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Orlando City vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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5 years ago

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The Lions got mauled in San Jose last night and although I don’t disagree with James O’Connor’s assessment that it was like the team never left the dressing room for the first half, the perspective of a partial night’s sleep has me thinking that maybe the Western Conference’s second-place team is just that good.

San Jose has now gone 12 straight home games without a loss. The California side moves the ball with impressive speed and accuracy through the middle of the pitch and Orlando struggled to deal with that in the first 45 minutes of the match. By the time the Lions made some lineup changes and came out for the second half, the damage was done.

We know how the Lions did as a team. Here’s how I saw them individually:

Starters

GK, Brian Rowe, 6 — I didn’t think Rowe did anything particularly wrong. He made the saves he generally should make. He just didn’t provide the spectacular on a night when his teammates needed it. His best save of the six he made might have been kicking away a Cristian Espinoza left-footed effort in the 32nd minute after the Argentine had slickly bypassed a sliding Robin Jansson. He did manage to get a hand on Chris Wondolowski’s first goal but didn’t get enough of it to knock it off line. His distribution on the night was solid, hitting four out of seven long-ball attempts and his passing rate of 88% was good. Rowe didn’t get a lot of help. I strongly considered him for Man of the Match despite allowing three goals, which tells you what kind of night it was.

D, Kamal Miller, 5 — The Canadian rookie had been playing well but the Earthquakes took advantage of him last night. He was walked around by Espinoza a few times, leading to dangerous opportunities. He provided one tackle, two clearances, and a blocked shot defensively. His passing rate was poor (68%), but he did create two chances — one that Carlos Ascues wasted with a wide shot when he perhaps had better options — but he also had an impatient early cross as one of Orlando’s best counter-attacks was developing that fizzled out the chance.

D, Robin Jansson, 5.5 — The beefy Swede let his countryman, Magnus Eriksson, walk right past him for the opening goal. In fairness, Eriksson made a nice feint that got Jansson to hesitate only for a split second, but it was enough to put the Designated Player in on goal. Espinoza likewise got the better of Jansson on the chance described above in the Rowe section. Aside from those two individual moments, Jansson was generally his usual self, finishing with two tackles, an interception, three clearances, and a blocked shot. His passing rate was a bit lower than usual (83%) but he hit three of his four long balls and he tried to pitch in offensively, tying Dom Dwyer for the most shot attempts on the team (2), although neither was on frame.

D, Lamine Sané, 6 — Like Jansson, Sané made a few individual mistakes in an otherwise decent game. Of course, when you play center back, a couple of mistakes can be killers or at least stick out in the memory more than the errors further up the pitch. Sané was culpable on both of Wondolowski’s goals — only partially on the first but much more blatantly on the second. On the first, he stepped up but Wondo beat the trap because not everyone on the back line was in sync. On the second, he was left marking air and watching the ball while the league’s all-time leading goal scorer stood unmarked a few yards away for an easy finish. With no one else in the area, Sané must make sure that pass doesn’t get to Wondo. But despite that, it wasn’t all bad. Sané actually finished as the team’s co-leader in chances created (2) and led the back line with a 91% passing accuracy. He finished with three interceptions, a team-high five clearances, and a blocked shot. He was by far the most active defender in the game for Orlando with 18 more touches than his nearest back line teammate.

D, Kyle Smith, 5.5 — While Smith has become a reliable defender in Ruan’s absence, he has a long way to go on the offensive end. You’d take his 82% rate if he at least provided a key pass or two, but he didn’t produce any, nor did he register an accurate cross on the meager two attempts. But, as usual, he was active in his own end, recording four tackles — tied for the team high — two interceptions, and three clearances. With three defensive midfielders playing in the 4-3-3, more is needed in the attacking end from the fullbacks.

MF, Will Johnson, 6.5 (Man of the Match)— When you don’t notice a defensive midfielder, it generally means he did his job. Johnson’s night wasn’t perfect. He had an awful turnover that produced a San Jose scoring chance, although Rowe bailed him out on it. His 92% passing accuracy led all starters and he created one scoring chance and attempted one shot, which was blocked. His four tackles co-led the team, and he added an interception and a clearance. I selected him as MotM but it was honestly just about a coin flip between Johnson and Uri Rosell — mostly as the two players who did the least amount wrong while being involved in the game.

