Orlando City
Orlando City vs. LA Galaxy: Player Grades and Man of the Match
Orlando City tossed away more home points tonight in a loss that should at least have been a draw if not for a bad penalty take in the first half. The team has completed yet another horrible May stretch (1-4-0) and will now go on the road for the entirety of June (although that’s only three total matches), making these lost points even more painful.
Let’s take a look at how everyone performed.
Starters
GK, Brian Rowe, 6 — It’s difficult to really give a grade to a guy who was largely a spectator in the match, as the Orlando goalkeeper was rarely called into action. Rowe had a great outlet pass to Nani in the 15th minute to send the team on the counter in his fist notable involvement of the game. I’m not sure he could have done much about the dos Santos screamer that beat him with extreme power. That was the only shot he faced in the first half and the only one to find the target all game long as LA’s other three attempts missed.
D, Joao Moutinho, 5.5 — The Portuguese youngster left a pair of crosses too close to David Bingham early on, which could have been dangerous chances for Tesho Akindele. He got caught inside on an LA cross in the buildup to the opening goal. In the 23rd minute he had a good opportunity to cross on the break and put the pass behind the end line. He made his best cross at the end of the 72nd minute that led to a corner. Moutinho grew into the game somewhat, becoming more dangerous as the second half wound down. Though he was officially 0-for-7 in crossing accuracy, he did put the ball into some dangerous spots after halftime but no one got to them. He closed the game with just 75% passing accuracy, a tackle, and a clearance.
D, Robin Jansson, 6 — The beefy Swede sent a powerful free kick over the net in the 18th minute. He had some bad luck clearing a cross a minute later that fell perfectly for Jonathan dos Santos to open the scoring and a giveaway with a loose touch in the 25th that nearly led to an LA counter. Made a big stop to cut off a counter attack in the 66th minute with a sliding tackle. He took a tactical foul yellow late to quell an LA counter. His 90% passing rate was behind only Sebas Mendez among those with at least nine attempts. He made one tackle and had a team high three clearances.
D, Lamine Sané, 5.5 — Lamine had a bit of a quiet first half with perhaps his most memorable play being a missed tackle on Emil Cuello that led to a dangerous attack. He was culpable on a scoring chance early in the second half by not stepping up but was bailed out by a shot over the bar. In the 61st, he failed to communicate with a backtracking midfielder — something that we’ve seen happen repeatedly in recent weeks — and as a result no one played the ball that luckily rolled where only Rowe could get it. He made one tackle with two interceptions and two clearances, with an 87% passing rate.
D, Ruan 6.5 — The Brazilian speedster drew a yellow card in the 17th minute as Emil Cuello was afraid he might beat Bingham to the ball, setting up a set piece. He sent a fantastic cross to Mueller in the 21st that should have led to a scoring chance. His 71st-minute cross led to a shot on target from Nani after he mesmerized the defense. His 71.4% passing rate wasn’t great but six of his eight incomplete passes came in the congested final third. Defensively, he made three tackles and one clearance, with three dribbles, and drew two free kicks. He unfortunately just about disappeared from the game once Kyle Smith was introduced.
MF, Cristian Higuita, 6 — The Colombian made his second straight start and had a bit of a quiet first half despite three tackles, an interception, and a passing rate of 89%. He didn’t get forward much and managed to get dispossessed twice when he did. His giveaway in the 51st sent LA on the break and he was lucky not to concede a free kick in a good spot after contact with Sebastian Lletget. He finished with five tackles and a passing rate that dipped to 84.8%, while connecting on five of seven long balls.
MF, Sebas Mendez, 6.5 (MotM) — Mendez did well to win a penalty in the 31st minute by taking the ball from dos Santos in the area. Moments later he sent a sky ball header that was easy for Bingham on a counter in which the cross may have been intended for Mueller behind him of whom he was unaware. He led all starters with a 93.7% passing rate, with one key pass and went five out of six on long ball accuracy. He tied Higuita for the team lead in tackles, with five, and made two interceptions and a clearance. He still has moments where he fails to track trailing runners and sometimes gambles a bit, but he was the team’s best player on this night in my opinion.
