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

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6 years ago

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James O’Connor threw a curveball with his lineup as Orlando City’s official graphic on social media lined the Lions up with a back three like the previous two outings and included Chris Mueller at left wingback, but it actually played as a 4-3-3 with Mueller on the right of the front three. He was one of four changes as Kamal Miller, Alex De John, Kyle Smith and Tesho Akindele made way for Carlos Ascues, Ruan, Chris Mueller and Dom Dwyer.

It didn’t go well. Montreal ran out 3–1 winners with Ignacio Piatti scoring his ninth and 10th goals against Orlando in his final MLS season, the most goals scored by any single player against the Lions. The team looked shocked after a 90-second spell saw them concede two but unlike the season opener, they failed to mount a comeback. Head Coach James O’Connor commented on the subpar standards shown against Montreal, saying he “didn’t see the performance coming” and spoke at length about the defensive errors in particular. Needless to say,my grades agree.

It’s never easy to pick a Man of the Match in a game like this, so please note that The Mane Land Managing Editor Michael Citro selected the one for this post. You can vote on the poll at the bottom with your own pick and leave a comment telling us why. Kay Rawlins already made her pick, shouts to The Wall:

Starters

GK, Brian Rowe, 7 (MotM) —Yup, that’s a rating of seven for a goalkeeper in a 3–1 defeat. Another thankless shift for the MLS veteran, Rowe‘s goal was once again peppered with shots — 19 to be precise, with 11 on target. He did excellently to keep the score down, making several reflex saves and was confident coming off his line to collect crosses, through balls and closing down players to make saves one-on-one multiple times as the likes of Maxi Urruti and Piatti ran riot. If you want to blame him for the crazy 90 seconds in which his defense completely whiffed, actively put Montreal in scoring position, and asked far too much of him then we weren’t watching the same game. By the time the third goal came, Orlando was in all-out attack mode with only one central defender on the pitch, committing bodies forward and Rowe was once again left stranded. His distribution must improve, though.

LB, Danilo Acosta, 6 — Acosta doesn’t come out of this Montreal game with his stock particularly damaged, which may count as a compliment given the current climate. He had an OK day defensively, registering five successful defensive actions between blocking, tackling and intercepting, and tracked Saphir Taïder well all game, even on the first phase of the first goal and got a foot to the assist to buy his teammates enough time to close it down. Despite the change in shape, it was clear Acosta was still being asked to push high up the field and my biggest criticism of the 21-year-old so far has been his lack of production: his 80% passing accuracy dropped to 50% in the final third today and he has still only registered one successful cross in his nine attempts across all three games so far this season.

CB, Carlos Ascues, 5.5 — Making his first appearance of the season, the Peruvian had some rust to shake off and clearly didn’t do it in time for Montreal’s first goal — and that was after Montreal nearly scored off an even earlier mistake. He was the closest defender to Orji Okwonkwo, as the Nigerian, on loan from Serie A’s Bologna, dug out the cross from under his feet with minimal pressure from a slow-to-react Ascues to place the ball into the far corner of the goal. After that he was actually pretty assured and is undoubtedly Orlando’s best ball playing center back, registering the third-highest passing accuracy (81.6%) on the sixth-most passes (38) and leading the team in successful long passes (5).

CB, Shane O’Neill, 3.5 — O’Neill came out after last week’s match, taking the blame for the Chicago Fire’s late equalizer, and the error was perhaps still playing on his conscience as some slack marking between him and Ascues for the first goal was quickly followed from kickoff by a horrific attempted back pass to Rowe that never made it and instead gifted a second to Montreal. From there, the Impact never looked like letting their early lead slip. His yellow card was reckless, a sign of his own frustrations, and it was telling that De John was no longer on the field as a sweeper in a back three to clean up the same mistakes he made last week. His days as a starter (O’Neill has started 16 of the 17 games he has been available for since joining in July) look numbered, especially with only two spots available in a back four, with De John looking on from the bench, Lamine Sané yet to return from injury, and the imminent arrival of Swedish international Robin Jansson.

