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Orlando’s Eleven: A Season Briefing

Published

8 years ago

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The heist movie is a tale as old as time. A ragtag group of unlikely individuals unites for a single purpose: the score. Whether it be a suitcase full of diamonds, billions of dollars, or a priceless painting, they’re all motivated by getting their hands on the all important score.

When you think about it (for the purposes of this article), an MLS season isn’t that dissimilar from a heist movie. Teams are comprised of a colorful cast of players hailing from countries all over the world, all united by the quest for the MLS Cup. Any heist worth its salt needs a crew, and Orlando City has put together quite the interesting one for the upcoming MLS season.

This past off-season saw a hefty amount of roster turnover for the Lions, but never fear: We at The Mane Land are here to get you up to speed on everything you need to know about the team ahead of the season opener. So without any more waffling, here is a briefing on the purple and gold crew taking part in the heist for the 2018 MLS Cup, better known as: Orlando’s Eleven.

The Mastermind

This is the guy who heads the whole operation. He’s well respected, keeps everyone in line, and is supremely skilled at what he does. Think George Clooney in the Ocean’s series. For Orlando, that guy is Jonathan Spector. Even though he only signed with the Lions last year, Spector has already become a standout performer for the team who anchors the back line. As far as the part about being a well-respected leader, Specs was just named captain for the upcoming season, so that should tell you everything you need to know.

The Second in Command

Exactly what the name implies, the second in command is the right-hand man to the Mastermind; the Brad Pitt to Ocean’s Clooney. As far as I’m concerned, that distinction goes to Joe Bendik. Much like the Mastermind, a Second in Command has to be an experienced and talented leader who has a plan for any situation. Since joining the Lions in 2016, Bendik has proven to be an excellent shot stopper with a knack for making difficult saves. While a shaky defense has resulted in him not always having the most eye-catching stats around, anyone familiar with the team knows just how important Joe is. Not sure how I feel about his mullet though:

The Hacker

This is the often youthful team member who helps the gang get past whatever high-tech security is standing in its way. New boy Josué Colmán was signed to be this team’s hacker and help get the Lions past MLS defenses. After two years in Paraguay’s top flight, the 19-year-old attacking midfielder will be looking to provide plenty of assists for a team that had more than its share of offensive struggles last season. His signing as a Young Designated Player points to big things being expected from him, and with some seasoned veterans around him to learn from, fans will be hoping that he catches on quick.

The Gadget Genius

This particular role overlaps somewhat with that of the Hacker. The Gadget Genius provides all the fancy tools to break into the vault, safe, or building where the score is being held. That particular role goes to Sacha Kljestan. Last season’s MLS assist king with a whopping 17, Sacha has any number of defense-splitting passes up his sleeve, and while he doesn’t score a ton of goals he’s certainly capable of doing so. He too is expected to be a big part of this team’s offense, and the hope will be that he can pick up right where he left off after serving a suspension incurred during the playoffs last season with the New York Red Bulls.

The Muscle

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what purpose this guy serves. He needs to be big, he needs to be strong, and he needs to be a badass. Without a doubt, that has to be new signing Lamine Sané. Standing 6-foot-4 and hailing from Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga, Sané was brought in to add some much-needed steel to the center of a defense that struggled last season. Sané is a veteran presence who’s seen time in the Champions League and anchored Bordeaux’s back line for over 180 games. Hopefully his wealth of expertise is something that the rest of the defense can key into, because at 34 games long, the MLS season is dark and full of terrors.

The New Kid

The apprentice, the greenhorn, the newbie, whatever you want to call him, this is the young guy who is doing his first major job with the big boys. Enter Chris Mueller. The sixth overall pick in this year’s MLS SuperDraft turned quite a few heads in the team’s preseason games, and a number of TML’s staffers picked him to be the team’s breakout player. A key part of the Wisconsin team that won the Big Ten title last year, the midfielder recorded 20 assists and banged in nine goals to boot. Keep an eye on this kid, he’s one to watch.

The Burglar

This is the gentleman who gets into the vault and helps himself to whatever goodies are inside. All the previous work that the other members of the team perform goes towards getting this guy into position to grab the sparkly things. What better metaphor for a Burglar than a striker, and Orlando’s star striker is Dom Dwyer. While he didn’t have his most prolific season in front of goal last year, Dwyer is a more than proven MLS goal-scoring commodity, and with all of the offensive pieces that have been put in place around him, the expectation is that he’ll get right back among the goals.

