Lion Links: 3/21/19

Hello there, Mane Landers! It’s Thursday, which means the U.S. Men’s National Team takes on Ecuador later on tonight right here in the City Beautiful, and we’re only two days away from the weekend and another Orlando City game day. So while we wait for tonight’s kickoff, let’s go through today's Lion Links!

Orlando City To Visit A Familiar Face

In December of last year, Orlando City announced the trade of center back Amro Tarek to the New York Red Bulls. With the Lions (0-1-2, 2 points) paying the Red Bulls (1-0-1, 4 points) a visit on Saturday, Tarek will have to face his old team for the first time since the move. The Egyptian center back will more than likely be starting the match as he will have to fill the void left by Aaron Long who was called up to the U.S. Men’s National Team. Tarek sure feels more comfortable in New York, after stating the Reds are a team with a winning mentality that was “lacking in Orlando.” We’ll see if that mentality shows on Saturday.

Lions Sit Low In MLS Power Rankings

After two draws and its first defeat of the season last weekend, Orlando City sits in spot number 21 of 24 in Week 3 of the MLS Power Rankings. The Lions are coming off a 3-1 defeat to the Montreal Impact in a game that left a lot of questions defensively, while the New York Red Bulls are sitting in third spot in the rankings and coming off a 4-1 victory over San Jose. Hopefully, City has worked on those defensive mistakes and the Lions could start climbing up those rankings and the league table as well.

Tyler Adams Q&A with U.S. Soccer

One of USMNT’s rising stars, Tyler Adams recently took on a short interview with U.S. Soccer, in which he was asked about his transition into German soccer after his move to Red Bull Leipzig, his take on the new national team system, and more. We’ll more than likely see Adams get playing time in these next couple of friendlies and, with him playing at right back under head coach Gregg Berhalter, it’ll be interesting to see how he’s adapted to the new position.

FIFA Says No To Artificial Fields For 2023 Women’s World Cup

After the controversy caused by the use of turf fields at the 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada, artificial fields will not be seen at this year’s tournament in France and now FIFA has stated that said fields will not be allowed in the 2023 tournament either. There isn’t anything official that shows if one field is more dangerous than the other, there’s studies that support either field, but I personally think this is a good move by FIFA as I believe turf could cause more injuries due to the increased friction.

Free Kicks

• Want to go see the USMNT take on Ecuador tonight but afraid it’s too late to get tickets? Fear not, tickets are still very much available! Grab those last-minute tickets, some friends, your USA gear, and go support the Yanks tonight.
• Former Orlando City player Justin Meram scored the winning goal in Iraq’s 1-0 victory over Syria and, even though it may have taken a deflection, what a goal it was to finish a great team effort.
• The Major Arena Soccer League has announced the launch of the Major Arena Soccer Youth Tournament.

Looks like this is it for me today. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to attend the game tonight, but I hope it’s an entertaining one and you all enjoy it. At least I’ll get to watch my national team get revenge on Chile tomorrow night. I’m super hyped. Until next time, Mane Landers!