MF, Uri Rosell, 6.5 — Rosell put in the work in his own end, recording one tackle, three interceptions — tying Sané for the team lead — one clearance, and one blocked shot. He registered the team’s only shot on target, although he didn’t get all of his 13th-minute effort that he sent toward the back post from outside the area. His passing rate of 83% needed to be better but he did hit four of his seven long balls and a few of those sprung the Lions for what should have been more threatening attacks. Two of those were notable in the 19th and 29th minutes. He earned his 90th-minute yellow card.

MF, Carlos Ascues, 4 — Although the Peruvian has played well in recent games, I thought Ascues looked a bit slow and lethargic last night. He touched the ball only 15 times in the first half before being subbed out at the break. His passing rate of 88% wasn’t bad but came on just eight attempts. His best contribution was a shot wide of the near post but he perhaps had more time and space than he realized and could have picked out a better option in the box. Ascues registered a clearance and a blocked shot defensively but he was more of a passenger on the night. James O’Connor wasn’t happy and his halftime interview indicated there were people not giving the effort he wanted in the first 45 minutes. Subbing Ascues out gives an indication of one of the players he felt weren’t giving enough.

F, Nani, 5 — The captain had a frustrating night that ended in an injury of unknown severity at 71 minutes. The Earthquakes seemingly always had two men ready to mark him when Orlando was on the ball and that contributed to a sloppier than usual night with just a 63% passing rate and he lost the ball seven times. He created one scoring chance, got nine crosses into the area (two accurate), but attempted no shots. Defensively, he added a clearance and a blocked shot. While I think much of his lack of quality on the night was related to how he was being marked without Mauricio Pereyra on the pitch, the Lions still needed more from their captain and Designated Player.

F, Dom Dwyer, 4.5 — Starved of service throughout the match, there was little Dwyer could do to affect the match. He had two shot attempts, neither on target, but at least he did the job of trying to score on the few opportunities he had. He was shown the softest of all yellow cards in the 65th minute. While Dwyer can be an agitator and initiate contact, this card came from the most innocuous of bumps with the goalkeeper as he was coming down from a jump for a cross that Daniel Vega cut off. The incidental contact was perhaps a foul — and Vega sold the hell out of it — but hardly worthy of the usual Dwyer booking. His hold-up play wasn’t great but there generally were few options for him anyway and he passed at a 73% rate. He won two aerials, blocked a shot on the defensive end, and finished the night with just 35 touches.

F, Benji Michel, 4 — Like Ascues, Michel came off at halftime, indicating a position that O’Connor wanted more out of. The rookie managed just 16 touches and passed at only a 50% rate (on just eight attempts, like Ascues), although he tied Dwyer for the team lead in aerials won (2). Michel failed to record any defensive statistics, which is unusual for a player who usually displays more desire and energy when pressing and getting into passing lanes. He produced no crosses, shots, or scoring chances and — again, like Ascues — was more of a passenger during his 45 minutes than a driver.

Substitutes

MF, Cristian Higuita (46’), 5.5 — The Colombian finally returned to make his 100th MLS appearance after about a three-month absence and generally played well. He led all Lions with a 97% passing rate and connected on both of his long-ball attempts. Surprisingly, Higuita registered no defensive statistics. He committed two fouls, though his booking was nearly as soft as Dwyer’s and happened right after Jackson Yueill should have gone in the books for cleaning out Akindele with his studs showing. Higuita attempted one shot, which Orlando players felt should have drawn a handball. I can’t say whether it was a good no-call or not because the broadcast literally never showed a replay. It was a decent 45-minute return for Higuita, who will be relied upon more heavily in the upcoming LAFC match.

F, Tesho Akindele (46’), 6 — The Canadian added some quality and hold-up play, finishing with a dribble and two chances created, but did disappear from the game at times. An 84% passing rate wasn’t bad considering his position and where those passes took place (all but two of the 19 were in the attacking half and all but seven were in the final third). He had one tackle and one clearance defensively and was generally decent in his 45 minutes, although an extremely heavy touch wrecked one of Orlando’s more promising buildups of play of the last half hour.