MF, Will Johnson, 6 — Will’s early shot in the fourth minute was one he’ll want back, sending it well over the bar from just outside the area. He drew a free kick just outside the area late in what was his typical workmanlike first half. Did well to steal a ball in the 64th but then split Nani and Mueller to give it right back at the top of the box. Defensively, Johnson had two tackles and a clearance to his credit. His 88.5% passing accuracy was good and he had one key pass, going four of five on long balls.
F, Nani, 4.5 — It wasn’t the sharpest night for Nani. The captain’s passing was a bit off in the first half — including getting a cross blocked out for a corner on a 15th-minute counter attack with numbers — though he did connect well with the flanks. His first-half passing chart showed green around the edges but everything toward goal was red. For the second consecutive game he missed a penalty with a stutter-step approach when he could have simply gone for power. He did get a free kick on target in first-half stoppage time to force a Bingham save but it wasn’t a difficult one. He missed the net early in the second half with Bingham out of position. He made a good cross in the 66th but it was cut out for a corner. He did well to get on a deflected cross in the 71st minute to get a shot on target but he didn’t hit it solidly enough to get it by the goalkeeper. In the end, Nani sent eight shots toward the net, getting three on target, made two key passes on an overall 81% passing night, with one tackle and an interception. The grade may look harsh, but this wasn’t a good enough performance on a night when Dom Dwyer was unavailable to help the offense. although he admittedly didn’t get much help from his fellow forwards either.
F, Tesho Akindele, 4 — The Canadian striker had a bit of a quiet first half and his most notable play may have been a loose touch that wrecked a late counter attack. He was initially sent in behind but lost his advantage taking possession and then lost it with an unforced error at the top of the area. He made a good play early in the second half to keep the ball from Bingham, feeding Nani who unfortunately couldn’t hit the empty net. His quiet night ended in the 56th minute with just 32 touches and a 75% passing rate, though he did make two key passes and four tackles. He failed to record a shot and had five unstable touches — the most on the team.
F, Chris Mueller, 5 — Mueller was a bit sloppy with his first touch several times and faded a bit during the game, almost as if he’d played four games in 13 days, on both sides of the continent. He started strong by forcing a good save from Bingham in just the second minute. He went back to refusing to shoot in the 21st minute when Orlando had a chance to pull the goal right back, then got dispossessed without even getting off a shot attempt. Moments later he had a heavy touch on the attack and was forced to play wide for Moutinho instead of getting into the area. Mueller’s header off a corner in the 73rd minute forced a great save from Bingham on his best shot of the night. He got two of his three shots on target and passed at a 79% rate with one key pass and chipped in a clearance on defense.
Substitutes
D, Kyle Smith (56’), 3.5 — The danger on the right side faded as soon as Ruan started moving around the pitch when Smith was introduced. His 86% passing is deceptive as he got no accurate crosses into the danger zone (on three attempts) and in fact struggled to even get one into the area without being blocked. He made one clearance and a tackle and bundled a shot on target on a set piece but he knew little about it and the trickling ball was cleared off the line easily.
MF, Sacha Kljestan (67’), 5 — The former Red Bulls captain was put on to try to connect more passes in the final third, and he did manage two key passes in his abbreviated stint but his overall passing was just 72.4% as the Galaxy parked the bus and Orlando couldn’t break them down.
F, Josué Colmán (83’), N/A — Another late cameo from the Paraguayan didn’t amount to much. It wasn’t bad, but he was only on the pitch about 11 minutes counting stoppage time. He took a weak shot that trickled slowly in for an easy scoop by Bingham. He completed all eight of his passing attempts and two were key passes but perhaps he should have come on earlier for an obviously tired Mueller.
That’s how I saw the individual performances against the Galaxy. What did you think? Please tell us in the comments section and vote for your Man of the Match in our poll below.
Polling Closed
| Player | Votes |
| Ruan | 17 |
| Sebas Mendez | 23 |
| Cristian Higuita | 11 |
| Will Johnson | 6 |
| Other (let us know who in the comments below) | 4 |
Orlando City
Orlando City Relies on Starters More Than Any Other MLS Team
An analysis of Óscar Pareja’s early lineup choices and substitution patterns and how that compares to the 2024 season.
Legendary swordsman Inigo Montoya, a man who is not lefthanded, once opened a conversation by asking the Dread Pirate Roberts if, by any chance, he had six fingers on his right hand. Nobody will need to prepare to die by the end of this column, but I will ask a similar question: I don’t mean to pry, but did you by any chance happen to realize that we are already more than one-sixth of the way through the MLS regular season? Six fingers, one-sixth of the season…close enough. Let’s go.
