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Analyzing James O’Connor’s Team Selections
On Saturday, Orlando City traveled to face Real Salt Lake. Head Coach James O’Connor made four changes from the previous week’s home win against the Colorado Rapids, with the Irishman’s generous approach to rotation once again raising a few eyebrows.
O’Connor has so far made an average of three changes per game in 2019 with about half of those coming on the defensive line. He has never named an unchanged side during his 24-game spell with Orlando and has named the same back line only once this season, retaining the opening day personnel group of Danilo Acosta, Kamal Miller, Alex De John, Shane O’Neill and Kyle Smith for the second week trip to Chicago. He has tried five different combinations in the following five games since.
There’s plenty of speculation as to what O’Connor’s constant tinkering means. Firstly, it means that he still doesn’t know his best starting lineup. With a 16% win record, less than half the rate of any other Orlando City permanent manager in MLS, O’Connor could still be trying to find a winning formula. But that doesn’t explain why he’s keeping his biggest assets out of the side. Notable absences this time included the Lions’ two leading play makers and current joint top scorers, Nani and Dom Dwyer. Both had their minutes carefully managed in the opening seven matches and the same goes for City’s third DP — Young Designated Player, Josué Colmán.
Dwyer has only started three times despite playing in every game. Nani had started the last five after making his strong debut from the bench in the season opener against New York City FC, before returning to the bench at Rio Tinto Stadium. Colmán, on the other hand, has only been given 41 minutes this season with a single-game high of 15 minutes in the defeat to Montreal. Since July, the Paraguayan youth international has only played 486 minutes in MLS.
Another notable absence from the squad has been Cristian Higuita. Orlando’s leader in appearances, Higuita has made only one substitute appearance this season and has been left out of the match day squad more than he’s been included. Similar to Colmán, Higuita has been pushed to the fringes with his playing time reduced to a 30% rate in the O’Connor era with just 644 minutes. The midfielder has managed to go the full 90 minutes since O’Connor arrived only once.
However, not everyone has had to buy a ticket to the rotation raffle. For example, 33-year-old Sacha Kljestan is the only outfield player to start every game this year and has played 1,771 minutes for O’Connor. Another two stalwarts are defender Shane O’Neill, who arrived in Orlando one game into O’Connor’s reign and has clocked 1,642 minutes since, and Canadian international Will Johnson, who returned to the starting lineup against RSL following a three-game absence from a concussion to take his total to 1,238 minutes.
On the defensive side, absentees included Alex De John and Carlos Ascues, who were both injured and unavailable, while center back Lamine Sané reportedly didn’t travel. Sané has started two games in 2019 and made a further 24-minute substitute appearance after recovering from a calf injury sustained in preseason.
Fielding five in the back — or three in the back with two wingbacks pushed forward, depending on how you look at it — meant newcomer Kyle Smith, who reunited with O’Connor from Louisville City in the off-season, was the only defensive option available on the bench with O’Neill and rookie Kyle Miller both returning to the starting 11. Things seem stretched with injuries stacking up, especially with a system that requires five defenders — three center backs and two wingbacks — and the team is still struggling to stem the flow of goals.
The Lions are on pace to concede 63 goals this year. The match against Real Salt Lake was the fourth time in 2019 that the team has trailed by two and the fourth time it’s conceded in the opening 20 minutes. During last year’s record-breaking season, the team fielded 13 different center back partnerships and 26 total back line iterations. Any semblance of defensive cohesion is frankly impossible with such inconsistencies and the sooner a settled, first-choice back line appears and stays healthy the better.
O’Connor also feels that he gains an advantage by being unpredictable and keeping his opponents guessing how his teams will line up. That is what led to the formation switch against Montreal as the team changed to a 4-3-3, which ended in a 3–1 defeat.
Is the advantage of catching your opponents off guard bigger than the disadvantage of the incoherence and unfamiliarity brought to your own ranks by continually changing systems that your side has minimal, if any, real-game experience of? The answer for O’Connor was clearly no as the Lions quickly returned to a 3-5-2 formation, but have continued to rotate personnel within it.
