Orlando City
Orlando City at Columbus Crew: Player Grades and Man of the Match

Man, this game was yellow — not just the Crew’s blinding kits, but the Lions picked up three yellow cards to Columbus’ one. This game was full of Orlando City turnovers, and Columbus corners. If I hadn’t seen it myself, it would be hard to believe that Orlando City won this match with all the turnovers, all the corners, and all the fouls. Yet, here we are with three road points and some confidence as the Lions return home to face Philadelphia on Wednesday.
Starters
GK, Brian Rowe, 8 — It was a performance from Brian Rowe that had my non-believer husband saying, “I love Rowe! I didn’t think I did, but I do!” So there’s that, if it matters. He had 37 touches and ended the game with a clean sheet on the road. Plus, he made a spectacular save to deny a Goal of the Week from Robinho. What more could he need as a keeper?
D, Danilo Acosta, 7 — It must have been “defend with your face” night, as Acosta took a hard knock to the face or neck early in the second half after Robin Jansson took one in the first half. Acosta, who hasn’t seen very much game play for the Lions, sent crosses to nowhere, and was beaten out multiple times to the ball. We finally saw a nice defensive play out of Acosta in in the 86th minute and he won a free kick. I feel like I can’t be too hard on Acosta only having three clearances, when Lamine Sané and Jansson were out there racking up 26 collectively. He also got a secondary assist on Mueller’s goal, starting the play toward the net by driving inside and finding Nani.
D, Robin Jansson, 9 (co-MotM) — Jansson was just so, I don’t even know how to share how amazing he was to watch tonight! He took that free kick to the face and after a quick look, kept going. It seemed to be swelling as the game went on but that didn’t stop him at all. Not to mention that tackle that sprung the series leading Tesho to score in the 66th minute. He just kept heading crosses away for the rest of the match. Jansson saw 45 touches, 13 clearances, two tackles and three fouls.
D, Lamine Sané, 9 (co-MotM) — Sané has had a touch-and-go season in my opinion, but he was on fire tonight. We saw a nice clearance in the 11th minute when Columbus sent a free kick into the box. Then there was that beautiful moment in added time during the first half, when the ball fell perfectly for Columbus and Sané just got it out of there. He just continued to soar over everyone and clear the ball repeatedly. Thirteen was a lucky number for the defense tonight as Sané also recorded 13 clearances and an interception. Is this what a happy and healthy Lamine Sané means for Orlando’s back line?
D, Kyle Smith, 7.5 — We saw a nice play early in the match where Smith chipped a ball into the area for Mueller, but Columbus’ Jon Kempin was there to grab it. Smith took a yellow in minute 15 in exchange for shutting down what could have been a potentially dangerous turnover. He was aggressive and had two tackles, an interception, four clearances, and two fouls. A little bit of aggression is what I’ve been looking for in the Lions!
MF, Uri Rosell, 7.5 — Maybe you know this about me, maybe you don’t. I stan Uri Rosell. He’s not always flashy in the midfield, but he seems to be consistent and reliable. He ended the match with an 81% passing rate, an interception, five tackles, and match-high touches, with 64.
MF, Sacha Kljestan, 7.5 — Klejstian was awarded a yellow card in the 63rd minute as his attempt to break up play and win the ball back came in a bit heavy. His help clearing a free kick in the second half helped keep the clean sheet for Rowe. In a surprising turn of events, Sacha’s passing rate was at 90% this match, and he made three clearances defensively.
MF, Dillon Powers, 6.5 — It was a quiet night for Powers who has been receiving a lot of love from fans as of late. His 50 touches saw an 80% passing rate and he had two interceptions defensively. Not much else to add as Uri and Sascha seemed to hold down the midfield tonight.
F, Nani, 8 — Ah isn’t it fun to watch Nani when Nani’s on? From putting his moves on Pedro Santos in the 50th minute and stealing the ball then drawing a foul in the 57th, to the assist on that beautiful Tesho Akindele goal in the 66th. Excitement was high in our house when Nani was off on a breakaway and fired his chance right into Kempin’s chest later in the second half. Nani made four tackles and an interception as well as, two key passes (both assists), and one shot on target.
F, Tesho Akindele, 7 — His goal from distance in the second half was just what the Lions needed to help secure the 2-0 game, but of his 22 passes, only 11 connected. Aside from the offside call and his goal, Akindele was pretty quiet.
F, Chris Mueller, 7.5 — Mueller started off rough. In fact, I was ready to score him pretty low as he dribbled away opportunity after opportunity. Then, there it was, in the 41st minute, Chris Mueller put one in.
Substitutes
MF, Carlos Ascues (77’), 6 — Ascues was booked late in the game for holding up a restart. Other than that, he didn’t have much of an impact.
F, Benji Michel (65’), 6 — Michel came on for Mueller in the 65th minute, right before Tesho’s goal, but other than that he was pretty quiet as he collected his minutes and helped see out the match.
F, Santiago Patino (87’), 5.5 — Patino didn’t play much tonight, but his first bit of play saw him commit an unnecessary foul. So, I’m grading him anyway. Don’t @ me.