RB, Ruan, 7 — Ruan subbed in for Kyle Smith last week and was a vast improvement in Chicago with the performance earning the Brazilian his first MLS start this week. He put in a good defensive shift again, staying touch tight to Piatti for a large proportion of the game, which is no easy feat. A feature of O’Connor’s game plan is for his fullbacks to join the attack, something Ruan wasn’t shy in doing. It sometimes left him completely out of position for want of a better term because every time that happened, it was because of a sloppy turnover in midfield. Without those, he was in exactly the position he should be in. He was second in the team for touches, with most of Montreal’s problems coming from his play down the right wing, finding Dwyer with a cross and teasing a couple more good balls into the box that nobody chanced to get on the end of.

MF, Sebas Méndez, 6.5 — I praised Méndez last week as he continued to grow into his anchor role, screening a back three and the team ran a lot of the passing game through him. This week saw a lot of the back of the Ecuadorian rather than him facing upfield, as he was continually forced to chase play in the direction of his own goal from slack turnovers, covering for the absence of a third central defender that had been there in his first two starts. It is no surprise then that he comes out of the game with seven successful defensive actions: two tackles, three interceptions, one clearance, and one block. He also led the team with 74 passes, with a completion rate of 81.1%. But for all the numbers he put up, they were in deep areas of the pitch where he couldn’t affect much.

MF, Will Johnson, 6 — Johnson forced the issue early with some good pressing and could have easily won a free kick as he was fouled just outside the box in the opening minutes, but the referee instead stopped play for the head injury Johnson sustained on his way down. That knock would ultimately spell the end of the day for the Canadian, who had been one of the stronger performers in the opening two weeks and the best player in purple in the opening exchanges against Montreal, eventually departing with a suspected concussion inside 20 minutes.

MF, Sacha Kljestan, 6 — Here’s a quote from last week’s player grade for Kljestan: “I’m struggling to assess Kljestan’s performance in Chicago. It wasn’t good but it certainly wasn’t bad. It just happened.” It was much of the same, arguably veering towards bad, for the former back-to-back MLS assist leader. I bring up that title to remind you that there was once some creativity and accuracy to his passing. Today his pass completion dropped to 70.8% and, although he made a concerted effort to track back, it really isn’t his game. I’m not sure what his game is any more and I don’t know if O’Connor does either, but with Higuita a better central midfielder and Josué Colmán, Orlando’s record signing who is at this point having his development stunted so early in his career, a better prospect at CAM, I’d rather see the lineup freshened at this point. Since arriving, O’Connor has given Kljestan 1,442 minutes to Colmán’s 428.

F, Nani, 6.5 — Last week’s man of the match showed his quality early on while the game was still scoreless, cutting back inside the box and picking out Dwyer only to see the U.S. international shoot over the bar. Initially starting on the left side of a front three, he switched sides frequently with Mueller to try and pick apart an opening. Despite connecting on 81.4% of his passes, including two key passes to Dwyer — who should’ve done better — he once again failed to take a shot and had a relatively low impact in comparison to the first two showings, linking up well with the likes of Cristian Higuita in the final third, but nothing clear cut.

F, Dom Dwyer, 6 — It was a day of fluffed lines for Dwyer as he continually failed to capitalize on the chances that fell to him. The striker blasted an early chance over the bar on the turn after a pull-back from Nani, headed a golden chance from a Ruan cross into the ground straight in front of Evan Bush, and then blazed over the bar when he was in alone with only Bush to beat after a Montreal giveaway, a chance you’d typically see him calmly chip over the keeper. He eventually managed to net a late conciliation goal after Mueller curled a ball in behind the Montreal defensive line to Patiño, who in turn poked it to an on-rushing Dwyer for a tap-in. Only two of his six shots were on target and he struggled to make the usual nuisance of himself in the box that he normally does, only registering 26 touches, with Johnson, Patiño and Colmán only seeing fewer in their limited minutes. Although he didn’t take his chances, credit to the striker for at least putting himself into that position.

