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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Houston Dynamo: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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6 years ago

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Orlando City may have failed to score for the third consecutive game, but at least the Lions got a point for this one. A good defensive effort went largely to waste due to a lack of attacking precision but at this point it’s at least better to draw than lose.

It wasn’t a match most people that the supporters will be singing about for years to come and now the Lions have only one win in 20 matches (1-16-3). However, the performance was actually pretty decent and miles better than last Sunday’s game at Chicago.

Let’s get to the grades.

Starters

GK, Adam Grinwis, 7.5 — Grinwis made his MLS debut and got a clean sheet, though truthfully he didn’t have to do a lot. But what he did have to do, he did well. Grinwis made a crucial 1-v-1 save in the 58th minute to stop Romell Quioto. That was easily the most difficult of his three saves on the night. It nearly turned into a nightmare just 15 minutes in. He took a ball played by Houston and tried to play it into the area to pick up. Quioto took it from him and scored into an empty net but video review ruled that the Houston attacker had kicked it out of Grinwis’ hands. He made his first MLS save on a Tomas Martinez shot in the closing minutes of the first half. Even his distribution was good, as he connected on eight of his 10 long balls and passed at an 84% rate.

D, Mohamed El-Munir, 5.5 — Mo had a tough first half in many ways, losing the ball out of bounds and over the end line a few times. It seemed he didn’t trust his speed and several of his attacks slowed down and allowed Houston to get behind the ball. He finished with a decent 87% pass percentage but a lot of the attacks up his side broke down as he couldn’t quite get on the same page with his attacking teammates. He created only one chance in the game. Defensively he was pretty good, making two tackles, leading the team with four interceptions, and adding a clearance.

D, Lamine Sané, 7.5 (MotM) — It was good to see Sané back in the lineup and he helped stabilize the defense. His five clearances were a team high and he did well to help provide cover for the few times El-Munir got caught up field or beaten down the wing. He added two tackles, three interceptions and a blocked shot, but, more importantly, he always seemed to pop up in the right spot with a crucial tackle to prevent Houston’s attack from getting into dangerous spots. He also passed well (94%), hitting three of his four long balls.

D, Jonathan Spector, 7 — Although Baldomero Toledo ruled it a foul, Specs made a vital challenge in the 24th to dispossess Quioto on the break. The play looked clean but there may have been contact in the follow-through. Toledo gave Houston a free kick but it could have been much worse. He made a vital clearance with his head after Grinwis stopped Quioto in the 58th, nodding away a shot by Martinez. His 93% passing rate was good and he connected on four of six long balls. Defensively, he put in a good shift, blocking two shots and notching two clearances. He didn’t register an interception or a tackle, but some of that is due to the overall team defense keeping Houston quiet and the tackle he made was ruled a foul. I vehemently disagree with the call.

D, Scott Sutter, 6.5 — His clearance late in the first half prevented a goal at the back post by Quioto and he overall did a good job of keeping Houston’s assist leader from getting dangerous crosses in, often forcing Quioto to play negative balls. He had a tackle, an interception, and two clearances, but his passing wasn’t quite as sharp (83%) as it could have been. He attempted one shot but it was no trouble for Joe Willis.

MF, Uri Rosell, 6.5 — Although his passing was pretty sharp in the first half (89%), he also put himself in jeopardy a few times by touching the ball into an area where he could be closed down and dispossessed. Uri did a solid job of helping funnel the Houston attacks wide and keeping the middle trouble free for the center backs. He created three scoring chances and finished with an 86% passing accuracy (on the most attempts, with 73). He connected on eight of his 12 long balls. After the match, James O’Connor and Spector each praised Rosell and our next player in the list for their efforts at helping keep a clean sheet.

MF, Carlos Ascues, 7 — The Peruvian international made a nifty drop pass to Sacha Kljestan in the 31st minute that led to Orlando’s first shot on target. His passing was spot on in the first half, finishing the first period at 97% and although there weren’t a lot of difficult ones, he always seemed to pick out the right one. Ascues attempted one shot and created two scoring chances, while passing at a 93% rate and finishing with one tackle, two interceptions, and three clearances. He definitely looks the part at defensive midfielder.

MF, Yoshimar Yotún, 6 — I thought it was a mixed bag for Yoshi on the evening. He once again led the team in touches and his three chances created tied Rosell for the team lead. However, he seemed a bit off in the attacking third, seeing many of his final balls into the area cut out or not be on the same page as his runner. His 82% passing rate could have been better and only two of his 12 crosses were accurate. He made one tackle on defense. After the game, he picked up an unnecessary yellow card. Still, if anything was going to happen offensively on the evening, it looked like it was going to come through Yotún. He just lacked the final quality. Neither of his two shots were on target, although his inside-out attempt didn’t miss by much in the 56th.

MF, Sacha Kljestan, 5 — Kljestan hasn’t quite seemed himself since returning from injury, but he did have two shot attempts and got both on target, forcing a couple decent saves. His passing was decent overall (88%) but he created only one scoring chance. His shot in the 31st forced Joe Willis into into a diving save. Defensively, he had a clearance on a Houston corner. He didn’t get credit for for a shot but he did get his foot on a cross in the 47th minute that skipped just wide of the far post.