F Chris Mueller, (71’), 5 — Like other players, Mueller struggled with the Avaya Stadium pitch, but he had more trouble than many of his teammates. A couple of slips ruined potential attacks and it was a problem for Orlando players all night that never seemed to get resolved. Mueller failed to get his one shot attempt on target from a decent area in the box and just generally struggled to produce anything in the attack over the final 20 minutes despite getting on the ball 17 times. He had one dribble but created no chances. His 88% passing sounds pretty good until you look at a snapshot of his attempts.

That’s how I viewed the individual performances but, since we all see the game differently, how did you see it? I wouldn’t say that anyone stood out as amazing on the night and I had difficulty picking a Man of the Match on a night when the entire team fizzled. Defenders had lapses, midfielders turned over the ball, and forwards were isolated. It was a complete team loss. But hey, vote for your MotM below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Brian Rowe4
Uri Rosell1
Will Johnson8
Cristian Higuita16
Tesho Akindele0
Lamine Sané1
Other (please tell us who in the comments section below)4
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Orlando City

How Orlando City’s Offense Stacks Up Against What Atlanta Does Defensively

How Orlando City has performed against teams playing with three or four defenders, and how that may influence the playoff game against Atlanta United.

Published

18 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

The most famous quote about real estate is that “there are three things that matter in property: location, location, location.” Soccer coaches also like to think in threes, especially when it comes to points, but for a soccer coach, the three things that matter might be the rhyming triplet “formation, formation, formation,” as that is where they will have the biggest influence on every game that their team plays.

Throughout his tenure as head coach, Óscar Pareja has preferred to use a 4-2-3-1 as his formation (fbref.com’s lineup data shows that the Lions primarily played a 4-2-3-1 in 65% of their MLS matches this season, and 79% of their MLS matches during the last three seasons). The Lions have lined up in a 4-2-3-1 during each of their last 14 games, and my confidence level is strong to quite strong (can you believe Meet the Parents came out 24 years ago?) that they will do so once again on Sunday when they host Atlanta United.

Atlanta United also prefers to deploy a 4-2-3-1, but was less consistent than Orlando City this season during MLS play, as evidenced by the chart below that shows how Atlanta lined up this season:

The purpose of this image is a table to show how Atlanta United lined up in 2024 (mostly in a 4-2-3-1 but also in one of six other formations).

I am relying on the coders at Opta for their evaluation of the formation, as I do not watch a lot of Atlanta United matches (sounds terrible), but though Atlanta primarily played with four defenders in more than two-thirds of its matches, during the last two matches it played a 3-5-2, the only two matches all season in which interim coach Rob Valentino rolled out that formation. I suspect that the formation change was related partially to playing Inter Miami and trying to defend the Herons’ dynamic offense and partially due to an injury suffered by defender Brooks Lennon in the first game of that series. So, while Atlanta primarily played four in the back for most of the season, there is a good chance it will roll with what worked against Florida’s second-best MLS team when it plays Florida’s best MLS team this weekend.

Now, if you want to read more about Atlanta, then you can read our match preview, which will drop Sunday morning, but I want to look at how Orlando did against teams that play similar styles. Looking only at MLS games, the table below shows how Orlando City performed against different back line structures this season (the left side is how the Lions’ opponents lined up, the right side is how Orlando City performed against opponents in those formations):

Table embedded as an image showing Orlando City doing best in goal differential in 12 games against three-man back lines, second best against four-man back lines, and having played once against a five-man back line (a 1-1 draw).

Orlando City earned slightly more points per game — the stat that matters most — against teams that played four in the back, but the Lions had a better average goal differential when teams played three in the back. Atlanta will likely deploy one of those two formations. In both games against Orlando City this season, Sunday’s visitors went with a 4-2-3-1, but as mentioned earlier, they used three in the back in each of their last two matches, so it really could be either.