F, Chris Mueller, 7 — As ever, Mueller’s work rate was some of the highest in the squad. He registered 51 touches, good for the sixth-most on the team, had a 79.3% pass completion rate, and tried to pick up the mantel when he cut inside to unleash a fierce shot from distance only to find the top of the net. Orlando’s eventual breakthrough also came as a result of Mueller, as he curled a nice weighted pass into the path of Santiago Patiño. But for all the good, Mueller was easily dispossessed on a couple of occasions, including by Samuel Piette, which led directly to the first goal, and some of the passes he didn’t complete were simple mental errors indicative of the team’s performance as a whole.

Substitutes

MF, Cristian Higuita (21’), 7 — Higuita made his first appearance of the season early in the first half as a replacement for Johnson and grabbed the opportunity with both hands. Despite the reduced minutes, the midfielder ranked second for passes. He completed 49 at an impressive rate of 91.8% and also stepped in with seven defensive involvements: a team-high four tackles, two interceptions, and one clearance. Even though statistically a lot of his passes were sideways and backwards, he was finding players in space and helping switch play with pace, something which has been lacking so far. That was a wake-up call for O’Connor and I can’t see any justification for him to not start against New York Red Bulls next weekend. Johnson will be unavailable either through injury or due to international duty.

MF, Josué Colmán (74’), 6 — The introduction of Colmán was an issue of too little too late for me. When he came on he injected some pace into the team and he hassled and harried defenders in the closing stages like the rest of the team should have been doing from the start. He isn’t shy to crack a shot from distance, as shown by his sole effort in the cameo appearance he had today, and even though it was a few yards wide and Evan Bush never looked troubled, I can’t say I mind. It’s just good to see some direct, attacking play.

F, Santiago Patino (74’), 7 — Orlando’s No. 3 overall draft pick in 2019 sounded excited for game day on Twitter and his hopes became a reality late in the second half as he stepped onto the field for his professional debut. We didn’t get to see much from the Colombian-born forward for the most part, although he was strong enough to hold off the challenge of Piette and had the awareness to unselfishly prod the ball to Dwyer for a tap-in, registering his first MLS assist.

It was a bad day at the office all round for Orlando — a performance littered with individual errors by practically everyone, although it’s safe to say some had a bigger impact on the scoreline than others. Fingers crossed this is a blip and O’Connor’s side has now got it out of their system and can bounce back. After all, the entire off-season talk was about having the right attitude, the right mentality, and shaking off that losing feeling.

Well there you have it, the first loss of the season, winless in the opening three matches, and for anyone keeping score from last season, that’s one win in 18 games. Let’s see where we go from here.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Brian Rowe43
Ruan12
Cristian Higuita24
Chris Mueller17
Other16

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Chicago Fire: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 3-1 loss against the Chicago Fire?

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8 minutes ago

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June 2, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City turned one loss into two heading into the international break. The Lions gave up three first-half goals and lost 3-1 at home to the Chicago Fire. A determined but ineffective offense wasn’t able to make up for lapses on the defensive end. The break is about a week late, but perhaps the players can get some rest. Let’s take a look at how Orlando City’s players rated individually in their Eastern Conference matchup.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 5 — El Pulpo literally had the ball slip through his hands on Philip Zinckernagel’s early goal. The other two goals weren’t on him, but it’s hard to forgive the first howler. He recorded one save and one clearance. It was not a great night from Gallese, but every keeper has one like that occasionally. He had 22 touches, completing 89.5% of his 19 passes and five of his seven long balls.

D, David Brekalo, 6 —Brekalo started at left back as usual, but after Rodrigo Schlegel subbed off he moved inside with Robin Jansson. He was busy in both halves of the pitch as he pressed into the attack when at fullback. He didn’t push forward quite as much after moving to center back, though he did still contribute as Orlando chased the match. He recorded 71 touches, completing 86.2% of his 58 passes. Brekalo also completed four of his five long balls. Like many, he managed one shot, though it wasn’t on target as his effort off a corner kick was blocked. Defensively, he tallied three interceptions and one tackle.