Time flies when you are having fun, and somehow Orlando City has already played 540 minutes of MLS soccer this season. I consider 500 minutes played to be a cutoff amount when looking at player and lineup performance, and with the conclusion of the most recent game in Los Angeles, the team has now surpassed that 500-minute threshold.
In looking at the opening 540 minutes, I was surprised to see how much continuity I found in the minutes played, considering how many injuries the Lions have had to work around during these first six games. In just the first six games, Orlando City has already had full games missed due to injury by César Araujo (1), David Brekalo (2), Robin Jansson (2), Duncan McGuire (3) and Nico Rodriguez (5). Brekalo and Pedro Gallese both missed a game for international duty as well. McGuire was not expected back during the first set of games, but all of those other players, with the possible exception of Rodriguez, were expected to contribute during the early part of the season.
These absences led to games where the substitutes list was full of players who will play big minutes for Orlando City B this year, but not players who Óscar Pareja was likely to turn to off the bench unless the game was out of hand or he was absolutely desperate. According to Opta’s tracking through the opening six games, Orlando City ranks last in MLS in the average minutes played by its substitutes, as the average amount of time per appearance for the players off the bench for the Lions is only 12 minutes. For context, 16 teams have an average amount of time per substitute appearance of 20 minutes or greater, and Inter Miami and Toronto are tied with a league-leading 27 minutes per substitute appearance.
The interesting thing about those two teams, Miami and Toronto, is that Miami leads the league in points per match with 2.6 and Toronto is second from the bottom with a scant 0.33 points per match. I think a lot of this data will even out over time, as right now there are several teams, including Miami, that are playing in multiple competitions and trying to keep players fresh for all of their matches.
When it comes to Orlando City, however, that is not the case, and thus far there has just been the standard one game per week on six consecutive Saturdays. The players are rested for each game. The issue has just been that Pareja has not had the depth and variety of players he thought he would have to bring off the bench to protect a lead or chase a deficit.
We often joke in articles or on The Mane Land PawedCast about how “Óscar gonna Óscar,” and once he finds a lineup he likes, he sticks with it. Even with all the injuries he has somehow managed to do this again this season, as you can see from the chart below. I started tracking lineup data last season, and even though the 2025 season is only six games old and there have been so many absences from key players this season, it was striking to see that the 11-man lineup that has played the most minutes together this season already outranks all but two lineups from the entire 2024 MLS season (including the five playoff games!):
Now, it is a little unfair to the one 2025 lineup on the above chart that it has such a negative goal differential per 90 minutes, because if it is only the 10 field players, with goalkeeper excluded, then that lineup has played 215 minutes together and has a +0.84 goal differential per 90 minutes. That group is +4 with Javier Otero in net in 74 minutes together, and removing the goalkeepers from the calculation turns that negative goal differential into a positive.
What that also tells us, however, is that when it comes to the 10 field players, Pareja has played the same unit in the field for 40% (215/540) of the team’s minutes already. Granted it is early in the season, but after six MLS games last season, the lineup that had played together the most had played a grand total of 74 minutes together (14% of all minutes). The top five most used lineups in last season’s opening six MLS games combined to play 302 minutes, or 56% of all minutes, and in 2025 it is 402 minutes, or 80%. My math, and everyone else’s math, says that is a much higher percentage and indicates that the team is focused on continuity early.
That continuity thus far this season has paid dividends, with the Lions earning 10 points from the first six games, twice as nice as last season’s five points after the first six games. Last year, the team was balancing midweek Concacaf Champions Cup games in addition to injuries and an international break during the opening weeks of the MLS season, so there were some good reasons for the lineup rotation and the slow start. This year’s squad will have to navigate two upcoming cup tournaments in the coming months, and so we likely will see a lot of new lineup configurations or more rotation once the U.S. Open Cup starts in May and then again when Leagues Cup starts in July.