MF, Will Johnson, 5 — It was Johnson’s 50th appearance with Orlando and it was a solid, if unspectacular, outing. Will tried for the spectacular in the 32nd with a long-range effort that didn’t miss the near post by much. A minute later, he made a nice midfield steal and then drew a yellow card foul on Andrew Wenger. He sent in a dangerous shot in the 41st that forced save. Johnson led the team in shot attempts (3), getting one on target. Defensively, he had a clearance and a blocked shot. He was accurate on 91% of his passes and he drew five fouls, although he also committed three himself.

F, Dom Dwyer, 5 — Dom has seemed a bit off of late, missing three 1-v-1 opportunities in the last two matches. Tonight he had one such chance and again saw his shot saved although it didn’t matter since he was offside anyway. He was fouled a lot and he allowed the ones that didn’t get called to get into his head a bit and took a yellow card as a result. He attempted two shots, got one on target, and only attempted seven passes, connecting at just a 71% rate. Defensively he registered a clearance.

Substitutes

F, Stefano Pinho (79’), N/A — The Brazilian was the only substitute on the night but he didn’t do much and I’m not sure he had an opportunity to really make an impact so I’m not giving him a grade. He did attempt one shot that got blocked. He was three of five on his passes (60%), was dispossessed once and had two unstable touches. Not much impact, really.

That’s the way I saw it. Tell me what you thought and vote in our poll below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Adam Grinwis41
Lamine Sané20
Jonathan Spector7
Carlos Ascues24
Uri Rosell1
Yoshimar Yotún2
Other3

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Orlando City

Orlando City Signs Defender Thomas Williams Through 2026

Orlando City signs Homegrown center back Thomas Williams to a new contract through 2026 with a club option for 2027.

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3 hours ago

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January 22, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City B / Mark Thor

Orlando City announced this morning that the club has signed defender Thomas Williams through the 2026 season with a club option for 2027. The Homegrown Player has been with the first team since 2021 and will continue for at least two more years.

“Thomas is someone whose future we’re still very excited about and we’re happy to get him locked in with us for a couple more years,” Executive Vice President of Soccer Operations and General Manager Luiz Muzzi said in a club press release. “He’s shown a lot of growth these last few seasons, continuing to get game action with Orlando City B and proving the importance of our development pathway, and we’re looking forward to having him with us for the foreseeable future.”

The Titusville native joined the Orlando City Academy in 2015 and made his professional debut for the club on Aug. 7, 2020 against New England Revolution II. He played in 13 games that year with 10 starts and recorded 844 minutes. His play on the Young Lions’ back line earned him a first-team contract on June 15, 2021, at just 16 years old, making him the youngest player in club history to sign a Homegrown contract.

The 20-year-old center back made his MLS debut on April 16, 2022 in a 2-0 win over the Columbus Crew in Ohio. He made five appearances with three starts in all competitions that season, recording 271 minutes. To date, those are the only appearances he’s made with the first team.

Since joining OCB in 2021, Williams has made 69 appearances with 61 starts and recorded 5,132 minutes. He’s been booked 19 times and sent off twice, both times after receiving second yellow cards.

What It Means for Orlando City

Williams is the fourth natural center back for Orlando City on the current squad behind Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, and Rodrigo Schlegel. He played well early in his OCB and MLS career, but has struggled recently. Last year, he played exclusively with the second team, partnering with Nabi Kibunguchy.

While Williams hasn’t made much of an impact on the first team so far, he’s only 20 years old and still has plenty of time to develop. Extending his contact shows that the club still has faith that he can turn into a key player for the MLS side.

It’s unlikely that Williams will see any time with the first team in 2025 (barring injuries and/or suspensions), considering that he’s also been behind versatile defender Kyle Smith at the center back position. He’ll likely spend the upcoming season with OCB, continuing to develop and earn his spot with the first team. As a Homegrown Player, there isn’t much risk in signing Williams to a new contract, especially if the club’s technical staff thinks he can develop into a quality defender.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 1/22/25

Orlando City transfer rumors, Orlando Pride preseason begins, USMNT at Inter&Co, and more.

Published

7 hours ago

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January 22, 2025

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Dan MacDonald, The ManeLand

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. Up here in Tallahassee, I’m waking up to snow/sleet, closed schools, closed government offices, and potentially icy roads. Many people will get an extra day off of work, however, I still get to go to work. I’m sure you can imagine how happy I am about that. Enough of my winter grumbling. Let’s get to the links but not until after we wish Orlando City fullback Michael Halliday a happy 22nd birthday.

