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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Chicago Fire: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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8 years ago

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Orlando City once again fell short in a 2-1 loss — this time to the Chicago Fire at Orlando City Stadium. A late goal in the 82nd minute from Alan Gordon lifted Chicago Fire to victory. The Lions played well in the loss, but how did each player rate in the loss individually?

Starters

GK, Joe Bendik, 7 — Despite conceding two goals to Aleksander Katai in the 13th minute and Alan Gordon in the 80th minute, Bendik had a solid outing. Both goals came from shots that even the world’s best goal keepers would struggle with, so you can’t put Bendik at fault for them. Bendik faced four shots on goal and the two saves he had were solid and kept Orlando City in the game. Solid outing by Bendik despite the loss.

D, RJ Allen, 7 — Allen was a solid option at right back, a position that has been played by Will Johnson as of late. Allen had four total tackles, which led all Orlando City defenders and also picked up a blocked shot as well. Allen’s passing was also superb, passing 68 times with a 91.2% success rate, especially on a near goal on a solid cross to Sacha Kljestan in the 25th minute. Allen came up and helped with the attack as well, making key passes leading to scoring chances. Solid outing from Allen.

D, Tony Rocha, 6 — Rocha filled in for Lamine Sané at center back and did not do anything drastically right or wrong. Rocha intercepted three passes and also made some key passes in the final third to get Orlando City scoring chances. He was also physical on the defensive end, something that obviously doesn’t show up on the score sheet. Rocha gave little chance for any Fire player to score which was something that kept the Lions in reach throughout the full 90 minutes. He perhaps could have stepped up to close down Gordon on the last goal.

D, Chris Schuler, 5.5 — Schuler’s defensive play was good but not great as he was beaten on the attack at times but made up for it with successful tackles. He was the only defensive player to take a shot, albeit it was contested in stoppage time and blocked out for a corner. Schuler has been the third or fourth option at center back all season and he did not do much to move up the ladder when Jonathan Spector, Amro Tarek and Lamine Sané are available. Good game from Chris Schuler, and a gutty one, as he played the entire second half with a broken arm.

D, Mohamed El-Munir, 7 — El-Munir played a solid match throughout. His yellow card on Diego Campos led to the Katai goal in the 13th minute, but he made up for it on both ends of the pitch. He had three shots with two on target, forcing Patrick McLain to make tough saves on both, especially on his shot in the 49th minute which made McLain lay out for a tough diving save. El-Munir picked up two tackles, two clearances, three interceptions and a few fouls, one leading to a yellow card. Despite his early mistake leading to a set-piece banger, El-Munir showcased his talents at left back once again.

MF, Cristian Higuita, 8.5 (MotM) — Higuita was amazing in this match. His goal was the lone score for the Lions in the 28th minute, but he contributed in all facets of the game for Orlando City. Along with his stellar offensive performance, Higuita picked up two tackles and two interceptions in the midfield and continuously pressured the Chicago Fire into bad decisions and failed attacking chances. Higuita was subbed off and did not complete the full 90 minutes, but even after he was subbed off it was clear that he was the most complete player on the pitch for Orlando City. His presence in both final thirds was effective, as he seemed to be involved in every play that either club was a part of, making him my Man of the Match by a long shot.

MF, Uri Rosell, 6 — Rosell complemented Higuita well at the left center defensive midfielder position as he also helped the Lions on both sides of the ball, just not as well or as much as Higuita. The Spaniard took three shots with one hitting the target with a beautiful header that was robbed in the 45th minute and did not find the back of the net, and he, like many other players, helped fuel an attack that generated 20 shots. Rosell also picked up a yellow card in the 64th minute on a tactical foul to thwart a counter. Rosell and Higuita work well together in the midfield, bouncing off of each other and creating chances as well as stopping them on both ends. Solid game from Rosell.

MF, Chris Mueller, 6.5 — Mueller was a force on the offensive side of the pitch, assisting on the lone Orlando goal on a wonderful pass to Higuita. He did not take many shots, but the defense from Chicago Fire seemed to focus in on him which gave other Lions a chance to take quality shots. Mueller only had 34 touches throughout his time on the pitch, the lowest amount from any starter besides Joe Bendik. Despite not getting many touches, Mueller let the defense know he was there, especially when he assisted Higuita’s goal. He should have done better on his left-footed effort on an Orlando counter to keep it on goal, but his creation of a goal and allowing teammates to create other chances made Mueller a silent but good player on the pitch.