D, Robin Jansson, 5.5 — The captain let his emotions get the better of him in the first half. He was battling Hugo Cuypers all night, and given Cuypers scored a brace, I can’t say Jansson won the matchup. His frustration resulted in a yellow card in the 45th minute. After the half, he was able to get back on track, though the damage was done. Jansson had 70 touches, completing 100% of his 59 passes. He had one key pass and even took one shot, though it wasn’t on target. Defensively, he recorded three clearances and one tackle.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 4.5 — It was not a good night for Schlegel. He lost Cuypers on the second and third Chicago goals, and it’s not recommended to allow the opposition’s best goal scorer to be alone in the box or to get in behind the back line. Defensively, he only contributed two tackles and recorded no interceptions or clearances. He managed 30 touches and completed 88.9% of his 27 passes. Schlegel committed two fouls and received a yellow card in the 49th minute. He was subbed off in the 54th minute for Rafael Santos.

D, Alex Freeman, 6 — Freeman scored Orlando’s only goal in the 39th minute, putting a header off the corner kick on target and into the back of the net by way of a deflection in front. It was his lone shot on target in two attempts. The right back recorded 77 touches, completing 78.4% of his 51 passes, including five crosses and one key pass. Defensively, he recorded three interceptions, one clearance, and one tackle.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 6 — Angulo still doesn’t have a goal in 2025, which isn’t surprising given his one shot on goal was well off target. He wasn’t bad in this match, but he also didn’t play very long, as he only touched the ball 19 times. He got lost defensively on the second Chicago goal as there was poor communication and he strayed inside, leaving Zinckernagel out wide alone for an easy cross to Cuypers. His best moment in the match came after tracking back to help recover the ball in his own end before making an incredible long run deep into the attacking box and backheeling a pass to Luis Muriel, who dropped it to Marco Pasalic for a good scoring chance. Angulo completed all of his 12 passes. He came off at halftime for Ramiro Enrique, but he was one of the few players who appeared to have a lot of jump in his legs in the first half.

MF, Eduard Atuesta, 6.5 (MotM) — Atuesta showed how important he is to Orlando City club in this match. His vision and ability to connect passes put teammates in dangerous places, even if they couldn’t convert those chances. He continued to make good passes in and around the box trying to get Orlando’s offense going. Atuesta had a team-high 94 touches, completing 89.7% of his 78 passes, including two key passes. He connected on five of his seven long balls and one of his seven crosses. Atuesta attempted two shots, though neither was on target. Defensively, he contibuted one tackle.

MF, Joran Gerbet, 6 — Gerbet started in place of the suspended Cesar Araujo and continues to have some rookie struggles midway through the season. If he hadn’t been so good earlier in the season, it wouldn’t seem like he’s having difficulty lately. Like others, he got a little bit better as the match went on, though he came off in the 77th minute for Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Gerbet had 44 touches, completing 93.8% of his 32 passes, winning one aerial, and recording one key pass. Defensively, he contributed four tackles, and one interception,

MF, Marco Pašalić, 6 — Pasalic was active if ultimately ineffective in Orlando’s attack with four shots, though he only put one on target. He recorded 63 touches, completing 82.2% of his 45 passes, including two of his four long balls. Pasalic contributed two key passes and connected on one of his five crosses. He took a nasty tumble, hitting the back of his head when he landed, though he was able to continue. He exited in the 88th minute for Gustavo Caraballo.

F, Martín Ojeda, 6.5 — It was Ojeda’s corner kick that found the head of Freeman to give Orlando its only goal. He wasn’t able to contribute a goal in this match, though not for a lack of trying. He took four shots with one on target, led the team with eight key passes, and recorded the assist. Ojeda touched the ball 62 times, completing 90.6% of 32 passes. He was fouled three times, one of which earned a free kick outside the box in the 58th minute. He even contributed on defense with two tackles and an interception.

F, Luis Muriel, 6 — On another night Muriel has at least a brace. He took six shots with none on target, though he had a free kick that went into the wall 59th minute, and he hit the crossbar in the 64th. If that ball is two inches lower, Orlando maybe climbs back into the match. He still dribbled into blind alleys and gave the ball away to the opposition, though not as much as in some other matches. He had 65 touches, completing 80% of his 35 passes, including one cross and two key passes.