The Pickpocket

The Pickpocket swipes anything and everything that the heist crew might need in order to complete their mission. For the Lions, defensive midfielder Oriol Rosell will be looking to take the ball off the opposing team before they even realize what’s happening. He’s pretty good at it, too — Rosell was part of the Sporting Kansas City team that won the 2013 MLS Cup, and in case you needed any more assurances of his talent, he’s a product of Barcelona’s La Masia academy. Rosell joins the purple and gold from Sporting Clube de Portugal, and his previous experience in MLS could prove invaluable down the stretch.

The Conman

As the name suggests, the Conman is a tricky fellow who uses an array of tricks and deceit in order to help the cause. With his dribbling skills and excellent 1-v-1 ability, Justin Meram is a perfect fit for this role. He spent his time with the Columbus Crew as a winger, breaking fullbacks’ ankles and creating chances both for his teammates and himself. The ex-Crew player has been a thorn in the Lions’ side on more than one occasion, and it’ll be nice to be on the other side of the stick for once.

The Fixer

The Fixer is one of the most valuable people on the team. No matter what the situation requires, he can help and he’s seemingly able to do a bit of everything. Last year that player was Yoshimar Yotún. While he only played in 10 games after joining the club at the end of the summer transfer window, Yoshi quickly endeared himself to fans by working hard, doing whatever was required, and doing it well. In most every game he played it seemed like the midfielder was everywhere, popping up in the back to help out the defense and joining in the attack on more than one occasion. Registering four assists and a goal in those 10 games wasn’t a bad start to his Orlando City career, and I for one am excited to see what the Peruvian can do this year.

The Old Vet

The last entry on this list, the Old Vet is the guy who gets pulled out of retirement for “one last job.” While he might not have retired at the end of last season, Will Johnson is most certainly a veteran, having spent 10 years in MLS. The midfielder has seen action in 238 regular season games as well as 25 playoff games, and was part of the Real Salt Lake and Portland Timbers MLS Cup-winning teams. Like Rosell and Bendik, his experience could prove very important to a team with a lot of players new to MLS, and he should provide a strong veteran presence to a team looking to find its identity.

Obviously not every member of the team’s 28-man roster is listed here, and I apologize for that. But in my defense, coming up with these comparisons isn’t the easiest thing in the world. However, that leaves plenty of room for y’all to come up with your own ideas. So, who or what did I miss? Are there any players you think would be better suited for the roles I listed above? Let me know in the comments, and as always, vamos City!

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Orlando City vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Orlando City restarts its 2026 MLS campaign late tonight out west at San Jose.

Published

5 hours ago

on

July 22, 2026

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Image of Braian Ojeda taking a shot in a friendly against FC Dallas.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Welcome to your match thread for a late night midweek matchup tonight between Orlando City (4-9-2, 14 points) and the San Jose Earthquakes (10-3-2, 32 points) at PayPal Park (10:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the only scheduled meeting between the teams in 2026 and the first time the teams have met since 2024.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s match.

History

Orlando City is 3-1-3 in the previous seven MLS meetings with the Quakes since the club joined Major League Soccer in 2015. The Lions got their only away win in the series in the last meeting and enter tonight 1-1-2 on the road against San Jose.

The teams last met on May 18, 2024, with Jack Lynn coming off the bench to score the game’s only goal. Lynn’s strike in the 89th minute broke the scoreless deadlock and lifted the Lions to a 1-0 victory.

The teams met in Orlando most recently way back on June 22, 2021, with the Lions beating the Quakes down, 5-0. Orlando got things started with an early penalty kick goal by Nani, followed by braces from Benji Michel and Daryl Dike to easily put the game away. The lasting memory from the game is Michel’s celebratory dance wearing a cowboy hat that came out of the stands.

Prior to that Orlando City romp, the last time the teams met was on Aug. 31, 2019 when the Lions got freight trained 3-0 at Avaya Stadium, giving the Quakes their first win in the series. San Jose’s offense came via a Chris Wondolowski brace and an early opening goal by Magnus Eriksson. Orlando looked flat and weary out of the gate.

The Lions were victorious in Exploria Stadium in the 2018 meeting on April 21, a 3-2 Orlando win. It was the first win in the series for either side after three straight draws. Chris Mueller, Sacha Kljestan, and Dom Dwyer gave the Lions a 3-0 lead before Florian Jungwirth pulled two back in the game’s late stages.

The Lions led all of the first three matches in the second half only to see San Jose pull level, with two of those tying goals coming late. In the 2017 meeting, Carlos Rivas finally broke the scoreless tie and gave Orlando City the lead in the 81st minute, but Wondolowski spoiled the Lions’ night with an equalizer two minutes later as the teams drew at Avaya Stadium, 1-1.