MF, Sacha Kljestan, 7.5 — Kljestan has arguably the best opportunity to score besides the Higuita goal on a chip shot that just sailed over the crossbar. He also had a solid header that missed just wide on a cross from Allen as well. Per usual, Kljestan was an artist on the pitch, painting his own pictures of what he wanted to happen and allowing his attackers to create chances along with his own. He generated six key passes. Kljestan was a big reason why Orlando City was able to have a 90% pass success rate which helped lead to the large amount of shots. His altercation with Mo Adams cut short an Orlando attack late in the game, but he was again a catalyst in the attacking midfield and had a solid outing.

MF, Justin Meram, 7 — Meram did not take long to get into the game as he took the first shot three minutes in. His finesse curl shot in the 51st minute made McLain make arguably the toughest save of the night as he nearly tucked the shot into the top right corner. He almost found the score sheet again in the 73rd minute and again in the 83rd minute on a missed header in which he flew into McLain to try and score. Meram took five total shots and maybe only the first one was a bad take. He also seemed to be more comfortable throughout the game than he has in recent weeks which seemed to affect the Lions in a positive way. Despite the loss it seemed that Meram was on his game, it was just unlucky that he couldn’t find the score sheet.

F, Josue Colmán, 6.5 — Colmán got his first start at striker and did not disappoint. He nearly picked up an assist on a beautiful pass to Kljestan and nearly scored in the first 10 minutes but flew one high over the bar. Colmán proved that he can be an offensive force in this game as he had a perfect balance of creating his own scoring chances and scoring chances for others as well. He got the “hockey assist” on Higuita’s goal, feeding Mueller, who in turn sent the ball to Cristian. Colmán forced himself into solid scoring situations and shed light on what may be coming from the young Paraguayan.

Substitutes

F, Stéfano Pinho (75’), 5 — Pinho came on for Mueller but did not affect the game much as he was relatively quiet. He only had three touches on the ball in his 15 minutes on the pitch and gave Orlando City nothing even though it wanted a spark.

MF, Victor “PC” Giro (82’), N/A — PC was not on the pitch long enough to truly grade him bad or good, but he did nothing drastic to change the match outcome.

MF, Richie Laryea (83’), N/A — Laryea, much like PC, did not have enough time on the pitch to impact the match.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Josué Colmán3
Cristian Higuita70
Uri Rosell0
Sacha Kljestan4
Other3

Please comment your thoughts below as well.

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Orlando City

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

The Lions welcome San Diego FC to Orlando for the first meeting ever between the two clubs.

Published

9 hours ago

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September 5, 2026

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Image of Joran Gerbet playing against Minnesota United.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match preview and live thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (7-11-4, 25 points) and San Diego FC (8-8-6, 30 points) at Inter.co Stadium in Orlando (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). It’s the first-ever meeting between these two teams from different conferences

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

History

As mentioned above, tonight’s meeting between the Lions and San Diego is the first in the series history, so there is no history. The Lions are 2-2-1 against Western Conference teams this season, which means little to nothing in this particular match, and San Diego is going to be Orlando City’s final opponent from the opposite conference in MLS regular-season play this season.

Overview

The Lions are coming off a wild 3-3 road draw at Minnesota United a week ago, in which Daryl Dike and Antoine Griezmann scored on either side of halftime on Orlando’s first two shot attempts to put their team up 2-0 in the 64th minute. Minnesota stormed back with three goals off defensive errors in a four-minute span to take a late 3-2 lead. Just when the Loons appeared to be headed for all three points, Tyrese Spicer scored in stoppage time, forcing Minnesota to split the points. Orlando has a modest 1-0-1 unbeaten streak entering tonight, and the Lions are 5-4-2 at home in 2026.

San Diego is coming off a 3-1 home win over the LA Galaxy despite having Jeppe Tverskov sent off. Tonight’s visitors have won two straight games, but both were at home. They lost their last home game 3-1 at Portland on Aug. 19 and are 2-5-3 away from home this season.