Substitutes

F, Ramiro Enrique, (45′), 6 — Enrique came on for Angulo to start the second half as the Lions pushed for a comeback. He was fairly accurate, putting two of his four shots on target. One shot in the 62nd minute went right to the keeper, though the other shot was saved it was a very well taken chance on the outside of his right foot as he moved towards the goal. He also made a great tackle in the 86th minute to take the ball back from Jonathan Bamba. He did all of that on only 19 touches, completing 88.9% of his nine passes, including one key pass.

D, Rafael Santos, (54’), 5.5 — With both Schlegel and Jansson on yellow cards, Santos came on to replace Schlegel to allow Brekalo to move inside with Jansson. Perhaps it was because of the desperation with which Orlando City was playing, but it wasn’t too bad of an outing for Santos. He was active on the left side, putting in five crosses, but he completed just one. Santos tried to combine with his teammates while looking to break down the Chicago defense. He had 34 touches, completing 95.8% of his 24 passes. Defensively, he had one clearance.

MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, (77’), 6 — I feel like Dagur Dan could have started in place of Gerbet rather than subbing on. His motor was obviously better than those that had played more minutes during the month of May. He was persistent in trying to win the ball back when Chicago tried to counter attack. He only managed nine touches, completing 100% of his six passes. His individual effort in stoppage time was a highlight, as he did well to win the ball back and jumpstart the counter, but ultimately Enrique not only strayed offside prior to the pass but also fired his shot off target anyway.

MF, Gustavo Caraballo (88′), N/A — The youngster came on late for Pasalic. He only managed six touches, completing 80% of his five passes. The four he completed were all back passes. He made some runs into the box, but the ball never arrived for him to get a chance.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s disappointing 3-1 loss at home against Chicago. 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: 6/2/25

Lions fall to Chicago Fire, Pride players in action during international break, OCB beats Chattanooga FC, and more.

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4 hours ago

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June 2, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City B / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been staying busy at work and will cover high school lacrosse and softball this week. Our beloved Lions lost, but OCB picked up a big win, while the Pride were off over the weekend. We have plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Falls to Chicago Fire at Home

Orlando City fell 3-1 to the Chicago Fire Saturday at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions trailed 3-0 in the first half before Alex Freeman pulled one back for Orlando just before halftime. It was not enough to spark a late comeback, as the Lions have now lost back-to-back matches within the past week. The Lions played the match without Head Coach Oscar Pareja, who was serving a one-match suspension after receiving a red card in the match against Atlanta United on Wednesday. Orlando City Assistant Coach Diego Torres was on the sidelines for this match. The Lions are off this weekend, with their next match on the road on June 14 against the Colorado Rapids.

Pride Players on International Duty

Multiple Orlando Pride players were in action over the weekend, representing their countries while away on international duty. Angelina captained the Brazil Women’s National Team, while Marta started on the bench and played in the second half as Brazil defeated Japan 3-1 in a friendly.

Barbra Banda scored for Zambia in a 1-1 friendly draw against Botswana. Grace Chanda and Prisca Chilufya also started in the match.

Pride defender Zara Chavoshi was on the bench for the Canadian Women’s National Team but did not play as Canada beat Haiti 4-1 in a friendly.

Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse was on the bench as England defeated Portugal 6-0 in a UEFA Women’s Nations League matchup.

OCB Defeats Eastern Conference Leader Chattanooga FC

Orlando City B defeated Chattanooga FC 2-1 Sunday at Osceola County Stadium. Shak Mohammed scored the opening goal early in the first half for the Young Lions. Chattanooga FC found an equalizer just before halftime. In the second half, we had to wait all the way until stoppage time for another goal as Noah Levis scored the winner for OCB. The Young Lions are ninth in the Eastern Conference with 14 points. OCB will be on the road to take on Huntsville City FC Friday.

USWNT Beats China in Friendly

The U.S. Women’s National Team defeated China 3-0 Saturday at Allianz Field in St. Paul, MN in a friendly. Orlando Pride defender Emily Sams came off the bench in the second half and played 21 minutes. Fellow Pride defender Kerry Abello was on the bench but did not play. Defender Naomi Girma made her first appearance for the USWNT this year after dealing with injuries. The USWNT dominated from the start as Catarina Macario scored the opening goal in the match. Sam Coffey made it 2-0 lead just before halftime. In the second half, Lindsey Heaps scored the final goal of the match. The USWNT will be back in action Tuesday night against Jamaica at Energizer Park in St. Louis.