João Moutinho and Ruan dislodged Acosta and Smith for the starting wingback jobs and have performed well since. But in such demanding roles, it is unusual to see them get four and five consecutive starts respectively compared to other positions.
I’d expect to see that change soon just like the front two which has seen five different starting partnerships in the opening seven games: Chris Mueller and Tesho Akindele (twice), Nani and Akindele, Nani and Dwyer (twice), Nani and Santiago Patiño, and Akindele and Dwyer.
O’Connor had previously lamented his lack of forward options, only really having Dwyer and Stefano Pinho to turn to at forward last year. With a busy off-season of recruiting, aided by newly appointed Executive Vice President of Soccer Operations Luiz Muzzi, O’Connor now has twice as many out-and-out strikers at his disposal with the arrival of Akindele from FC Dallas, first-round draft pick Patiño, and Homegrown Player Benji Michel, all of whom have seen the field at least once.
It is this apparent strength in depth that has allowed O’Connor the freedom to switch things up depending on the opponent. And it has arguably worked to some effect: Orlando has scored in every game so far this year, something it failed to do in seven games under O’Connor last year.
The lineup changes could be a sign that O’Connor is planning long term, trying to keep his key players fresh and Real Salt Lake makes for a tough trip at altitude. Orlando has also performed poorly beyond April in the past. The team has four wins in 36 games across the last two seasons between the months of May and August. MLS is a marathon, not a sprint, and the early reduced minutes to key players now will perhaps pay dividends later in the schedule.
Last week, O’Connor was praised for his use of impact substitutes, particularly Mueller, but he appeared to cave to public pressure by handing the second-year winger a start this time around. Mueller failed to have the same impact, struggling to link well up top with Akindele and had his explosive potential contained.
The bigger frustration is the feeling that games like Saturday’s have been within reach to at least get a point from, if not the win. With the aforementioned defensive issues, it’s a balancing act between changing the game from the bench and trying to stay in the game in the first place to able to make those substitutions with a realistic chance of getting something.
Against Colorado, Mueller entered with the Lions trailing with 10 minutes left but was able to grab the equalizer to set up the win. Against RSL, Dwyer and Nani entered in the 56th minute when trailing 2-0. The team’s performance improved, but Nani could only score off of a free kick to reduce the deficit. O’Connor wanted to make that double change with the score still 1-0 — both Nani and Dwyer were waiting to check into the game when the second goal was scored — but the deficit grew before the change could take place.
At any rate, it seems counterproductive to leave such players on the bench in the context of this one game. Whether it pays off later in the season remains to be seen.
Uncategorized
A Note About Hurricane Milton and The Mane Land
First of all, be safe. Second of all, be safe. Third of all, here’s what’s up regarding our upcoming schedule.
Hello, Mane Landers! With another powerful storm bearing down on the Sunshine State, it’s good to know that Orlando City and OCB are off and the Pride are on the road this weekend. We hope that everyone remains safe as Hurricane Milton passes through and near the areas in which many of you (and us) live.
As always, I hate writing these pieces but it seems to be required at least once per year, so I wanted to let everyone know that we at The Mane Land are going to do our best to continue our normal coverage and publication schedule as best we can — understanding that we are not a priority for anyone in the area at the moment. Our schedule in the coming days is not really up to us, as there are always unknown aspects to every storm, and while Hurricane Milton may or may not disrupt some or all of us personally, there are cell, internet, and electricity services that could be affected — something far beyond our control — to the point where our normal service isn’t possible. So we ask that you be aware of that and to be patient if that happens.
Hopefully our cable/satellite/electricity/internet will stay on for all the normal reasons, as well as so we can continue our coverage of Orlando’s soccer teams.
As Hurricane Milton threatens our state, we want to wish all of you the best of luck. Mother Nature is not a force to be trifled with, so we hope that everyone takes the mindset to err on the side of caution rather than take unnecessary risks. The weather is undefeated and should never be challenged.
The weather is undefeated and should never be challenged.
For those who read us throughout the Central Florida area and beyond, please let this serve as a reminder that several of our writers will be within reach of the storm, and all or some of us could find ourselves without power, internet, and/or cell service soon. Some of our staff members live in the more vulnerable areas along the Gulf Coast and Space Coast, where flooding could be severe.
