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Orlando City

Orlando City at Philadelphia Union: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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6 years ago

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A season for Orlando City that has had its fair share of highs and lows, has now come to an end on what will surely be remembered as one of the lower lows. Falling 6-1 to a Philadelphia team that the Lions had beaten earlier this year is a tough pill to swallow, especially when you consider that Orlando got more shots off, and won the possession battle.

As a whole in this game, the Lions found a way to continuously shoot themselves in the foot. Since soccer is played with your feet, that’s something that is definitely going to make the game more difficult for you as a team, and as individuals.

I was always told as a kid, that things are going to get worse before they get better. Well, this was Orlando City at its worst, so let us hope that this means things are looking up for the off-season, where we can pretty much assume some drastic changes will be made.

Starters

GK, Earl Edwards Jr. 2 — ‘The Landlord’ was awarded his well deserved first career start in MLS after a stellar season with OCB and an injury to regular starter Joe Bendik. Edwards Jr. ended up having a very rough day, with little to no help from his back line, making only one save, from seven Philadelphia shots on goal. That one save came in the closing moments of the game, after a very poor giveaway by Antonio Nocerino. That one save was nice too, for what it’s worth.

D, Victor “PC” Giro, 1 — In a rare start for PC, not a lot went well for him. He was beat down the line quite a few times, which led to goals and goal-scoring opportunities. Even when PC got forward, poor touches, and crosses into the box didn’t help the team going forward.

D, Leo Pereira, 2 — I give Pereira a slightly higher score than the rest of the defense, primarily because he made it through the entire game. There is not a lot I can really say about Pereira’s performance though because his effort was incredibly forgettable.

D, Seb Hines, 1 — Tonight was a real struggle for all of the defense, but it seemed as though Hines may have suffered the worst. He just found himself in poor positions time after time which just made the balance of the game always tip in Philadelphia’s favor. His speed is also a massive problem after seeing how badly he was burnt by Picault on C.J. Sapong’s first goal. The team’s carelessness with the ball predictably put Hines in footrace situations and that’s not good.

D, Scott Sutter, 1 — Sutter could have had a higher rating had it not been for that awful header back towards goal from midfield. That ball was scooped up by the Philly speedster Picault, which he put in the back of the net for his second goal of the game. He also got beat in the air on Picault’s first goal. Needless to say, our entire back line should have nightmares of Fafa Picault, Marcus Epps, C.J. Sapong, and Ilsinho for the way those four players outclassed our defense in the first half.

MF, Richie Laryea, 3 — I was really excited to see Laryea get a start and a full game with the first team. He did do some things well, but the team’s poor play overall really overshadowed any good he was able to do. He drew a multitude of fouls in good areas, and also played some good balls into threatening areas, including a great pass in to Barnes in front of the net.

MF, Dillon Powers, 2 — Much like Pereira it was a very forgettable performance from Powers. Given the opportunity to start and make a good impression with that, I feel as though he squandered his chance. He got one shot off that was wildly erratic, and his best moment was a header in to Dwyer off a corner, which resulted in a shot and a fine save by Andre Blake.

MF, Yoshimar Yotun, 4 — One thing I will say about Yoshi is that he has one heck of a left foot. His assist on Dwyer’s goal was one of the few bright spots in this game. The other positive for Yotun is how great he is at trying to win the ball back when he loses possession. It was far from a great game by Yotun, but you could tell he was still playing with heart all the way through the final whistle.

F, Carlos Rivas, 3 — Rivas moving forward actually played some of the better balls into the box. He put crosses and through balls in to dangerous areas that resulted in chances created. Again it was a lackluster performance overall, but if he can continuously do the things he did well in this game, I’d be content on bringing him back under a regular contract next season. But if he’s going to play on the forward line, he must get into the box.

F, Dom Dwyer, 4.5 (MotM) — Orlando’s lone goal, which came from a diving effort off of a free kick, was great, albeit a little late to make an impact on the result. Dwyer was really all alone in the running for Man of the Match for me. He drew fouls, he was tenacious getting back, and had five shots, four of which were on target, and two caused Andre Blake to make great saves. I’m excited to see Dwyer next year for a full season in purple.

F, Giles Barnes, 3.5 — A lot of the primary action moving forward came through the feet of Giles Barnes, he was creative on the ball, and fought hard to maintain possession. Late in the game he played a ball across to Dwyer, and his shot caused a fantastic save by Blake. On that play I would’ve liked to have seen Barnes be more selfish and have taken Blake on himself as he had the Philadelphia defense beat.

Substitutes

D, Tommy Redding (46’), 3 — Coming in for Seb Hines, it wasn’t too hard for Redding to look better by comparison. The defense still let the ball into the net twice in the second half, and you could debate that Redding not stepping in on a counter attack could be the reason why Philadelphia scored its fifth goal.

D, Donny Toia (46’), 3 — Similar situation to Redding: with how bad the defense looked, Toia was an improvement. Played some decent crosses in, but still lacked the pace to keep up with Ilsinho on his second goal of the night.