LAFC Defeats Club America to Qualify for FIFA Club World Cup

LAFC overcame a 1-0 deficit to defeat Club America 2-1 in extra time in a play-in game Saturday at BMO Stadium and booked its spot in the FIFA Club World Cup. LAFC trailed 1-0 through much of the match, but late in the second half, Igor Jesus scored the equalizer just before stoppage time. In extra time, Denis Bouanga scored the winning goal. LAFC will join fellow MLS sides Inter Miami and the Seattle Sounders in the FIFA Club World Cup. The tournament begins on June 14, and LAFC will face Chelsea, Flamengo, and ES Tunis in the group stage.

Paris Saint-Germain and Cruz Azul Win Continental Titles

Paris Saint-Germain finally won its first UEFA Champions League trophy, beating Inter Milan 5-0 Saturday in Munich. Desire Doue scored twice and added an assist. Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Senny Mayulu also contributed goals. Paris Saint-Germain completed the treble, winning Ligue 1, Coupe de France, and the Champions League this season. Luis Enrique became the second manager to win a treble with two different clubs, joining Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola. Paris Saint-Germain also became only the second French club to win the Champions League title, with Marseille lifting the trophy back in 1993. For Inter Milan, it was the second time in three years the club lost the final, falling to Manchester City two years ago. Inter suffered the biggest defeat in UEFA Champions League final history.

Sunday in Mexico, Cruz Azul routed the Vancouver Whitecaps 5-0 Sunday at Estadio Olimpico Universitario to win the Concacaf Champions Cup. Angel Sepulveda scored two goals as Cruz Azul dominated the matchup. The Whitecaps were unable to record a shot on target. It’s the third straight final that an MLS side has lost to a Liga MX side since 2022, when the Seattle Sounders lifted the trophy. With the win, Cruz Azul has qualified for the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup.

Free Kicks

  • Tom Bogert of GiveMeSport.com shared his insight on which MLS players to watch during the summer transfer window for potential moves. Orlando City defender Alex Freeman was mentioned, as well as Charlotte FC’s Patrick Agyemang and the Chicago Fire’s Brian Gutierrez.
  • Former Orlando Pride Head Coach Tom Sermanni reflected on his time with the club. He provided insight into his journey from coaching the Pride as an expansion team, including the early challenges, Orlando’s first NWSL playoff appearance, mentoring young coaches such as Khano Smith and Seb Hines, and more.
  • Washington Spirit Head Coach Jonatan Giraldez is reportedly set to become the next manager at OL Lyonnes and will join the club in June. Assistant Coach Adrian Gonzalez will be promoted to head coach for the Spirit.
  • U.S. Men’s National Team Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino has added Walker Zimmerman, Nathan Harriel, and Paxten Aaronson to the roster to replace DeJuan Jones, Sean Zawadzki, and Folarin Balogun, who are all out due to injuries. The USMNT will play friendlies against Turkey on June 7 and Switzerland on June 10.
  • The LA Galaxy finally snapped their record 16-match winless streak on Saturday, defeating Real Salt Lake 2-0.

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

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Chicago Fire: Five Takeaways

Here’s what we learned from a disappointing 3-1 home loss against Chicago.

Published

1 day ago

on

June 1, 2025

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City won the final 55 minutes of Saturday night’s match 1-0, but unfortunately the Lions were awful in the opening 35 minutes and were already so far down that they could not really mount a real comeback, losing 3-1 to Chicago. After a loss like that, the less painful preamble the better, so let’s get right to it. Here are my five takeaways from Saturday night’s match.