When The Weather Channel sends people to your area to broadcast about the storm, you definitely take notice.
The safety of the TML staff is obviously of paramount importance to me. I urge all of our staff to take appropriate precautions, including – should they deem it necessary – evacuation. I urge everyone to be wherever they’re going to be by 5 p.m. tonight and then to stay put. As a website, we will strive to continue to function as normally as possible over the coming days.
I will personally do everything in my power (provided I have power and either the internet or cell service, or both) to maintain the site’s schedule of features with whatever breaking news we can cover over the span of the storm’s passing and beyond. However, please be aware that the site could potentially go without updates for an indeterminate period if the storm is particularly destructive and leaves us without power/internet, or with more immediate problems that must be overcome before we can even think about sitting down to write a blog post or record a podcast. This may be unavoidable, but we will do everything we can to avoid it.
I will try to provide updates from The Mane Land Twitter account (@TheManeLand) periodically to let people know that we’re OK as I get reports from our staff, and what the status of stories will be over the days (and weeks, if need be) to come. We hope the storm isn’t too disruptive to our daily functions but…this is a blog and it is infinitely less important than real life. I guess what I’m trying to say is that we’ll do what we have to do and get back to normal as quickly as we can.
Hopefully I’ll be able to look back on this post in a few days and laugh about having written it.
But this is a two-way community, so enough about us. Where are you located in relation to the storm’s path? What are you doing to prepare for the hurricane? Are you getting out of harm’s way, or are you staying put? How are you planning to pass the time? What are your best hurricane hacks? Let us know what you’re up to in the comments section below and keep us updated on how the weather is affecting your area.
Stay safe, Lion Nation.
Uncategorized
Reflecting on Eight Years with The Mane Land
A look back over my time with The Mane Land (so far).
As of last week, I have been a contributor at The Mane Land for eight years. That’s longer than I’ve ever been at any of my actual jobs in my life. There are literally only a couple of people who have been with the site longer, but I’m still amazed at how long it’s been. This is not to say I’m going anywhere, but rather I wanted to take the opportunity to look back at the past eight years, and look ahead to the future.
Unlike some, I didn’t come to be a supporter of Orlando City until it was announced that the club was joining MLS. At the time, I was contemplating picking a club to follow in MLS, but being in Tallahassee, there were no nearby options at that time. I considered FC Dallas and D.C. United, given the two were geographically closer in proximity to me than any others. Fortunately, it was literally while I was considering my options that the announcement was made regarding Orlando City’s jump to MLS. It was an easy decision.
As I do in many aspects of my life, I immediately started researching my new club, which led me to the content being produced by The Mane Land. There was also an article on the site titled “Join The Mane Land Staff.” I had often over the years internally bemoaned that I rarely used my Bachelor’s degree in English, and the desire to write welled up in me so much that I emailed the staff.
In response, one of our former editors, Andrew Marcinko, contacted me and said “I think your voice would be a great fit on TML.” He asked me to submit a Fan Post (those went away with our presence on SBN), and then another piece for review. Following that, our founder and managing editor, Michael Citro, emailed me to welcome me to the staff. I had no idea at the time how big a part of my life this blog would become.
I started out writing Monday’s Lions Links — often one of the more difficult days to write — and a feature piece. It’s been many years gone by now, but there was a time when the feature piece was “Pride Pub,” an ongoing series that paired craft beer and good food based on Orlando City’s opponent. I can tell you that the research for that was very enjoyable, and I still use some of the recipes I found to this day.
Eventually, I started contributing more match coverage and analytical pieces. Staff came and went, but I never thought to leave since I was enjoying myself. Sometime after that, I was promoted to senior columnist, for which I’m grateful. I can without reservation say that I’m a better writer thanks to my time with the site, and from working with such excellent staff.
In November of 2016, Michael asked if I wanted to give co-hosting The Mane Land PawedCast a try. My first recording was for Episode 71. We just recorded Episode 354, and with the exception of maybe two or three episodes, I have been on every single one of 283 episodes over the last six plus years. Michael and I have spent a lot of time talking on and off the podcast over the years, and I’m proud of what we have produced and to call him my friend.