You read right, Mane Landers, that’s two Men of the Match winners from me tonight! That’s how I saw the game anyway. Agree or disagree? Let us know in the comments and don’t forget to vote your man of the match in the poll below!
Polling Closed
Player | Votes |
Lamine Sané and Robin Jansson | 55 |
Chris Mueller | 6 |
Nani | 23 |
Tesho Akindele | 1 |
Just Lamine Sané | 5 |
Just Robin Jansson | 21 |
Other | 4 |
Opinion
Likes and Dislikes from this Week of Orlando City’s Preseason
Let’s talk through some of the good and bad from this week of the Lions’ preseason preparations.

Just like that, another week of Orlando City’s preseason is in the books. We’ll be staring down the barrel of the season opener before we know it, but let’s make sure we take the time to stop and reflect on some good and some not-so-good things that took place this week.
Likes
Marco Pasalic Arrives
Orlando City is back up to three Designated Players after the club completed the signing of Croatian winger Marco Pasalic. It’s a piece of business that has been rumored for awhile now but took some time to get done and across the line. Between Pasalic and the previous signing of Nicolas Rodriguez, the Lions have got bodies to fill the right wing position. While neither is likely to be able to immediately replace the production of Facundo Torres on their own, they’re both young and will have the chance to grow their games and show what they can do.
Season Ticket Member Match
OCSC will take on CF Montreal Saturday in a preseason scrimmage which is an event exclusive to season ticket holders. This is the sort of thing that I, along with my fellow season ticket members on staff, love to see. An event that rewards you for that membership and does so by giving you an extra peek at the team before everyone else. It might not be some wildly extravagant event, but it doesn’t need to be. The club has formed a habit of designating one of the preseason scrimmages a season-ticket-members-only event, and for my money, it’s been a good call.
Dislikes
Closed Door Scrimmage Radio Silence
This feels a little nitpicky, as closed-door scrimmages are by their very nature, closed door. The whole point of them is to not have a ton of access and insight about what’s going on, and teams will often agree beforehand about what level of information, if any, will make its way out to the public afterwards. We know that Orlando took on Atlanta United in a preseason scrimmage Wednesday, and we know that Alex Freeman put in a goal from a header, thanks to a post from the club on the website formerly known as Twitter, but that’s about it. It feels greedy to ask for information from something we weren’t guaranteed to get any from in the first place, but the brief taste has me wanting more, damnit.
Depth Still a Worry at Several Positions
As stated above, getting Pasalic in the door means that the Lions now have the winger slots fairly well stocked, but there are still other areas on the field that could use some reinforcement. The most crucial of those remains defensive midfielder, and although the rumored arrival of Eduard Atuesta would help considerably, I’m not counting him as a Lion until pen has been put to paper. If he does get signed, that still leaves striker and fullback perilously thin when it comes to guys who are proven MLS-caliber players, and the first game of the season is just shy of two weeks from now. There’s still time to do business, but the clock continues to tick.
What jumped out at you from this week of OCSC’s preseason? Be sure to have your say down in the comments. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 2/7/25
Angelina called up by Brazil, MLS transfer news, dual-sport performance center announced for Portland women’s teams, and more.

Happy Friday! The groundhog may have seen his shadow earlier this week, but winter feels pretty much over and done with here in Florida. Hopefully this nice weather lasts a while before we reach the part of the year where it becomes unbearable to exist outside due to the heat. Let’s jump right into today’s links from around the soccer world!
Angelina Called Up By Brazil
You’ll need a translation tool for the full details, but Orlando Pride midfielder Angelina was one of 30 players called up by Brazil for a training camp in Rio de Janeiro. The 25-year-old was a key part of Orlando’s historic season last year, bringing stability to the midfield and giving Orlando’s attack an edge as well.
Brazil’s camp will last from Feb. 17-26 as the team begins preparations for this summer’s Copa America. Adriana, who was recently transferred from the Pride to Al Qadsiah FC in Saudi Arabia, was also called up by Head Coach Arthur Elias.
MLS Transfer News Roundup
The New York Red Bulls bolstered their back line by adding a pair of defenders. They signed left back Marcelo Morales from Universidad de Chile, inking the 21-year-old to a three-year deal. Center back Tim Parker officially returned to the Red Bulls as well, signing a one-year contract. In other news involving Orlando City’s Eastern Conference foes, the Philadelphia Union signed Jovan Lukic from FK Spartak Subotica in Serbia’s top flight, FC Cincinnati loaned defender Alvaro Barreal to Santos FC, and CF Montreal signed 21-year-old defender Dante Sealy to a two-year deal.
Joint Facility Announced For Portland Thorns and WNBA Team
Plans for a dual-sport performance center to serve both the Portland Thorns and the city’s future WNBA team were announced by RAJ Sports, the ownership group behind both teams. The initial phase of the facility will reportedly cost around $75 million, with a goal for the soccer and shared side of things to be completed before the Thorns’ 2026 season and the basketball portions done before the WNBA team’s inaugural season begins that summer. It will feature two full-sized basketball courts, two soccer pitches, dressing rooms for each team, and a shared dining room with a chef and nutritionist. It’s pretty great to see this kind of investment put towards women’s sports and I hope this sparks similar projects across the country.
