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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Philadelphia Union: Five Takeaways

Published

7 years ago

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Orlando City had a chance to make a statement Wednesday night against the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia Union. Not only were the Lions trying to win consecutive matches for the first time in 2019 after alternating league wins with losses, but a victory would also announce that James O’Connor’s bunch was truly progressing from a league bottom feeder to a legitimate threat for postseason play.

For 45 minutes, the Lions did make that statement. Orlando played well in the opening 10 minutes, looking eager to run the Union off the pitch. You could look at the period after Chris Mueller’s goal as a lull by the Lions or as the conference leaders responding to an early kick in the teeth, but either way, Orlando largely did what it had done on Saturday in Columbus: kept most of the danger out on the perimeter and relied on a strong central defensive pairing to clear away the crosses in hopes of springing a counter.

The game plan was fine but it all flew out the window just before the half when Robin Jansson was sent off and started a chain of events that led to a 3-1 home loss — the team’s third multi-goal loss of the season, with all of them coming at home.

Seeing Red

The most glaring takeaway is that Jansson’s sending-off ruined the game for Orlando, and the fans who braved awful weather on a midweek night. Fafa Picault’s pace was the catalyst and although the Swede gamely tried a desperation tackle — and did manage to touch the ball first — he didn’t knock it far enough off line to clearly deny a goal-scoring opportunity and his awkward position after the lunge resulted in scissoring down the speedy Philadelphia winger. I can’t argue the red card and won’t pardon the offense, but the alternative there is to allow a dangerous opportunity where the Union likely would have scored anyway. That’s an unfortunate result for a player who has largely settled down Orlando’s back line and has combined with Lamine Sané to finally create some stable play in the Lions’ central defense for the first time in the team’s MLS era.

Seeing More Red

There’s really no way to dispute Sacha Kljestan’s red card either. It was perhaps as desperate an attempt to win the ball as Jansson’s, but it was far more dangerous and infinitely less necessary. Unlike Jansson’s play, there was no immediate danger of conceding after the turnover in Kljestan’s case. I don’t believe the midfielder had any intent or malice on the play. I think he was just frustrated and desperate to win the ball back and made a horrible decision to make a flying lunge at it. Sacha is no spring chicken anymore, and perhaps he once would have closed the gap enough to win a ball in that fashion but he’s been logging a lot of minutes in recent weeks and age hasn’t been kind to him in the lost steps department. Fatigue may have played a role in both the decision he made and the lack of intended execution and O’Connor alluded to that in his post-game press conference. I expect he’ll receive an additional game or two suspension for his horror tackle on Jamiro Monteiro as his desperation lunge resulted in his studs finding a leg rather than a soccer ball.

Cash Money is Progressing

With goals in each of his last two matches, Mueller has not only achieved a new modest career high total of five, but he’s also shown that his body has adjusted to the rigors of Major League Soccer. Last season, Mueller had scored all three of his goals on the year (in consecutive games) by the end of April, and didn’t find the net for the final six months of the season.

“Yeah, I feel good,” Mueller responded to my question last night about him finding his groove. “I feel confident and I just want to keep helping the team any way I can. I want to get results, first and foremost, right? So the goals are nice, but first I want to win.”

Mueller was part of 10 total goals last season (three goals, seven assists) and he’s already contributed to eight in 2019 (five goals, three assists). Becoming a more consistent threat, as it not only eases the burden on Dom Dwyer, Nani, and Tesho Akindele, but it also forces opponents to recognize the danger he possesses, which can in turn open up distribution lanes for others to score more easily.

Welcome Home, Will

More and more of Will Johnson’s haters are coming around in 2019 and it was nearly impossible to look at his performance last night and see beyond the positives. Johnson ran his hind end off all night, regardless of how many of his teammates were sent to the locker room early. He shuttled the ball back and forth, finding spaces for continued possession. Johnson tied Kljestan for the team lead in chances created (2), went 3/3 in long ball completion, completed 98.2% of his pass attemps, and was his usual pest of a self defensively (a team-high four tackles, a co-leading five clearances, and an interception). He also tied for the team lead in shot attempts (three), although his accuracy on those shots was very defensive-midfielderesque. He was easily the Man of the Match for Orlando on the night and a reunion with Cristian Higuita and Sebas Mendez as the starting trio can’t come soon enough. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this passing chart as much as I do:

View post on imgur.com

The Other Half

I won’t argue that his game was without flaws last night, because it wasn’t, but Lamine Sané is still showing himself to be a useful player when healthy and paired with someone with whom he has time to build chemistry. Sané got caught of two minds on the Union’s first goal, starting with an intention of coming out to meet Monteiro, then changing his mind. This created uncertainty in Jansson, who strayed too far from Kacper Przybylko as a result, and ultimately it allowed both too much time for Monteiro to pass and too much space for Jansson to recover after. Sané also may have been able to make a desperation lunge to block the eventual Przybylko shot. (As an aside, I’ve seen nothing on replay that changes my initial opinion watching it live that Tesho Akindele was fouled to jump start that play, although I have only the highlight package to go on, so you can’t really get a good look at the players’ feet. I digress.)

Aside from that, Sané — playing like Oates without a Hall or Garfunkel without a Simon — managed two tackles, five clearances, three interceptions, and a blocked shot. His 95.8% passer rating was good, he completed all four of his long ball attempts, and even got in a cross. In fact, as part of O’Connor having Orlando still pursuing the match rather than just seeing it out, Sané even got forward a few times, winning a corner while taking on two Philadelphia defenders with the ball at his feet.

People tend to give Lamine stick largely because he earns nearly a million dollars a year. That’s not an indictment of Sané, nor is it his fault. I’ll never begrudge a player making whatever he can get his boss to pay him. It just shows the wasteful nature of Orlando City’s previous regime. If the former Bundesliga man and Senegalese international were making half his current salary, most fans would likely be fine with the team’s investment in him.

That’s what stood out to me on a lightning-delayed night at Exploria Stadium. If you want a bonus takeaway it’s that I’d like to see another referee for a game against the Union (which we’ll get on Saturday). Chris Penso officiated both league games against Philadelphia last season — making three consecutive games against the Union he’s officiated — as well as the final meeting in 2015. Penso has given 12 yellow cards to Orlando, sending off three players in those four match-ups (two straight reds), to nine yellows for the Union. Eight of those yellow cards against Orlando came in one game, so those bad vibes have never gone away, even though Penso was completely justified in both red cards last night. However, I do think two Union players were extremely fortunate not to be booked early last night.

The good news is that although Orlando lost by two, we still haven’t seen one of those 3-0 or 4-0 howlers that have been all too common in recent years (the Lions suffered four of those last year, as well as 4-1 and 5-2 thrashings, and five in 2017 to go along with a 6-1 beatdown).

Incremental progress is still progress, although we’ll find out if that continues Saturday with an Orlando team that’ll be missing perhaps its best defender.

Anyway, let me know what you saw in the comments space below.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 5/12/26

Barbra Banda up for weekly honors, Johnny Cardoso to have surgery, Americans in midweek action, and more.

Published

17 hours ago

on

May 12, 2026

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Good morning, everyone. It was a mixed bag for Orlando’s soccer teams over the weekend, as the Orlando Pride and Orlando City B both picked up victories, while Orlando City lost. There’s no rest for the wicked though, because the Pride take on Boston Legacy on the road tonight, while the Lions will host the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday. We’ve got a lot to talk about this morning, so let’s get into the links.

Barbra Banda up for Weekly Honors

Barbra Banda’s game-winning strike over the North Carolina Courage has been nominated for the NWSL Goal of the Week. Banda cut across her marker in the 87th minute with the match tied 0-0 and curled a great strike inside the far post to give the Pride a lead that wouldn’t be relinquished. The victory got Orlando back on track after dropping two games in a row, and the goal was Banda’s league-leading eighth strike of the year. Make sure you go vote for her to win!

Surgery for Johnny Cardoso

Atletico Madrid announced on Monday that midfielder Johnny Cardoso will have surgery to repair an injury to his right ankle. Cardoso was hurt during a training session, with Atletico classifying the injury as a “high-grade sprain involving joint damage.” The club’s statement did not specify a timeline for his return to the field and U.S. Soccer has not made any statement besides wishing Cardoso a speedy recovery. That said, with this summer’s World Cup less than a month away, its tough to imagine that he’ll be healed up and ready to be part of the United States Men’s National Team roster. If that’s the case, it’ll be a bitter blow for both the USMNT and a midfielder that looked like a sure bet to be on the squad.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans who will be taking part in games during the working week, so let’s make sure we’ve got everything on the schedule. Things got started on Monday when Brenden Aaronson played 63 minutes in Leeds United’s 1-1 draw with Tottenham. Action continues today when Aidan Morris and Middlesborough face Southampton in the second leg of an EFL Championship playoff promotion semifinal. Wednesday sees Auston Trusty and Celtic take on Motherwell in a game with massive ramifications on the title race in the Scottish Premier League. Wednesday also has Alex Freeman and Villarreal hosting Sevilla in La Liga play, while Chris Richards and Crystal Palace will try to play spoiler against Manchester City.