The key for Orlando City tonight will be to mark Anders Dreyer, which is far easier said than done, as he has emerged as one of the league’s best playmakers. His eight goals and 11 assists give him 19 total goal contributions to lead his team. Marcus Ingvartsen is Dreyer’s favorite teammate to combine with, as the Danish forward has converted 11 times, leading San Diego in goals, and has added five assists. However, Ingvartsen is listed as out with a lower body injury. Midfielder Onni Valakari has chipped in four goals and seven assists.

“We respect San Diego, but as well we prepare our game,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said ahead of the match. “We know how strong we are, especially at home, so now we go.”

Orlando City will be without Braian Ojeda (foot) and Adrian Marin (thigh), while Bernardo Rhein (thigh), has been upgraded to questionable. San Diego will be without the aforementioned Ingvartsen (lower body) and Tverskov (suspension).

Match Content

Official Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Bernardo Rhein, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Joran Gerbet, Eduard Atuesta, Justin Ellis.

Forwards: Antoine Griezmann, Daryl Dike.

Bench: Javier Otero, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Luis Otavio, Tiago, Marco Pasalic, Martin Ojeda, Tyrese Spicer.

San Diego FC (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: C.J. dos Santos.

Defenders: Kieran Sargeant, Ian Murphy, Manu Duah, Oscar Verhoeven.

Midfielders: Gabriel Pirani, Anibal Godoy, Alejandro Alvarado.

Forwards: Elias Achouri, Onni Valakari, Anders Dreyer.

Bench: Duran Ferree, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, Christopher McVey, Bryan Zamble, David Vazquez, Ian Pilcher, Alex Mighten, Bryce Duke, Amahl Pellegrino.

Referees:

REF: Joe Dickerson.
AR1: Corey Parker.
AR2: Justin Howard.
4TH: Rodrigo Albuquerque.
VAR: Daniel Radford.
AVAR: Jeff Muschik.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter.co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Streaming: 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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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. San Diego FC: Three Keys to Victory

Here’s what Orlando needs to do in order to return to winning ways against San Diego.

Published

1 day ago

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September 4, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After the disappointment of two dropped points against Minnesota on Saturday, Orlando City is back home with an opportunity to get things back on track. The Lions need to keep picking up points if they want to keep pace in an increasingly crowded Eastern Conference, and Saturday’s game is a good chance to start September off on the right note. San Diego FC stands in the way of that good start, and what follows are three things that I believe Orlando needs to do in order to emerge victorious from this game.

Stay Strong on the Left

The left side of the defense has been a question mark for the Lions for much of the year. Adrian Marin, Bernardo Rhein, and Zakaria Taifi have all spent time at left back lately and have done so with varying degrees of success. Regardless of who suits up there on Saturday, that area of the field will be under scrutiny once again, since they’ll be tasked with stopping San Diego right winger Anders Dreyer. He has eight goals and 11 assists in 21 appearances this year, has played 60 key passes during that time, and is generally the lynchpin through which the San Diego offense operates. He hasn’t quite been on the same pace that saw him bag 19 goals and 19 assists in the regular season last year, but with four goal contributions in his last three MLS appearances, he’s extremely capable of wreaking havoc from the wing. A lot of the goals OCSC has conceded lately have come down the left side of the defense, and if that area of the field can’t be taken care of better, the Lions will likely be in for a difficult night.

Do Damage in Transition

Orlando’s current style of positionless, fluid, attacking soccer is at its best when it comes up against teams that want to come out and play. It struggles mightily against defensive bunkers but shines when the Lions can get out and run, target open spaces, and combine with teammates in unexpected areas. Fortunately for OCSC (in theory), San Diego is a team that likes to have the ball, as it has the highest average possession in the league. That means the Lions will have opportunities to force turnovers and break the other way at pace. In order to make that happen though, OCSC will need to be both disciplined and effective when it comes to applying its press. Then, if/when the Lions win the ball, correct decision-making and clinical execution in the final third will be key to avoid letting any chances slip through their fingers (paws?).