MF, Antonio Nocerino (66’), 2.5 — Nocerino really wasn’t an improvement on Rivas, and didn’t do much to impact the game when he came on. One bad giveaway that resulted in a great save from Earl Edwards Jr. But that isn’t much of a contribution to be proud of.

That’s how I saw it today in the season finale from Talen Energy Stadium. It was a pretty abysmal display if you ask me, but what I want to ask you, is did you see it differently? Have a different Man of the Match? Be sure to let us know in the comments below.

Personally, with a depleted roster I would’ve liked to have seen Jason Kreis play more of the younger kids like Hadji Barry and Pierre Da Silva. They might be mainstays on the first team roster next year. In a blowout like this, it wouldn’t have hurt to give them some minutes with absolutely nothing to lose.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Dom Dwyer37
Yoshimar Yotun20
Giles Barnes1
Carlos Rivas1
Tommy Redding1
Other15

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Orlando City

Orlando City at CF Montreal: Three Keys to Victory

What does Orlando City need to do on the road against CF Montreal to take home all three points ?

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2 hours ago

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April 18, 2024

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City opened the season against CF Montreal, playing to a 0-0 draw at Inter&Co Stadium back in February. Now, the Lions head to the Great White North to play the pesky Canadian club again. There’s no Concacaf Champions Cup competition to worry about this time, so hopefully Orlando City can get a victory.

What does Orlando City need to do to follow up the D.C. United victory with another win?

Just Say No

Outscoring your opponents while giving up two goals is all well and good, but outscoring your opponents while also keeping a clean sheet is much better. Orlando City has given up 13 goals over seven matches. It’s actually worse than that considering that the club has two clean sheets meaning those 13 goals came in just five matches. The Lions need to do better at not conceding goals.

Of course, one of those clean sheets came against Montreal to start the season, and the entire defense is seemingly healthy and ready to go. Our old foe Josef Martinez is always a threat and Matias Coccaro has three goals for Montreal so far this season. Stopping them is crucial. If Orlando City can maintain the same defensive discipline it showed in the previous match against Montreal, it will make earning points on the road much easier.

Designated Player Goals

Orlando City has scored seven goals so far this season. Duncan McGuire leads the team with three goals, thanks to his goal last week. Do you know who hasn’t scored yet? If you said any of Orlando City’s Designated Players, you would be correct. I’m not going to ring any emergency bells just yet, but it’d be a lot cooler if Luis Muriel, Martin Ojeda, or Facundo Torres scored a goal this week.

I think they are all close to breaking out. Torres has scored this year, just not in the MLS regular season. Muriel has been getting closer each match, and is still contributing in other ways. The same can be said of Ojeda. My point is that the goals are coming. Perhaps a trip to another country is exactly what they need to get off the mark.

The Battle on the Wings

Orlando City will be playing against former Lion Ruan. He lines up on the right for Montreal and will be a challenge for either Rafael Santos or Kyle Smith, depending on who gets the start. Of course, if Ivan Angulo is playing in his usual role on the left side of Orlando City’s attack, there could be some interesting races between the two speedy players.

I think that the other side of the field is where the match might be won or lost. Since Orlando City fell out of the Concacaf Champions Cup, the team has been on a more regular schedule. That has allowed Dagur Dan Thorhallsson to regain his form in the right fullback position for the Lions. He scored a goal last week, has an assist on the season, four crosses, and 10 key passes. He is an integral part of Orlando City’s attack and if he can win the battles against Raheem Edwards and Joaquin Sosa on the right side of Montreal’s lineup, he could have another big night.

That is what I will be looking for Saturday night. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/18/24

Barbra Banda’s opportunity in Orlando, Omar Gonzalez’s mental health struggles, UEFA Champions League quarterfinals finish, and more.

Published

6 hours ago

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April 18, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I hope this week has been treating you well as we gear up for another weekend packed with Orlando soccer. It’s been a fairly busy week for me as I juggle work with keeping an eye on my cat. He’s a bit of a menace, but at least in a cute way. I’ll spare you my rambling on how great he is, and instead give you today’s links from around the soccer world.

Opportunity Knocks for Barbra Banda

Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda landed in the City Beautiful and spoke on how her first week with the team has been going. While there’s plenty of buzz surrounding the Pride on how Banda should improve the team’s offense, playing in the NWSL will also help the 24-year-old further develop her game.

“I think the league is quite good. I’ve been following it from way back,” she said. “I think it’s a very interesting league, very strong. All the teams are very physical, fast. So I think it’s good for myself to improve.”

Now that she’s with the Pride, soccer fans around the world will now have better access to watch one of the best forwards in women’s soccer. Banda also talked about the warm welcome she received at the airport and you can check out more of her reaction to that and some of her first few days in Orlando in the video below.