Keeping Up With the Americans Abroad
There’s a new American playing in Europe to keep an eye out for, as FC Koln striker Damion Downs had a statement game against Bayer Leverkusen in the German Cup quarterfinals. His team lost in extra time, but the 20-year-old had a goal and an assist. Downs has eight goals and four assists this season and could land on USMNT Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino’s radar.
As for how other Americans did this week, Yunus Musah started and Christian Pulisic came off the bench in AC Milan’s 3-1 win against AS Roma to reach the Coppa Italia semifinals. Defenders Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty both played every minute of Celtic’s 6-0 win over Dundee FC. It wasn’t all good news for Americans abroad though, as Jordan Pefok had to be stretchered off in his first game with Stade de Reims after just joining the French team this week.
Free Kicks
- Enjoy this moment of captains Robin Jansson and Marta hanging out during the preseason.
- The Washington Spirit called up sister club Olympique Lyon to add defender Kysha Sylla on loan for the 2025 season.
- Liverpool cruised past Tottenham in a 4-0 win at home to advance to the English League Cup final on March 16 against Newcastle.
- Brazilian defender Marcelo is hanging up his cleats and retiring after a career that included winning the Champions League five times with Real Madrid.
- Ferran Torres had a hat trick in the first half of Barcelona’s 5-0 win over Valencia in the Copa del Rey quarterfinals.
That’s all I have for you on this fine Friday. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your week!
Lion Links
Orlando City’s Potential Roster Flexibility
Will Oscar Pareja stick with his traditional formation or try something new in 2025?

Orlando City may have just signed Marco Pasalic, but there are still holes in this squad and plenty of questions to go with them. We are still hoping that the club will sign some more players, but time is running short. Given what we currently know, how can Oscar Pareja deploy the players he currently has on hand?
3-5-2
A back line of Rodrigo Schlegel, Robin Jansson, and David Brekalo sounds quite appealing. While the three would be a good group to defend in front of Pedro Gallese, what happens when one of them gets hurt? What happens when they simply need to rest? Does Oscar then switch formations? Is Kyle Smith coming off the bench as a center back?
Moving up the pitch, Wilder Cartagena’s injury was the impetus for me to consider the 3-5-2 formation. This allows Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, Michael Halliday, or Rafael Santos to push forward a bit to assist with the defense in front of the back three, depending on who is playing. That gives Cesar Araujo some cover in the center of the pitch. It also allows one or the other to push into the attack depending on the opponent.
The two attacking midfielders can be any combination of Martin Ojeda, Ivan Angulo, Nicolas Rodriguez, and the newly signed Pasalic. Along with Nico Lodeiro, this formation allows for a little bit of depth, even if it’s one of the few position groups that can make that claim.
Looking at the front of the formation, running a 3-5-2 allows Ramiro Enrique and Luis Muriel to play up top together. This won’t be much of a problem, since Muriel tends to drop a little deeper and Enrique isn’t afraid to make runs into the box. If they can develop some chemistry, it could be an effective attack. The issue comes when one is hurt or needs a break. Until Duncan McGuire is able to return, Pareja would need to change formation. Additionally, I’m not certain how well Muriel can play the traditional striker role.
4-3-3
If Pareja implemented a 4-3-3 formation, he’d be able to employ a back line that has everyone returning. Position battles between Brekalo and Schlegel, and Halliday fighting to return to the starting lineup over Thorhallsson are good problems to have. No real issues here.
Moving up top, I could see Angulo on the left, Enrique in the middle and either Muriel or Ojeda on the right until Pasalic is ready. In the midfield, either Muriel or Ojeda could be facilitating inside with Araujo in defense. The third piece is tougher to pin down. Most likely we’d see Rodriguez there but I still think this is the most problematic of the potential formations, and I don’t expect we’ll see it.
4-2-3-1
Traditionally, Pareja likes to utilize the 4-2-3-1 formation, so that’s what he’s most likely going to do. Of course, the linchpin of the whole thing is the defensive midfield pairing of Wilder Cartagena and Cesar Araujo. We don’t know if the Lions will bring in Eduard Atuesta to help in the midfield, so we will go with what we have for the moment.
No issue with the back line as mentioned above for Pareja. It’s the replacement for Cartagena that presents an issue. Sure, Lodeiro could play more defensively, with Araujo ranging side to side behind him. Or, Pareja can move Thorhallsson into the defensive midfield and put Halliday at right back. The difficulty, once again, comes down to depth. I suppose Kyle Smith could also be utilized if needed.
The attacking midfield has many more options. Between Angulo, Ojeda, Muriel, Rodriguez, and Pasalic, there are plenty of options depending on who is healthy. With the first three acclimated to MLS, Rodriguez and Pasalic have time to adjust to their new surroundings.
That leaves Enrique up top. He proved he can do the job, but I still think Orlando City would be better served to find a big striker to own the starting role. If the plan is to run Enrique until McGuire is ready to return, while Muriel fills in occasionally, I’m not sure that’s the best way to go.
Should Pareja stick to his modus operandi or branch out a little this season? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!
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