Soccer is not like baseball, where players primarily stay in the same spot throughout the game, so some of these stats have to be taken with a grain of salt, as players are not always rigidly in the same position throughout a match. A team may also primarily play with four in the back but switch to three when chasing a game, or five when trying to protect against a late goal.

That said, using the data around Orlando City’s opponents’ general formations, here are the attacking groups who played the most frequently against four defenders during the 24 MLS games where Opta coded the opponents as using a defensive group of four:

Table embedded as an image showing the most frequently used lineups against teams who deploy four defenders. The most frequently used attacking group has a plus eight goal differential for the season.

It is a little ominous that the main starting group, shown in row one, has played 666 MLS minutes against back lines of four this season, but do I like that green goal differential of +8 in those minutes, which is a strong +1.08 per 90 minutes. I like that goal differential more than I like all the things that Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin like on their song that is creatively named “I Like It.” Coincidentally, when people ask me what I think about that song, I say, “I like it.” I am very creative.

If we look at the lineups that Orlando City has used against back lines of three defenders then there are some pretty major differences in personnel groupings, but it must be noted that more than half of the games against teams playing three in the back came early in the season, when Ramiro Enrique was unavailable to play. Enrique, my presumed starter at striker, has played fewer than three games’ worth of minutes (265 total) against back lines of three this season, and only 28 minutes with the main starting group, which ranks 13th among all the attacking lineups for minutes played against three defenders. That group scored one goal in their 28 minutes together though, for a robust 3.21 goals-scored-per-90-minutes average.

While the team as a whole has been successful against three-man back lines, I do not expect any of the lineups shown in the table below to play more than a few minutes together this weekend, though the first row and the last row are strong groups and had a lot of success.

Table embedded as an image showing the most frequently used lineups against teams who deploy three defenders. The most frequently used attacking group has a plus three goal differential for the season.

I am sure that all week long the Orlando City coaching staff has been going back and forth on whether it is more likely that Atlanta reverts to its most commonly used four in the back, or if the Five Stripes try for three wins in a row with three in the back. I would prefer that Atlanta plays with zero defenders and goalkeeper Brad Guzan wears a blindfold, but I think that is unlikely to be the case.

Even though Atlanta defeated Orlando City both times while in a 4-2-3-1, based on available personnel and recent results, I believe that the team will come out in a 3-5-2 in Inter&Co Stadium in the conference semifinal. Good things come in threes, and Orlando City’s best offensive production this season has been against three defenders, so I am going to be hoping that this continues, and in the third game against Atlanta the Lions grab the three points. Three’s company!

Well, it is a playoff game, so there are no actual points at stake, but you know what I meant.

Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Atlanta United: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Lions need to do to get a victory to advance to the Eastern Conference final?

Published

20 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City continues its playoff journey against Atlanta United Sunday at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions are coming off an emotional penalty shootout win over Charlotte FC in their best-of-three, first-round series. Likewise, Atlanta United stunned everyone by taking out Inter Miami to advance in its own best-of-three matchup. Now, the rivals meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

What does Orlando City need to do to get past Atlanta United to advance to the Easter Conference final?

Beat Guzan

Brad Guzan made 16 saves over Atlanta’s three matches against Inter Miami, including seven in the 3-2 win on the road in Game 3. The 40-year-old former USMNT keeper is in excellent form and is a big reason why the Five Stripes are facing Orlando City. Converting chances against Guzan will be crucial to earning a result. There have been times this season when the Lions have struggled to convert their chances. Despite that, the team has done enough offensively to get to this point. Facundo Torres, Martin Ojeda, Duncan McGuire, Ramiro Enrique, and others have contributed and will need to do so this weekend.

Cartagena is Essential

Orlando City lost twice to Atlanta United during the regular season. What is interesting, and perhaps relevant, is that Wilder Cartagena was out for both of those matches. Cartagena was shown a straight red in the match against Minnesota United prior to the first match against Atlanta way back in March. He was shown a yellow card in the match against FC Cincinnati and then served a yellow card accumulation suspension for the final match of the season against Atlanta. Fortunately for Orlando City, Cartagena will be available for the match this weekend. I’ve mentioned before the importance of Cartagena to Orlando City’s success. When he and Cesar Araujo are on the field together, the defense is simply better. Cartagena is frankly one of the better defensive midfielders in MLS. Atlanta scored five goals in the series against Miami, and Orlando will need to keep the visitors from having that kind of offensive success.

