great, not poor, just an average 18 minutes of play.

M, Tony Rocha (85’), N/A — Came in and immediately picked up a yellow card. Not even sure he had a touch before the match ended.

Polling Closed