Thus far though, Pareja has been able to stick with his starters deep into matches, and has only given playing time to 20 players, which is tied for third fewest across all of MLS. Fan bases often clamor for the coach to “play the kids,” but while Pareja has had young and inexperienced players on the senior roster for every game, he really has only given significant minutes to Alex Freeman from the group of players that could be referred to as “the kids.” Gustavo Caraballo has played nine minutes, which is incredible for a 16-year-old (15-year-old Cavan Sullivan of Philadelphia is the only player younger than Caraballo to have played this season, and he has also played only nine minutes), and new signing Nico Rodriguez (20 years old) has played 11 minutes, but the next three youngest players to play are all at least 22 and were with the senior club last season (Otero and Ramiro Enrique) or came to the club after four seasons of college soccer (23-year-old, but nearly 24-year-old, Joran Gerbet).
The team’s record thus far shows that Pareja has been right to limit the minutes to the small group of players he trusts, and with one game per week for the next six weeks it will be interesting to see if the early trend of starters playing long minutes and only a few players getting all the minutes off the bench continues. The next match is on the road against Philadelphia, which so rudely came into Orlando and defeated the Lions 4-2 in the season opener, and my expectation is that while we likely will not see any players make their season debut in this game, I do think we will see a different starting lineup than the season opener and probably a different one than the game last weekend against the Galaxy.
No matter who the Lions go with, I am sure they will want to avenge the season-opening loss and bring three points back home to Orlando.
As we wish.
Vamos Orlando!
Orlando City
Orlando City at Philadelphia Union: Three Keys to Victory
What do the Lions need to do to earn all three points on the road against Philly?
Orlando City is on the road yet again, this time heading to Pennsylvania to take on the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park Saturday night. The Lions will look to get a second road win in a row after the smash-and-grab victory against the LA Galaxy. Things don’t get any easier with the Union sitting in second place in the Eastern Conference, but a win would catapult Orlando City above Philadelphia in the standings. Here’s what Orlando City needs to do to earn all three points against the Philadelphia Union.
Tie up Tai
Tai Baribo leads the way-too-early-to-call Golden Boot race with six goals in five matches. The Union striker has taken 13 shots, putting eight on target and the aforementioned six in the back of the net. He scored a brace in the season opener against Orlando to bag a third of those goals. It’s a pretty easy call to say stopping the league leader in goals is an important part of shutting down the Philadelphia attack.
It will be up to Cesar Araujo and whichever center back pairing we get to shut Baribo down. Of course, he’s not the only one the Lions need to worry about since the Union also have striker Mikael Uhre, and midfielders Daniel Gazdag and Jovan Lukic providing goals and assists. The point is that Philadelphia is second only to the Lions in offensive production with 13 goals compared to Orlando City’s 15 goals.
Formation Change
In the last match against the LA Galaxy, the Lions struggled to get things going with Luis Muriel up top, Ojeda at the No. 10 spot and Ivan Angulo on the left. Once Duncan McGuire came on, Muriel shifted back, Ojeda went wide, and Angulo subbed off. That really opened up the attack and allowed the Lions to get the two goals needed to secure the victory.
Perhaps Oscar Pareja could start things off like that against Philadelphia. Angulo hasn’t been great the last few matches, and perhaps some time on the bench will get his head straight. McGuire is still early in his return from injury, but Ramiro Enrique can start up top with Big Dunc coming in later as he has the last few matches. I think making this change could help Orlando City get an early goal on the road.
Vengeance is Thine
When the two teams met on opening day, the Union dropped four goals on Orlando City in Inter&Co Stadium. You would think it a completely dominating performance, but the Lions actually had more shots, more shots on target, and more possession than the Union. Philadelphia simply put each of its four shots on target past Pedro Gallese. That type of luck is unlikely to happen again.
Since that time, the Orlando City defense has stiffened — at least a little bit — and the team has been more difficult to break down. I’m not saying the defense is as stalwart as last season, but it has improved. Orlando City needs to use that four-goal drubbing at the hands of the Union to galvanize the defense to enact revenge with a multi-goal victory of its own.
That is what I will be looking for Saturday night. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 4/3/25
Martin Ojeda in the MLS MVP mix early, Orlando Pride players won’t play for Zambia this window, Tierna Davidson out for the NWSL season, and more.
How’s it going, Mane Landers? I hope this week has been going well for you as we gear up for a busy Saturday filled to the brim with soccer to enjoy. Despite my blender’s protests, I’ve finally figured out how to make frozen coconut mojitos and plan on having those get me through the rest of the week. Before we dive into today’s links, let’s all wish a happy 28th birthday to Orlando City legend Rodrigo Schlegel!
