The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Orlando City’s Loss and More

Welcome back, Mane Landers. Yes, it was a disappointing weekend, though it wasn’t all bad. If it was all bad, I’d have to change the title of this article. In the second installment of this new column, we’re focused on the match between Orlando City and Minnesota United FC, because there’s not much else to cover for the moment. That being said, let’s get to it!

The Good

Yoshimar Yotún’s penalty kick goal was certainly a highlight for the Lions. However, it isn’t my pick for “the good.” That honor this week actually goes to the video review call that allowed him the chance at that goal. It feels like such a rarity that Orlando City is the beneficiary of a call, so it was almost unbelievable when referee Sorin Stoica made the little “square” gesture to tell us it was being reviewed. Two games so far, and three video review calls during Orlando City matches. The fact that Orlando City benefited 33% percent of the time definitely feels like actual improvement.

The Bad

Stéfano Pinho’s injury was “the Bad.” It was bad for Orlando City in the match against Minnesota United FC, it’s bad for Pinho himself, and it’s bad for Orlando City going forward. Orlando City now finds itself down to one true striker in Chris Mueller. While Mueller has shown some promise in the early going, he’ll have quite a load to bear until either Pinho or Dom Dwyer return.

The Ugly

Unfortunately, this was an easy pick this week. Orlando City’s back line against Ethan Finlay last Saturday night was “the Ugly.” On Finlay’s first goal in the 12th minute, the entire back line got caught looking while he slipped in behind for the easy finish, despite Joe Bendik trying to stop the inevitable. Finlay’s other goal came in the 79th minute on a back-post run that should have been defended by Mohamed El-Munir. However, as our own Sean Rollins pointed out, those chances were there all night for Minnesota. Finlay just made the Lions pay for it.

The Beer

I mentioned last week that I’d offer up some beer recommendations every so often, so here’s the first. The Lions will be playing on St. Patrick’s Day this Saturday, so we’re going to go fairly traditional with Guinness. It is easily the most famous stout in the world, and while it’s sometimes derided because of its popularity, it is still a pretty decent beer. There’s also all the things you can do with a Guinness. Perhaps you could put it in a stew, or pair it with another beer. Here are some suggestions for such combinations:

Black and Tan – Guinness and Bass
Half and Half – Guinness and Harp
Black and Blue – Guinness and Blue Moon
Snakebite – Guinness and Cider

You can learn the proper way to pour such drinks, and find more combinations here.

There you have it. Do you agree with these picks? Feel that there was a better choice? Let me know in the comments section. Here’s hoping that “the Good” for next week will be the return of Sacha Kljestan and a win for Orlando. Go City!