Orlando City Reportedly Targeting Croatian International

While I can no longer say that Orlando City hasn’t signed any new players, the club is still moving at its traditionally slow speed as compared to other MLS clubs. We had the signing of Nicolas Rodriguez last week. Now, we have Tom Bogert report of yet another winger prospect for the club in Croatian Marco Pasalic from HNK Rijeka, though it is not a done deal. Hopefully the other targets Bogert mentions are of the striker variety.

https://twitter.com/tombogert/status/1881755961125449765?s=46&t=pMoq7Wulqfb35D7C8ydroA

Pride Preseason Begins

The 2024 NWSL champions are back to defend their title. The Orlando Pride returned to training on Tuesday. The club hasn’t needed to add many pieces, though some of the players already here, like Simone Charley and Grace Chanda, haven’t actually played any minutes for the Pride yet. Most of the chemistry is in place for Seb Hines, but reinforcing those bonds will be the challenge as the Pride look to repeat.

USMNT at Inter&Co Tonight

Hopefully you have tickets to the USMNT friendly match versus Costa Rica at Inter&Co Stadium tonight. The match starts at 7 p.m. and there are television and streaming options if you’re not going in person. Despite the squad having 14 players with three or fewer caps, Mauricio Pochettino does not consider this an “alternative” squad, nor does he want the players to think of themselves like that.

Girma Reportedly Nearing Completion of Chelsea Move

USWNT defender Naomi Girma is reportedly headed to Chelsea FC Women for a record $1.1 million transfer fee. That is a very big chunk of change for San Diego FC to use to try to replace one of the best defenders in the world. The deal is not complete as of Tuesday evening, but according to the original report from The Athletic, it is close to being done. Girma would be the first women’s soccer player to earn a transfer fee of over $1 million.

MLS Transfer Updates

Other MLS clubs keep on putting pen to paper when it comes to new players. The Chicago Fire are bringing in Jonathan Bamba on a Designated Player deal from La Liga side Celta de Vigo. The Luca de la Torre loan from Spain’s RC Celta de Vigo to San Diego FC is also official.

https://twitter.com/sandiegofc/status/1881741042904350864

Cucho Hernandez evidently wants to stay with the Columbus Crew, though he is still waiting on a new offer.

https://twitter.com/tombogert/status/1881786193693823104

Free Kicks

https://twitter.com/weareangelcity/status/1881749040863588770?s=12&t=_WZBNG4ILAyRLdwBeB4mpQ
  • Keep your eyes peeled later today for the NWSL schedule drop.
https://twitter.com/nwsl/status/1881749035218042954?s=46&t=pN-YJp3s7ZQlCXqnTAgSfw

That will do it for today. Stay warm out there, my friends. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 1/21/25

Orlando Pride release preseason camp roster, scouting Costa Rica, women’s soccer transfer grades, and more.

Published

1 day ago

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January 21, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Good morning, everyone! If you had yesterday off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, then I hope you enjoyed some restful time off. If not, then I hope you got your week started off on a good and productive note. There’s a lot going on around here this week as the United States Men’s National Team is in town, and Orlando City will play its first preseason match on Saturday. That means we have plenty to discuss, so let’s dig into today’s links.

Orlando Pride Drop Preseason Roster

Monday might have been a holiday but the Orlando Pride were busy, as they announced the roster for their upcoming preseason camp. Almost all of the usual suspects from the 2024 season are back, as the Pride return 98% of the player-minutes from last season and every single scorer. Mariana Larroquette is on the list although she’s currently on loan in Argentina, and Amanda Allen is likewise included after her loan at Lexington Sporting Club was terminated due to a torn labrum. The biggest intrigue comes from the trio of non-roster invitees: goalkeeper DeAira Jackson, midfielder Aryssa Mahrt, and forward Simone Jackson.

Scouting Costa Rica

The USMNT takes on Costa Rica on Wednesday at Inter&Co Stadium to wrap up the team’s annual January camp. Like the U.S., Costa Rica is bringing a roster devoid of the majority of its important players. Costa Rica also has a new manager at the helm in Miguel Herrera, who will take charge of the team for the very first time on Wednesday. Herrera typically lines his teams up in a 5-3-2 where the wingbacks take on a very important role and the team looks to hit on the counter while staying compact at the back. This will be the last time we see the USMNT in action until the Concacaf Nations League semifinals in early March.

Women’s Soccer January Transfer Grades

January has been a busy time for transfers in the women’s soccer world, so which teams have done the best business? Well, the Orlando Pride received an A grade for signing Marta to a new two-year deal, retaining a player who helped the team win its first ever trophies. Liverpool got an A for signing Julia Bartel on loan from Chelsea. Leicester City made an interesting call by transferring goalkeeper Lize Kop to Tottenham despite just being a point above the relegation zone. The Foxes get a C for the move, while Spurs get a B+ for adding a capable netminder.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans taking part in some very important games over the course of this week. Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Juventus face Club Brugge today in the UEFA Champions League, while Ricardo Pepi, Richy Ledezma, Esmir Bajraktarević, Malik Tillman and PSV Eindhoven take on Crvena Zvezda in the same competition. Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan will play Girona in the UCL on Wednesday, while Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty, and Celtic take on Young Boys. On Friday, John Tolkin could make his Bundesliga debut when his new team, Holstein Kiel, travels to face Wolfsburg.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando Pride players reported for their preseason physicals on Monday.
  • Meanwhile, Orlando City took on the dreaded beep test during Monday’s training session.

That’s all I have for you today. Vamos Orlando!

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