Lion Links: 7/21/19

Happy Sunday, Mane Landers. Let’s just skip the formalities and dive right in, shall we? Without further ado, here is your Sunday serving of Lion Links. Enjoy!

The Pride Shut Out Sky Blue, 1-0

The Pride played host to Sky Blue FC last night, with the World Cup winners being honored prior to kickoff in front of a crowd of 9,415 — the largest the club has seen since 2017 (and third-highest in the club’s history). Rookie Marisa Viggiano got the Pride off on the front foot early with a rocket in the 23rd minute, and the Pride held fast from there to win the match 1-0 and continue a recent resurgence in form. The Pride see action next on Saturday, Aug. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at Exploria Stadium.

Orlando City B Shut Out Again

The Young Lions traveled to Virginia to take on the Richmond Kickers, which in my opinion, is an awful name for a club (sorry, Richmond). Unfortunately, former Lion Dennis Chin scored the match’s only goal as the young Lions fell to the poorly named Richmond club. OCB sees action next on Wednesday, July 24 at 7:30 p.m. at home against South Georgia Tormenta FC.

Orlando City Looks to Make Another Quick Turnaround

Returning from an away trip in Portland, OR, where they played a match on Thursday, the lads in purple are looking to quickly turn around and play another highly competitive league match tonight against the New York Red Bulls. “No rest for the wicked, huh?” was a half joke, half truth from Head Coach James O’Connor, with defender Kamal Miller also weighing in.

“It’s definitely hard, but we feel pretty prepared for this,” Orlando City defender Kamal Miller said. “In preseason, we pushed our limits, so we’re fit and we feel like we can go. Even if we put out a whole different lineup, we can go out and get the job done.”

Hopefully, the Lions are successful in their desire to recover quickly and field a strong team from a deep roster against the Red Bulls. Time will tell. See you there.

Ibrahimović Vs. Vela

The Los Angeles Galaxy’s Zlatan Ibrahimović and Los Angeles FC’s Carlos Vela, both captains of their respective clubs, are going back and forth in the media on who’s the better player. I’m not certain, but I assume Zlatan started this one, as he’s typically the provoker. The recent El Trafico clash between the two LA clubs ended in spectacular fashion, with Vela netting a brace and Zlatan netting a decisive hat trick. The fireworks didn’t end there, either, as the two have fired shots at each other publicly following the match. Either way, LAFC has done a great job of establishing itself as a title contender in what was the Galaxy’s turf, so hats off to the new LA team, I suppose. Personally, Zlatan is my guy, but I can’t fault any Vela fans. Zlatan is just too entertaining.

Free Kicks

• Tallahassee SC’s successful inaugural season came to a close last night in extra time, as the Battle Lions fell 4-2 at the Lousiana Krewe in the playoffs.

• West Ham is rumored to be making a move for New York Red Bulls and U.S. Men’s National Team star defender Aaron Long, but according to the reports, the offer didn’t exceed $3 million. Ultimately, Long calls a move to the Premier League “a dream,” so who knows what’ll happen?
• James Harden, Houston Rockets superstar shooting guard, is now officially a part of the ownership group of the Houston Dynamo and Houston Dash. The move further entrenches his legacy in Houston as on of the all-time greats to play hoops. Hopefully he can bring a title to Houston while he’s still in the prime of his career.
• Manchester City fans, don’t read on. The boys in light blue missed three spot kicks and subsequently lost the Premier League Asia Trophy to Wolves.
• And last but not least, keep in touch with results from around the league!

That’s all we’ve got for you today, Mane Landers. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday and enjoy the match against the New York Red Bulls! #VamosOrlando