Martin Ojeda’s MVP Credentials
Orlando City’s Martin Ojeda placed second in Sacha Kljestan’s MLS MVP power rankings this week. With four goals and three assists so far this season, Ojeda leads the league in goal contributions and is a major reason why the Lions have scored a league-high 15 goals. It’s great to see the 26-year-old take the reins of the offense after Facundo Torres’ departure. Inter Miami’s Luis Suarez tops Kljestan’s rankings, despite only having a goal in five games this season. Tai Baribo, Evander, and Lionel Messi round out the top five in what could be an interesting MVP race this year.
Pride Players Won’t Join Zambia For International Duty
Zambia will be without four NWSL players when it takes part in the Yongchuan International Tournament in China this month. Along with Bay FC forward Rachael Kundananji, Orlando Pride trio Barbra Banda, Grace Chanda, and Prisca Chilufya were withdrawn from international duty, with the Football Association of Zambia stating it was due to additional travel measures by the current U.S. administration. FAZ General Secretary Reuben Kamanga expects the quartet to be available for future matches and both Banda and Kundananji played in friendlies in Zambia in February. Restrictions like this may limit the appeal of the NWSL to foreign players in the future.
Fan Banned For Hateful Language Towards Banda
NJ/NY Gotham FC announced that the fan who directed hateful language towards Banda has been banned following an investigation that included interviewing witnesses and reviewing security footage. The incident took place at the Pride’s match against Gotham on March 23 at Sports Illustrated Stadium. The fan was found to be in violation of the NWSL Code of Conduct and their season ticket was revoked as well. Gotham also encouraged fans to report inappropriate behavior through the team’s encrypted text message service to inform the stadium’s incident management team.
USWNT Defender Tierna Davidson Out for the NWSL Season
American center back Tierna Davidson will miss the remainder of the 2025 NWSL season after tearing the ACL in her left knee in the club’s draw against the Houston Dash. It’s tough news for her, Gotham, and the United States Women’s National Team, as she captains the NWSL club and featured heavily in the Olympics last year. Davidson sustained an ACL injury in her right knee back in 2022, which contributed to her missing out on the 2023 World Cup. Gisele Thompson replaced Davidson for the USWNT’s upcoming friendlies with Brazil, and Pride defender Emily Sams will likely receive more playing time as the team prepares for the 2027 World Cup.
Free Kicks
- Orlando City received $100,000 in General Allocation Money in exchange for former academy goalkeeper Zack Campagnolo’s Homegrown Player rights. The Lions will receive another $100,000 in GAM if conditions are met, and they retain a sell-on percentage if Campagnolo is transferred.
- San Diego FC added Milan Iloski on loan from FC Nordsjaelland in Denmark through July of this year. Iloski is a San Diego native and won the USL Golden Boot for Orange County SC in 2022.
- New England Revolution midfielder Carles Gil won MLS Goal of the Matchday for his free kick against the New York Red Bulls.
- El Farolito SC, which is named after a burrito chain and bar local to San Francisco, has reached the third round of the U.S. Open Cup for the second straight year. The National Premier Soccer League side took down Monterey Bay FC to reach this point of the tournament.
- Barcelona beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 to book its ticket to the Copa del Rey final, where it will face rival Real Madrid on April 26.
That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a terrific Thursday and rest of your week!
-
Orlando City2 weeks agoOrlando City vs. D.C. United: Final Score 4-1 as Lions Blast D.C. at Home
-
Orlando City5 days agoOrlando City vs. LA Galaxy: Final Score 2-1 as Cardiac Cats Score Late to Earn First Road Win
-
Orlando Pride2 weeks agoOrlando Pride vs. NJ/NY Gotham FC: Final Score 2-0 As Pride Take Three Points Away From Home
-
Orlando City2 weeks agoOrlando City vs. D.C. United: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
-
Orlando City1 week agoOrlando City’s Offense Looks Different With Marco Pašalić on the Right
-
Orlando Pride5 days agoOrlando Pride vs. San Diego Wave FC: Final Score 2-1 as Pride Win Third Straight
-
Orlando City2 weeks agoOrlando City vs. D.C. United: Five Takeaways
-
Orlando City2 weeks agoOrlando City vs. D.C. United: Player Grades and Man of the Match