MLS Matchday 12 Lessons

Matchday 12 is officially in the books for Major League Soccer, so what did we learn from the weekend’s action? For one thing, Jack McGlynn was imperious in his second game back from injury, as his brace helped the Houston Dynamo knock off LAFC on the road while USMNT assistant Jesus Perez was watching from the stands. The New England Revolution are now unbeaten in the club’s last seven league games, and Carles Gil was a big reason why, as he nabbed a goal and an assist in the Revs’ 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Union. He’s got four goals and four assists so far, and the Revs are sitting pretty at second in the Eastern Conference.

Transfer Rumor Roundup

European seasons aren’t quite wrapped up yet, but that isn’t stopping transfer rumors from flying thick and fast. We start with the Premier League, where Manchester City is reportedly prepared to trigger the release clause of 16-year-old Hertha Berlin midfielder Kennet Eichhorn, before immediately sending the player on loan to continue his development. Elsewhere in England, Manchester United, Liverpool, and Arsenal are all said to be interested in signing Juventus fullback Andrea Cambiaso. Switching lanes to the managerial side of things, Chelsea has reportedly identified Xabi Alonso as the leading candidate to become the next manager of the team, with the Spaniard said to be open to taking the job. Finally, Jose Mourinho is said to be open to taking the Real Madrid job, although he reportedly has a couple conditions that he wants met first.

Free Kicks

  • Kickoff times have been set for Orlando City’s three group stages matches in this year’s Leagues Cup.
  • The Lions will be launching a new merch collection Friday at The Final Whistle.

That’s all I’ve got for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. CF Montreal: Player Grades and Man of the Match

Here’s how your favorite Lions performed in Orlando City’s 2-0 loss to CF Montreal.

Published

2 days ago

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May 11, 2026

By

Image of Griffin Dorsey trying to send the ball upfield against a Montreal defender.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

If you play Football Manager enough, you play plenty of games where the after-match comment is “a bore draw.” That appeared to be where Orlando City’s road game at CF Montreal was headed until a mistake by Robin Jansson in added time led to a penalty which opened the scoring for the hosts. They tacked on another late in stoppage time and the Lions will return home for a three-game set (one of them in the U.S. Open Cup) sore from Saturday’s 2-0 loss to CF Montreal.

Let’s take a look at how Orlando City’s players rated individually in their matchup with the Quebecois.

Starters

GK, Maxime Crépeau, 5.5 — With 25 shots by Montreal, one would’ve figured Crepeau was busy. Not really — he finished with three saves. A goalkeeper is almost never responsible for being scored on from the penalty spot, but Dagur Dan Thorallsson’s goal at the death is one Crepeau will want back, although in fairness it was perfectly placed. The Canadian goalkeeper finished with a 72.7% passing rate and was helped out after being rounded by Prince Owusu in a 1-v-1 opportunity that his teammates should never have allwoed for what would have been a goal if not for Iago’s sliding block to clear it off the line.

D, Adrián Marin, 5.5 — Marin got caught ball-watching in the 34th minute to allow a Wiki Carmona rocket that just went wide. Otherwise, he just didn’t impact the game one way or the other. Marin completed 87.8% of his passes and added one tackle, one block, and three clearances.

D, Robin Jansson, 5 — Jansson played his normal emergency role all game. Unfortunately, he got put off-balance in the first minute of added time in the second half and fell into the legs of Luca Petrasso, giving a penalty. It was a rough ending for the captain, but Orlando left the door open for Montreal and the hosts took it. The Swede also couldn’t close down Thorhallsson to prevent the second late Montreal goal. Jansson completed 78.7% of his passes, with one tackle, 10(!) clearances, and one block.