In 2016, the Lions were gut-punched in the 94th minute in an emotional match that ended in a 2-2 draw. It was the first home match following the Pulse nightclub tragedy and what appeared to be a storybook ending to a cathartic win turned sour on a last-gasp equalizer by Shea Salinas. Seb Hines — now the Orlando Pride’s head coach — opened the scoring for Orlando, only to see Chad Barrett tie it up. Julio Baptista restored the lead in stoppage time, but Salinas ruined everything.

The two teams also drew in the first meeting, a 1-1 affair at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, with the Lions down to 10 men after Brek Shea was sent off in the first half. Kaká and Wondolowski each scored from the penalty spot four minutes apart in that initial meeting.

Overview

The teams meet tonight to get their post-World Cup portion of the season started. Orlando City has been terrible on the road all season long, keeping only one MLS opponent under two goals all year away from home and allowing five goals twice (at New York City FC and Nashville) and six goals twice (at LAFC and in the team’s most recent match away at FC Cincinnati just before the break).

Orlando City is a putrid 1-6-1 on the road this season, and now the Lions must face the Western Conference co-leaders tonight before coming home to face Supporters’ Shield-leading Nashville SC at home on Saturday. They’ll have to play at least tonight’s game without Martin Ojeda, who is out with a thigh injury sustained some time between his first-half goal a week ago in a friendly against FC Dallas and the time the availability report dropped on Tuesday.

But it isn’t all bad news for the Lions, who should have both Antoine Griezmann and Dike in the lineup. Griezmann was the club’s highly prized and widely publicized summer Designated Player signing, while Dike’s return to Orlando came together more recently, following his departure from West Bromwich Albion. They’ll help the club’s offense, but the attack hasn’t been the issue in 2026 — it’s been the historically porous defense, which is on pace to shatter the MLS record for goals conceded.

Meanwhile, San Jose is one of the first half of the season’s biggest surprises, as the Quakes have been outstanding in 2026. Scoring 34 goals while conceding just 15, San Jose is among the league leaders in goals scored (tied for third), goals conceded (third), and goal differential (+19, third).

The Earthquakes are 4-2-1 at home and are coming off a 3-1 road win at Portland in their last game prior to the World Cup break. San Jose boasts Golden Boot challenger Preston Judd, who leads the Quakes with 11 goals, adding two assists in his 15 appearances. Ousseni Bouda has chipped in five goals and three assists. Niko Tsakiris leads the team with seven assists to go along with his two goals, but he’s still recovering from a lower body injury and is not available tonight. However, the arrival of Timo Werner (four goals and five assists in just seven games) has truly elevated Bruce Arena’s Quakes, and he’ll need to be one of the main focal points for the Orlando defense.

To have any shot at taking something from this game, the Lions will need to play better road defense than they have all season. Orlando can score goals, but with Ojeda out, Griezmann will need to adapt quickly, and someone other than the team’s leading scorer will need to find the net.

The Lions will play without Ojeda (thigh), Joran Gerbet (knee), Nolan Miller (knee), Colin Guske (international duty), and Clovis Archage (international duty). In addition, Marco Pasalic may or may not have returned to the team after the World Cup. He was not in training Monday, although interim head coach Martin Perelman said he expected the Croatian back soon. The Earthquakes will be without Nonso Adimabua (lower body), former Lion Earl Edwards Jr. (lower body), DeJuan Jones (lower body), and Tsakiris (you guessed it, lower body…come on, San Jose).

Match Content

Projected Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Adrian Marin, David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Wilder Cartagena, Eduard Atuesta.

Forwards: Justin Ellis, Antoine Griezmann.

San Jose Earthquakes (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Angus Gunn.

Defenders: Jamar Ricketts, Reid Roberts, Daniel Munie, Benjamin Kikanovic.

Defensive Midfielders: Beau Lerouox, Ronaldo Vieira.

Attacking Midfielders: Timo Werner, Nick Fernandez, Ousseni Bouda.

Forwards: Preston Judd.

Referees

REF: Elijio Arreguin.
AR1: Adam Wienckowski.
AR2: Mike Nickerson.
4TH: Timothy Ford.
VAR: Jose Carlos Rivero.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 10:30 p.m.

Venue: PayPal Park — San Jose, CA.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

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 match. Go City!