We recently added an Orlando Pride-specific podcast called Skopurp: An Orlando Pride PawedCast. For years we wanted to give the Pride the time and attention the club deserves. Now, it is a reality, but one that I ask you to listen to and share. I’ll even put out that although Michael and I are the current hosts, we merely consider ourselves stewards and are hoping to get others to come onboard and eventually take it to the next level.
When I started with The Mane Land, the site had just made the move from a free WordPress site to the SBNation network. It was a big deal, and for many years it was a good partnership. Of course that all came to an end not too long ago, and our blog went the independent route thanks to the incredibly generous support of our readers and listeners. In fact, if you want to be one of those supporting our efforts, please go to our Buy Me A Coffee site to become a member. The move has allowed a flexibility we didn’t have before, but I really want others to have the same sense of joy and accomplishment that I have as a member of our staff.
At one point we had nearly twice the staff that we do now, and as you know, many hands make light work. The opposite of that is also true. I genuinely believe that there must be others out there with the same passion for Orlando City as I have — with the same desire to have their voice heard, whether through the written word or on a podcast. I promise you there is an opportunity to contribute here with us. Our internal discussions are informative, engaging, and often funny. Please consider joining us, as I did eight years ago. I haven’t regretted it and I know you won’t either.
I want to thank all of those who contributed to The Mane Land over the years. There are many that I am still in touch with, though they are no longer a part of the staff. Of course, the current staff are a pleasure to work with, and I appreciate their dedication to what we are trying to do.
Finally, I want to thank the readers and listeners over the years. From those who regularly comment on our articles, to those that I’ve personally met at matches or even randomly on the street, you are a big reason that we do all of this. You are a big reason why I’ve been doing this for the better part of a decade. it is always a genuine pleasure hearing your thoughts or simply sharing a moment of joy together — U.S. Open Cup final, anyone?
So, thank you. I look forward to many more years of this journey together.
Orlando City
The Mane Land Announces Membership Program
Maximize your Mane Land experience with our new TML membership program while supporting our independent efforts.
Hello, readers of The Mane Land and listeners of our podcasts. Before you start reading this, please note that the most important part of this post is at the end. So, don’t stop until you get to the bottom.
You may recall that when we left SBNation to become independent, we really weren’t sure the best way to go about that. Many of our readers and listeners generously offered to help us make that transition, but we still weren’t sure the best path forward, so we took a poll.
The poll was pretty much split down the middle between those who preferred a one-time, Kickstarter-style campaign (which we did, and those of you who stepped up to help completely blew us away!) and those who favored a Patreon-style, subscription-based membership with extra perks. In fact, the member subscriptions option got a few more votes in our poll.
The folks who took part in our GoFundMe fundraiser were fantastic and are now immortalized on this very site on the “Our Founders” page. But we had always planned to give folks the option to choose whichever method of support they preferred and we tried to communicate that throughout the process. It took a little longer than expected to get up and running, but our membership subscription program is now in place! (You may notice the fancy new banner ad about it on the home page, echoed below.)
Part of that delay was thinking up something that didn’t encroach on the benefits we gave our Founders. Those folks helped us get started and deserve the exclusivity of the perks they got. The other part of the delay is that there just aren’t enough hours in the day. (However, for you guys, I’m willing to be cloned.)
We have utilized the popular Buy Me a Coffee platform to run this program. You can find the basics here. The Mane Land premium membership program includes three tiers of membership, as well as the option to click on the “Support” tab for those who just want to help us out whenever, without joining the program or adding any recurring “appointment-based” payments to their budgets. We love that feature of Buy Me a Coffee (or “Buy Us a Beer” in our case…you drink what you like).
For those who do choose to become members, we hope we have provided value and we are planning to add benefits along the way, in addition to providing special giveaways, events, etc. (more on that below). We have also provided subscription options — with monthly or annual memberships. The annual cost essentially gives you 12 months for the price of 10.