A Gift From Gallese

It was an absolutely brutal start for Orlando City, as the nearly always sure-handed Pedro Gallese made a mess of a routine shot from Philip Zinckernagel, allowing it slip right through his hands and into the back of his net just five minutes into the game. Errors like that one happen to goalkeepers every season (Orlando City benefitted from a similar error by John McCarthy of the LA Galaxy back in March), but this one was especially crushing, as it happened right in the opening minutes of the game, giving Chicago an undeserved boost of confidence and removing the opportunity for the Lions to take an immediate lead and wash the bad taste of the collapse at Atlanta from their mouths. Zinckernagel was far too easily able to turn and get his shot off, one of many defensive miscues during the opening minutes of the game, but the shot he took was right at Gallese and El Pulpo probably saves that 99.9% of the time. Unfortunately, Saturday night’s shot was the one in one thousand that went right through his hands like butter.

Back To Back Breakdowns

Teams are often at their most vulnerable right after scoring a goal, as the euphoria of scoring a goal often leads to a dip in focus for the team that just scored, while the anger of allowing a goal brings on a surge of adrenaline for the team that was just scored upon, and they play with a serious sense of urgency in the immediate aftermath. This was not the case in any way, shape or form for Orlando City after allowing Chicago’s second goal, as the Lions gave the ball away almost instantly on the kickoff and then looked completely out of sorts as Chicago just blew right through the middle of the field and got the ball to Hugo Cuypers with no trouble at all. Cuypers then made Rodrigo Schlegel no trouble of his at all and scored his second goal within two minutes on a well-placed shot past Gallese. Chicago’s second goal came on a complete defensive breakdown as well, with Cuypers somehow unmarked in between three defenders right in front of the goalmouth, and for Chicago to then get a third goal right after that left many in the stadium stunned. Even though there was still almost an hour left to play, the game seemed almost over already with how poorly the entire defensive unit was playing.

Lots of Chances, One Conversion

Orlando City took 28 shots, pumped in 22 crosses, earned 13 corner kicks, and — according to Opta’s tracking — created two “big chances.” And yet, after all that, all the Lions had to show for it was a goal on a header from right back Alex Freeman, which was not one of their two big chances. I wrote last week about Orlando City’s nearly league-worst poor finishing on big chances and how I thought a positive regression to the mean might be coming, but what if it does not? Games like Saturday night’s show that it might not be bad luck. It might be that this team lacks a scorer who can find a way to convert even a league-average amount of those big opportunities. If that is the case, then the team will have to rely on scoring in other ways, and as the team is among the league leaders in goals scored, the Lions may be able to continue to score via more difficult opportunities, but they were unable to do so on Saturday night as Chicago goalkeeper Chris Brady was rarely troubled enough to get his shorts into a Brady bunch.

I’ll see myself out.

Lack Of Legs

May is finally over, and thus ends a punishing month for Orlando City with the club playing nine games between May 3 and May 31. It may not have been Óscar Pareja on the sidelines, but I am sure he selected the starting group, and it contained nine of the 11 players who started Wednesday night in Atlanta and seven players who started against Atlanta and against Portland the prior Saturday. The team just looked gassed throughout the match, and while Orlando dominated possession during the second half and took all the shots and made the crosses I mentioned in the prior takeaway, the team did not look locked in while doing so, with uncharacteristic misses happening from many different players. The four substitutes who came on all looked noticeably fresher and more energetic than their teammates, and perhaps more rotation from the starting group in this match, or in prior matches, might have led to a different result.

Freeman An Attacking Force

I want to end with a positive, and whether the ball deflected in off a defender or not, Freeman scored his fourth goal of the season, making him the first Orlando City defender to score four goals in an MLS season, and the season only just reached the halfway point. According to whoscored.com, Freeman’s average position on Saturday night was higher on the field (i.e. closer to the opposing goal) than every Orlando City starter except fellow right side player Marco Pašalić and Luis Muriel, and Orlando City made 39% of its attacks down that right side, looking to take advantage of the Freeman and Pašalić combination. Freeman’s goal was from a corner kick, so none of those right-side heavy attacks amounted to a goal, but Freeman was engaged and involved throughout and continued to show that he is one of the league’s best offensive threats at the right back position.

Those are my takeaways from Orlando City’s rough performance against Chicago. The team will now have a well-deserved two-week break before heading out on the road to Colorado on June 14. Hopefully the Lions will come out recharged and ready to start a new winning streak when that game kicks off against the Rapids.

Let us know your thoughts about the Chicago match in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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