D, Iago, 6 — We saw both sides of Iago. He had a really nice pass in the 17th minute to free up Eduard Atuesta on goal but the Colombian missed the target to waste Orlando’s best chance of the game. The Brazilian’s biggest highlight moment was in the 76th minute, when Owusu dribbled past Crepeau for an open look at goal but Iago was there to clear it off the line. On the flip side, he also had a dangerous header defending a corner that almost created an own goal, instead hitting the left post. He got pulled wide in the first minute of the second half, allowing a dangerous shot by Owusu. On the offensive end, he got on the end of a corner but headed it right at Thomas Gillier. He was all over the place, which you can expect from a young player. He would’ve gotten a higher grade had the game finished scoreless because of his goal-line clearance and a couple of sparkling long balls that should have led to more. Alas. He finished with zero interceptions or tackles, three blocks, six clearances, and a 92.3% passing rate. He also picked up a yellow card in the sixth minute of added time in the second half preventing a counter on one of his attacking teammates’ many turnovers.

D, Griffin Dorsey, 5.5— While Orlando City was heavily weighted to the left side all game, when the Lions went down the right, it was through Dorsey. He led the break down that side multiple times but had trouble connecting. Dorsey finished with one tackle, three clearances, and one cross while passing at a 79% rate.

MF, Iván Angulo, 4.5 — When Angulo whiffed on a ball in the second minute which caused a Montreal counter, it was an indicator of the night to come. He was sloppy all game long and, by The Mane Land’s unofficial tally, turned the ball over eight times, with the majority of those coming in his own defensive half. It was an ugly night that looked a touch better when Tyrese Spicer departed, changing Angulo’s duties, but it didn’t wipe out a forgettable match. He finished with 90.2% passing, despite being loose with the ball. He was two out of six for successful dribbles and two out of seven in winning ground duels.

MF, Eduard Atuesta, 5.5 — A major part of the toothlessness of the Lions in the match was the midfield play. While Atuesta had a 95% passing rate, the only real impact he had was in the 17th minute, when Iago broke him free with a great pass. Atuesta made a well-timed run, but he ended up doing nothing with it when he sent his shot wide of goal. He had a turnover in the fourth minute to leave Montreal with a 3-on-2 break, leaving me to wonder if it was going to be one of those nights for him. Luckily no, but there was no real contribution either. He picked up a yellow card in the 62nd, was dispossessed once, and committed four fouls.

MF, Braian Ojeda, 5.5— Atuesta’s midfield partner also had trouble linking the play but contributed a touch more defensively. His sloppy handling in the 41st minute allowed Montreal to keep possession and created a corner. In the end, he finished with one tackle, one block, one clearance, and a 90% passing rate.

MF, Tyrese Spicer, 6— Unfortunately, most of Spicer’s contributions came on the defensive end this game because he could never get himself in the flow offensively. While he was 10-for-11 passing, he attempted two shots, one right at the goalkeeper and the other that missed so badly it almost went behind the net without hitting anything. He had just two touches in the opposition box. His biggest highlight was a tackle in the 23rd minute to end a dangerous Montreal possession. He was replaced in the 67th minute by Duncan McGuire. Spicer finished with a 91% passing success rate, led the team in tackles with four, and added two interceptions.

F, Martín Ojeda, 5 — This grade may be a bit harsh. However, when you are a Designated Player, you have to contribute, and Martin Ojeda was invisible at best. With 44 total passes, he was the one having to compensate for the lack of midfield control and it showed by his lack of offensive contribution. He had zero touches in the opposition box, which is not going to be a recipe for Orlando City success. Martin took one shot that was on target and passed at a 91% rate.

F, Justin Ellis, 6.5 (MotM)— Someone has to win Man of the Match. Ellis almost wins it by default as his overall play was the only positive thing all game. While his stats were mediocre, and there was not one moment you can pick to point to, he was the most talented when on the ball, tracked back to collect the ball occasionally, did more to link play than the midfield did, and just didn’t have a negative impact. He was replaced in the 80th by David Brekalo and finished with a 94% passing rate, was four-for-four on successful dribbles, and went five-for-six on ground duels won.

Substitutes

F, Duncan McGuire (67′), 5— McGuire started out playing out of position on the wing and while asked to pick up the offense, McGuire was unable to show anything of promise. Dorsey found him in the 88th minute with a cross, but McGuire turned down a quick shot and held the ball too long while deciding, and he ended up taking a low angle shot that had been there from the beginning that ended up harmless. He passed at a 75% rate and had three touches in the opposition box, turning those into a measly 0.05 expected goals. One of his touches on a promising attack was heavy and wasted the opportunity to get a shot off late in the game.

