Lion Links: 7/28/19

Happy Sunday, Mane Landers. Before we dive into today’s Links, we here at The Mane Land want to wish Pierre Da Silva and Ali Krieger a very special happy birthday! Hopefully, Da Silva continues his development into an eventual first teamer, while having the World Cup winner back for the Pride has provided a boost. Be sure to take to your favorite social media platform and wish these two a happy birthday!

All right, with that said, we have a pretty good helping of Links for you today. Enjoy!

The Lions Fall to the Revolution, 4-1

After playing host to the New York Red Bulls last week, the Lions were again matched up with a club from the Northeast region of the country as they traveled to Gillette Stadium to take on the New England Revolution. The first half didn’t quite swing in the Lions’ direction, as the Revolution’s Gustavo Buo found the back of the net after only a few minutes of play. The Revolution held on for the half from there, and then came out swinging in the second half, with Cristian Penilla scoring just minutes after the whistle blew. Carles Gil buried a spot kick, courtesy of a Sebas Méndez handball, and then Diego Fagúndez scored in 75th to put the seal on the match. Tesho Akindele got one back for City just minutes after Fagúndez’s goal, but unfortunately the fat lady had sung far before either of those hit the back of the net, and the Revs ran away with all three points.

• Michael Citro has your match recap.
• Marcus Mitchell dished out the player grades and Man of the Match.
• And the view from the other side comes to us from The Bent Musket.

Check out Jennifer Warren’s five takeaways from the match later this morning.

Orlando City B at Forward Madison FC

The Young Lions traveled to Wisconsin to take on upstart Forward Wisconsin FC, a team that is playing its first official season after being established in 2018. The first half didn’t have much action, with both sides finding rare chances while possessing and looking to break the other down. The uneventful first half resulted in a scoreless tie going into the break. A dreadful second half saw Madison take the full three points in a 1-0 final, sending the Young Lions back home with their tails between their legs.

Real Salt Lake’s Mike Petke Handed Suspension

After seeing red — both figuratively and literally — following his side’s 1-0 Leagues Cup defeat to Tigres UANL, RSL gaffer Mike Petke has been suspended pending an investigation into his interaction with officials. According to Petke, he believes the sending off was a misunderstanding…well, initially.

“All I was doing was grabbing my players,” Petke added. “What I said afterwards would have gotten me a red card, but I said that after the red card.”

So Petke must have really let loose on the officiating crew. Regardless, Major League Soccer didn’t take well to Petke’s antics, deciding to hand the coach an additional one match suspension. This means that Petke won’t be on the touchline for Real Salt Lake’s clash with FC Dallas on Saturday – pending an ongoing investigation.

Will Carlos Surpass Josef?

As an Orlando City supporter, I sure hope Carlos Vela breaks Josef Martinez’s MLS goals record. The Los Angeles FC and Mexico striker has been an absolute revelation with the black and gold, and is in the midst of another incredible season. Vela, still in his prime (See: Zlatan being Zlatan), has 22 goals (and 13 assists) through 21 matches on the season. If we extrapolate this data, Vela is set to outpace Atlanta United FC’s Martinez and his 31 goals in 2018. He still needs 10, so it won’t be easy, but I’ll be rooting for Carlos and you should too.

Free Kicks

• Former MLS stars Cobi Jones and Oguchi Onyewu joined current stars Danny Acosta and Santiago Patiño to help pack 100,000 meals with Feeding Children Everywhere. Well done, lads!

• Do you listen to the same music as Orlando City’s Dom Dwyer? Find out! (I don’t.)
• I want to ride in a Nani boat, and so should you. (Disclaimer: I’m not sure it’s even possible.)

• The folks over at Black and Gold Banneret, a University of Central Florida SBNation affiliate, interviewed the Pride’s Bridget Callahan — a UCF alum.
• Did you happen to catch the Atletico Madrid (MLS All-Star Game opponent) vs. Real Madrid match? Atletico netted seven and ran away with a preseason rivalry win in New Jersey.
• U.S. Men’s National Team defender Geoff Cameron has penned a one-year deal with Queens Park Rangers, bringing a close to his time with Stoke City.
• Looks like the Women’s World Cup has already had its effect on some league clubs in England, with season ticket sales on the increase after the country’s successful tournament.
• What can we say? We’re not always funny, but sometimes we get it right.

• And as always, keep in touch with other results from around the league.

All right folks, that’s all I’ve got for you today. Enjoy your Sunday and have a great week. Remember, the MLS All-Star Game is just around the corner. See you there! Also, here’s young Cassius breaking it down after an intense Pride training session. The kid’s a legend already.