Current Benefits
The current membership benefits depend on which level of support you choose — Homegrown Player, TAM Player, or Designated Player level. Each level includes all benefits from the lower tiers, with additional benefits for each higher level.
Homegrown Player: This is a basic set-it-and-forget-it level of support for The Mane Land, providing a way for our readers and podcast listeners to contribute to the success of TML‘s independence goals. We want to compensate our current volunteers, replace lost income of those who previously received small stipends from being part of the SBNation network, add photographers, attract new writers, and expand our coverage. Additionally, each Homegrown Player Level member will be recognized in a Lion Links column, which is still typically our most widely read post of each day and one of the top daily links columns among soccer sites. Homegrown Player Level members will also be included in any future prize drawings we have or events we host and may be subject to future benefits as they are added.
TAM Player: In addition to Homegrown Player benefits, TAM Players will receive a new weekly e-newsletter in their inbox (unless you opt out…some people hate email). These will be informal missives from myself, other TML writers, or a combination, discussing what’s on our mind regarding Orlando City, the Pride, OCB, or soccer in general. Think of it as an extra post from our site that may cover multiple topics. Additionally, you’ll get a 10% discount from our web shop items that we control (presently, that means everything except our listed MLS Shop items). We will definitely have more benefits coming for this level soon and will look for opportunities to include additional benefits as they become available.
Designated Player: This limited availability level of support includes all perks from the Homegrown and TAM levels, but it goes beyond. Your discount at our webshop (for items we control) will be 15% off. Additionally, we’ll send you Zoom links to watch us “make the doughnuts” whenever we record the podcast. This includes when we interview guests. You’ll see how the sausage is made behind the scenes and everything that we say, some of which will end up on the cutting room floor before the final podcast is sent out. This includes both The Mane Land PawedCast and SkoPurp Soccer: An Orlando Pride PawedCast. And after two months of membership you can commission a bonus episode of either podcast simply by letting us know what topic you want us to cover. Think of this as an extended Ask Us Anything. We’ll do a whole show about your topic and you can even join us to discuss it if you wish.
The DP Level will certainly have additional benefits tacked on as we move forward. It is currently limited to 40 members but could be expanded slightly depending on demand and our Zoom attendance.
Future Benefits / Benefits Under Consideration
While we won’t be able to schedule these due to the random nature of items falling into our hands, there will be periodic prize giveaways in drawings that include all of our members, regardless of level. The catch is that you get one entry per level of support, meaning Homegrown Player Level members will get one entry per prize drawing, TAM Player Level members will get two entries per drawing, and Designated Player Level members get three entries for prize drawings. Some of the kinds of items we have come across in the past include match tickets, trinkets, posters, scarves, and so on.
We are planning to add a message board to our website, well…soon-ish is the word that comes to mind. The plan for the message board is to build our community and further the discussion about the club. As part of this, we’re planning an exclusive, members-only area of that message board that TAM and DP members can access. This will be a place our staff can share informational nuggets we can’t necessarily write stories about for various reasons and interact with our members on a daily basis.
Other things in the works include meet-and-greets/watch parties where you can chat with TML staff members and catch a road match with a bunch of like-minded Orlando City/Pride fans while we all cheer on the team together. There may also be other informal outings with one or more members of the staff, organized fantasy leagues, random Zoom calls for Q&A sessions, and perhaps even some organized group outings for Orlando City / Pride matches, national team games, etc.
The Most Important Part of This Post
Remember at the top of this post, when I said the most important part is at the bottom? Well, that seems like a long time ago, now, so it’s OK if you’ve already forgotten.
The most important part of our membership program is you. We want your feedback so we can make this program something that interests and excites you. We want to know what you like and dislike about this program. We want to know if there are some things we didn’t think of that interest you. If you like what we’re offering, tell us! If you hate what we’re offering, we want to know what you’d prefer instead or in addition. If you want to go drinking with Dave, we can probably arrange that, but it’ll be a unique tier and we’ll have to figure out the cost of that.
No idea is too crazy to suggest, even if it’s too insane for us to actually offer. Let us know what you want from your subscription and we’ll see if that’s something we can do. We’ll make it easy for you by putting the form right here below this post, which is now concluded.
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