D, David Brekalo (80′), N/A — Brekalo came on for Ellis with a few minutes remaining, maybe a tactical choice to see out the draw. He completed all seven of his passes and had one clearance. He was not able to do anything to prevent Montreal’s two late goals, but he wasn’t the only one.

MF, Tiago (90′+5), N/A — Tiago entered right after the penalty to try to claw back a goal. Unfortunately, he whiffed on a 50/50 ball just moments before Thorhallsson ended up scoring the game’s second goal. He wasn’t on long enough to issue a grade, however.

D, Zakaria Taifi (90′+5), N/A — The best thing you can say about Taifi’s time is that he didn’t turn the ball over conceding a goal in the five minutes he was on the field.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s loss to CF Montreal. Let us know what you thought of the game in the comments below, and don’t forget to vote for your Man of the Match.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 5/11/26

Lions fall to CF Montreal, Pride defeat North Carolina Courage, OCB beats Atlanta United 2, and more.

Published

2 days ago

on

May 11, 2026

By

Image of Barbra Banda taking a shot against North Carolina.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Justin Glatt

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida, and belated happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there. I spent the weekend in Texas catching up with friends and family. Let’s wish a happy birthday to Orlando City goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau, who turns 32 today. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Lions Fall to CF Montreal

Orlando City fell 2-0 to CF Montreal at Stade Saputo Saturday on a pair of late goals. After a scoreless first half, the Lions were minutes away from escaping with a point on the road but conceded twice in stoppage time, with former Lion Dagur Dan Thorhallsson adding the insurance goal for Montreal as Orlando City left Canada with zero points. The Lions could not capitalize on their few scoring chances throughout the match. Orlando City returns home for its next match on Wednesday against the Philadelphia Union at Inter&Co Stadium.

Banda’s Late Goal Lifts Pride Over Courage

The Orlando Pride defeated the North Carolina Courage 1-0 at Inter&Co Stadium Friday, as Barbra Banda scored the lone goal late in the second half to help the Pride secure a much-needed win, snapping their two-match losing streak. Banda scored her eighth goal of the season, and she has scored five goals in the last three matches. The Pride will be on the road this week, facing the Boston Legacy Tuesday at Gillette Stadium, followed by another match Saturday against the Denver Summit at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

OCB Beats Atlanta United 2 on the Road

Orlando City B defeated Atlanta United 2 with a goal in each half, winning 2-0 at Turner Soccer Complex in Athens, GA Sunday. Gustavo Caraballo scored the opening goal from the spot to give the Young Lions the early lead. In the second half, Issah Haruna added another goal for the Young Lions to put it away and take three points. OCB will be back on the road Sunday to face New England Revolution II at Beirne Stadium in Smithfield, RI.

Americans Abroad

Austin Trusty played a full 90 minutes as Celtic won its sixth consecutive match across all competitions 3-1 against Rangers. Gio Reyna scored his first goal of the season for Borussia Monchengladbach to snap his 16-month goal drought at the club level, but his side fell 3-1 to FC Augsburg. Weston McKennie played 86 minutes for Juventus in a 1-0 win against Lecce. In the Women’s FA Cup semifinals, Alyssa Thompson played 78 minutes for Chelsea, but her side fell 3-2 to Manchester City after extra time. Lindsey Heaps scored for OL Lyonnes while Lily Yohannes and Korbin Shrader were also in action in a 4-1 win against Paris Saint-Germain to lift the Coupe De France trophy. Later today, Brenden Aaronson and Leeds United will face Tottenham Hotspur.

Free Kicks

  • Check out this video on Orlando City’s social media pages featuring some players writing letters to their moms for Mother’s Day.
  • James Rodriguez will reportedly leave Minnesota United this week and will not return to the club after the World Cup concludes this summer.
  • Slavia Prague chairman Jaroslav Tvrdik stated that the club will impose a lifetime ban to fans who invaded the pitch as the club was minutes away from defeating rivals Sparta Prague Saturday to win the Czech First League title before the match was abandoned.
  • Leandro Trossard scored a late winner in the second half to help Arsenal beat West Ham United 1-0 to keep its five-point lead over Manchester City and pull a step closer to clinching the English Premier League title.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.

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