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Podcasts

PawedCast Episode 542: Tampa Bay Friendly, McGuire Traded, OCB Beats Cincinnati, and More

Lions maul the Rowdies in friendly action, OCB wins on the road, and it’s transfer season.

Published

1 week ago

on

July 14, 2026

By

Image of Antoine Griezmann and Ivan Angulo celebrating a goal in a friendly against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City welcomed I-4 Derby rival Tampa Bay to Inter&Co Stadium for a friendly match on Wednesday and then proceeded to bludgeon the Rowdies with a couple of hammers named Antoine Griezmann and Justin Ellis. The two attackers combined for a goal and four assists in a 6-0 beatdown of the team from the Gulf Coast, with five different Lions scoring and Griffin Dorsey forcing an own goal. We discuss Griezmann’s first minutes with Orlando City, what the team showed in its formation, and how good Justin Ellis’ vision is.

Oh, and it’s also transfer season now. Duncan McGuire is on his way out and Marco Pasalic reportedly will follow soon, while a new left back may be headed from Spain to Orlando.

Following all of that, we discuss Maxime Crepeau being added to the MLS All-Star Team and the announcement that he’ll participate in the 2026 MLS All-Star Skills Challenge.

Our mailbagbox asked us about which World Cup semifinalist players we’d want to join Orlando this season (if we could only pick one), and more. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.

After the mailbagbox, we dive into OCB’s 2-1 road win at FC Cincinnati 2. It wasn’t the prettiest game by the Young Lions, but they managed to do enough to earn three points on the road, where they’ll stay to face Chattanooga on Saturday. We briefly preview that game.

Finally, Orlando City will be in Dallas Wednesday for the second of two friendlies leading up to the restart of the MLS season. It’s unlikely we’ll get a lot of details about that one, but we’ll see what happens. Maybe the FC Dallas folks will help us out.

Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we’ll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how No. 542 went down:

0:15 – Orlando City crushed the Rowdies, the transfer season is in full swing, plus: hey now, Crepeau’s an all-star.

28:50 – The mailbagbox is always good for a hypothetical scenario.

36:54 – The Young Lions slipped past Cincy and head to Chattanooga, while the senior Lions head to Dallas.

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Podcasts

SkoPurp Soccer Episode 119: International Break, USWNT, Louisville Preview, and More

The Pride return from a long international break looking to get their first-ever road win against Racing Louisville.

Published

3 months ago

on

April 22, 2026

By

Image of Haley McCutcheon scoring the opening goal in Orlando's home playoff win over Seattle.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

It feels like months since the Orlando Pride last took the field, but the calendar says otherwise. If you believe calendars, it’s only been a little less than three weeks, but time moves strangely in the post-pandemic apocalyptic world.

Anyway, we don’t have a match to recap, so we touched on a couple of Pride players putting the ball in the net during the international break and chat a bit about the United States Women’s National Team’s three-game friendly series against Japan. Emma Hayes used a lot of players, and the team looked solid for two of the three matches, but the rotated middle game seemed a bit disjointed. Hayes has greatly expanded the player pool and will have plenty of options when the World Cup approaches.

Our mailbagbox had questions about a potential change in the NWSL schedule, as the league explores adopting the fall-to-spring slate, and opposition own goals. Remember, you can ask us anything by hitting us up on Twitter at either @TheManeLand or @SkoPurpSoccer and using the hashtag #AskSkoPurp. You can use that same hashtag and hit @TheManeLand.bsky.social up on Bluesky. Or you can visit our show page, scroll down, and fill out the handy form. We’d also appreciate any ratings or reviews you can leave wherever you get your podcasts, and if you do that on Apple Podcasts, we’ll find them easily and read them on the show.

After the mailbagbox, we turned our attention toward Friday’s late afternoon tussle with Racing Louisville in Kentucky. The Pride have never won on the road against Louisville, and it’s about high time they did. This match begins a congested push to the June World Cup break, and although Friday’s hosts aren’t high in the table, the Pride must be at their best to get a road result in this fixture. We look back at the series history, compare the two sides, provide our key matchups in the game, and make our final score predictions.

If you’d like to support our independent writing and podcasting efforts, we’d love to have you as a subscriber or donor over at our Buy Me a Coffee site.

Here’s how Episode 119 went down:

0:15 – We open the show with a little banter about the Pride in the international break and the USWNT’s series vs. Japan.

9:03 – The mailbagbox features questions via both eletronic mail and social media. We welcome all modes of delivery.

19:59 – The Pride travel to Louisville to face Racing. They’ve never won in Kentucky, but we inform them how to do so.

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