Overcome the Past

That darn international break in the middle of the playoffs is something I don’t love. More precisely, I don’t like it because Orlando City often struggles after a break. It would have been nice if Orlando City could have ridden the momentum from the penalty kick victory into the Atlanta match, but that’s not to be. Now is the time for Orlando City to break some bad habits, including turning around its historical lack of success against Atlanta, and tendency to struggle in the first match after a break. Oscar Pareja needs to have the players in the right frame of mind, and the players need to execute the plan. A full house of supporters can also make a difference. Given it’s a Sunday afternoon match, there’s no reason not to pack the house.

That is what I will be looking for Sunday afternoon. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 11/21/24

Marta’s chance to shine in NWSL Championship, NWSL and MLS award winners announced, 2025 SheBelieves Cup details, and more.

Published

23 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I’ve been spending most of this week plotting out some holiday shopping to make things a little less stressful for myself over the next few weeks. A big weekend filled with Orlando soccer awaits us, so make sure to get any errands or obligations out of the way sooner rather than later. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Spotlight Falls On Marta in NWSL Championship

There are plenty of storylines heading into Saturday’s NWSL Championship between the Orlando Pride and Washington Spirit, including Marta’s opportunity to put an exclamation point on what has been an excellent season for the Pride. Orlando has been enjoying the fruits of its labor this season after a rebuild over the past few years that’s included plenty of change in the City Beautiful. Marta has been a constant, however, enduring some difficult seasons since joining the Pride and adapting her game She’s scored in both of the Pride’s playoff games so far and has a chance to author a storybook ending on Saturday.

Ann-Katrin Berger Named NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year

NJ/NY Gotham FC goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger was named 2024 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year, beating out the Pride’s Anna Moorhouse and Utah Royals FC’s Mandy Haught for the honor. It was Berger’s first year in the NWSL and she’s the first European player to win the award. She only conceded 16 goals across her 22 matches for Gotham this season and was a key reason behind her team’s success. I’m not too surprised that Moorhouse did not win, considering how solid the Pride’s defense was as a whole, but this won’t take anything away from a record-breaking season for her.

Wilfried Nancy Named MLS Coach of the Year

Columbus Crew Head Coach Wilfried Nancy was voted 2024 MLS Coach of the Year after a historic season in which the Crew set club records in both points and goals. The Crew also won the Leagues Cup this summer and their 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup campaign included advancing past Tigres and Monterrey en route to the final. This is Nancy’s first time being named Coach of the Year and he has been a finalist for the award every year since 2021. The Frenchman received 40.02% of the vote, winning the award over Inter Miami’s Gerardo Martino and Colorado Rapids Head Coach Chris Armas.

2025 SheBelieves Cup Details Unveiled

The 10th annual SheBelieves Cup will take place next year and the tournament will return to its usual format where each of the four teams plays each other once. The United States Women’s National Team will host Japan, Colombia, and Australia in February in what should be an exciting tournament. The U.S. will take on Colombia on Feb. 20 in Houston before facing Australia in Arizona on Feb. 23 and finishing the tournament on Feb. 26 against Japan at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego. These games will also be the first domestic games of 2025 for the USWNT as it prepares to qualify for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.

Eric Quill Named FC Dallas Head Coach

FC Dallas announced that Eric Quill will become the team’s next head coach. Quill joins Dallas after a great year with New Mexico United that included trips to the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals and USL Championship Western Conference semifinals. It’s also a reunion of sorts for Quill, as he previously coached North Texas SC and was named USL League One Coach of the Year with the club in 2019. Dallas missed out on the playoffs this season, with Peter Luccin coaching the team on an interim basis after the firing of Nico Estevez in June.

Free Kicks

  • District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser challenged Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer to a bet involving this weekend’s NWSL Championship, with embarrassing lightshows on the line.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!

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