Portland Thorns Head Coach Reassigned

Mike Norris is no longer the head coach of the Portland Thorns after the club made him a technical director instead. The Thorns have never had a worse start to an NWSL season, losing three of their four games this year and still searching for their first win. Rob Gale will serve as the team’s interim head coach while the club does a global search for a replacement. I’m a bit surprised that Norris wasn’t given a few more weeks to turn things around, considering Portland is just a win away from being back in the thick of things. We’ll see if the Thorns will get that win with Gale at the helm when they take on the struggling Houston Dash Saturday.

Omar Gonzalez Shares His Mental Health Journey

American defender Omar Gonzalez discussed the difficulties he’s had over the course of his year and the toll it has had on his mental health. His own goal in the USMNT’s loss to Trinidad & Tobago that cost the team its chance to qualify for the 2018 World Cup would be rough for any player to overcome, but Gonzalez stated that head injuries made a stressful few years of his life much more difficult. Gonzalez admitted that he had daily suicidal thoughts until he reached out for needed help while with Toronto FC. Things have since improved and he’s currently with his hometown team, FC Dallas. I think it’s helpful for players like Gonzalez to be open about the mental health problems athletes face. Hopefully this lets other athletes know they aren’t alone in these struggles and encourages them to reach out for help if needed.

UEFA Champions League Semifinals Are Set

Only four teams are still standing in the UEFA Champions League after the quarterfinals wrapped up with plenty of dramatic soccer. The matchup between Real Madrid and Manchester City lived up to expectations with a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw in England. Real Madrid prevailed and ended City’s run, with Andriy Lunin making two saves in the shootout. In the other quarterfinal, Bayern Munich advanced after beating Arsenal 1-0, thanks to Joshua Kimmich’s head.

It all sets up for a thrilling pair of semifinals and potential storylines for the final. Will Bayern and Borussia Dortmund reach the final for a rivalry match for the ages? Can Kylian Mbappe finally give Paris Saint-Germain a Champions League title, and will it be at the expense of Real Madrid? If the semifinals are anything like the quarterfinals, it will be great soccer to enjoy.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City Director of Equipment Operations Charles Raycroft received some deserved recognition after reaching an impressive milestone in his career.
  • Romario, who was named FIFA World Player of the Year in 1994 after helping Brazil win a World Cup, has registered himself as a player for America Football Club. The 58-year-old has been the president of the club since 2009 and now has the chance to play alongside his son Romarinho.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/17/24

Orlando City rises in power rankings, Orlando Pride waive two players, Champions League results, and more.

Published

1 day ago

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April 17, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. Time to start your day with some tasty links. It’s shaping up to be an exciting weekend with Orlando City, the Orlando Pride, and Orlando City B all playing. Last week, Orlando’s teams ended up with seven out of nine possible points. Here’s hoping we see nine out of nine this weekend. Let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Moving On Up

Starting the season 0-3-1 is a good way to be in the cellar of the utterly meaningless MLSsoccer.com power rankings. Orlando City is now starting to climb up the rankings thanks to three straight results. The Lions moved up four spots to 21st after the 3-2 victory over DC United. It was Duncan McGuire’s goal that secured the win, and his performance off the bench was a talking point for this week as well.

Farewell Kaylie Collins and Tori Hansen

The Orlando Pride announced that goalkeeper Kaylie Collins and defender Tori Hansen were waived on Tuesday. Both players were on loan in Australia’s A-League Women ,with Collins at Western Sydney Wanderers FC and Hansen with Melbourne Victory FC. Collins and Hansen were both NWSL draft picks for the Pride, though neither saw significant minutes with the club.

Barbra Banda Begins Training

Barbra Banda participated in her first training with the Pride Tuesday. It’s uncertain how much playing time she may get this week, but it’s possible she makes her first appearance against the San Diego Wave this Friday. Please remember that it sometimes takes new players time to get used to a new club, a new city, and a new league. Of course, I’m still hoping she comes on and scores a brace against the Wave.

Wild Matches in Champions League Quarterfinals

Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund both overcame deficits in the first leg to advance to the UEFA Champions League semifinals. PSG dropped four goals on Barcelona to win 6-4 on aggregate. Barcelona scored first, but made things hard on itself when Ronald Araújo was sent off.

Borussia Dortmund also scored four goals, defeating Atletico Madrid 5-4 on aggregate. Dortmund gave up an own goal, but battled back to take the lead in the match and then the lead in the tie thanks to goals scored in the 71st and 74th minutes. It was a wild, fun match to watch. Dortmund and PSG will meet in the semifinals.

Free Kicks

  • MLS will now start implementing the new rules for off-field treatments, timed substitutions, and in-stadium VAR announcements. The idea is to maximize effective match time.
  • The International Football Association Board (IFAB) will test new time limit rules during the 2024-2025 season for how long keepers can hold the ball with potential consequences including giving the opposing team a corner or a throw-in.
  • Finally, our thoughts are with the friends and family following the passing of Joel McKell.

That will do it for today. Check back later in the week as we get you ready for the Orlando City, Orlando Pride, and OCB matches this weekend. Vamos Orlando!

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