Clean Up the Self-Inflicted Errors

Orlando has dealt with more than its fair share of general defensive struggles this year, but avoidable errors have been a particular problem in recent weeks. Whether it’s been an ill-advised challenge, passing to the opposition in the defensive third, or leaving men unmarked in the box, unnecessary mistakes have cost OCSC points time and again. Against lesser opposition it hasn’t always mattered, as the Lions were able to rescue three points against Real Salt Lake, but if Orlando wants to make a playoff push, it needs to make a habit of playing cleaner games, plain and simple. San Diego is a good team with dangerous offensive players, and Saturday’s visitors will very likely take advantage of any opportunities that the Lions gift-wrap for them. Keeping things mistake-free will go a long way.

We’ve got ample proof this season that nothing is guaranteed, but if the Lions can lock down the left side of the defense, make hay in transition moments, and limit unforced errors, then they should be in a good position to take all three points from Saturday’s game. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 9/4/26

Martin Ojeda details his recovery from injury, Anna Moorhouse loaned to Manchester City, Orlando City’s U.S. Open Cup journey, and more.

Published

2 days ago

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September 4, 2026

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Image of Martin Ojeda celebrating a goal against New England.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Three straight days of Orlando soccer starts tonight with Orlando City B’s road match against Inter Miami II at 7 p.m. Hopefully, Orlando’s teams do well over the next few days as crunch time is upon us when it comes to making the playoffs, especially for MLS NEXT Pro. For now though, let’s jump right into today’s links from around the soccer world!

Orlando City Prepares for San Diego FC

Orlando City will take on San Diego FC on Saturday in the first-ever game between the two clubs, and one of the storylines to keep an eye on is how much Martin Ojeda plays as he works his way back from injury. The Designated Player came off the bench late in Orlando’s 3-3 draw against Minnesota United in his first appearance since May 23. Not often injured, Ojeda spoke on how being off the field for over a month has shifted his perspective while training to return.

“You learn to value the moment much more. You learn to value every training session because, when you’re training on your own and you’re not available to your teammates, you feel uncomfortable,” Ojeda said. “You value being healthy more. It’s like everything in life. When you feel good, you live life almost on autopilot, so to speak. You go to work, you go home, you come back, you sleep. However, when you or someone close to you goes through an illness or something like that, you value the moment much more and become more conscious of what you’re experiencing.”

Pride Loan Anna Moorhouse to Manchester City

The Orlando Pride loaned goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse to Manchester City through January of 2027. Moorhouse joined the Pride prior to the 2022 season and helped the club win both the NWSL Championship and Shield in 2024. However, she has struggled this year alongside the rest of the Pride’s defense. Moorhouse hasn’t played in the past two games for the Pride, with Cosette Morche starting in her place. Her current contract with the Pride lasts through the 2027 NWSL season, so we’ll have to wait and see what her future with the club is when the loan ends.

Orlando City’s U.S. Open Cup Journey

Between the World Cup, regular season, and Leagues Cup this summer, it can be easy to forget that Orlando City is still in contention to win this year’s U.S. Open Cup. The Lions are in the semifinals of the tournament after crushing Atlanta United 4-1 in the quarterfinals back on May 19. The Lions won much tighter affairs prior to that win, with Javier Otero coming up with seven saves in a 1-0 win over FC Naples and Zakaria Taifi scoring in stoppage time to beat the New England Revolution 4-3 in the following match. Orlando will be on the road for its semifinal match against the Columbus Crew on Sept. 16, but the offense has received a boost due to the arrivals of Antoine Griezmann and Daryl Dike this summer.

MLS Transfer News Roundup

MLS signings continue to pour in as teams look to improve their squads for the rest of this season and beyond. The Colorado Rapids signed Ghanaian winger Ibrahim Sadiq from AZ Alkmaar, where he recorded 18 goals and seven assists in 85 appearances across three seasons with the Dutch club. San Diego also added an attacker by signing forward Cedric Bakambu, who joins as a free agent after playing at Real Betis. As for other notable moves from across the league, Real Salt Lake signed winger Dusan Zagar as an MLS U22 Initiative player, forward Lyle Foster joined the Houston Dynamo on loan, and the Columbus Crew continued to improve on offense by signing Moroccan winger Anass Zaroury on loan from Panathinaikos.

Free Kicks

  • Former Orlando Pride player Christina Burkenroad is retiring from professional soccer and Monterrey will have Saturday’s game against Toluca be a send-off match for her.

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

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