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Orlando City

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

Published

6 years ago

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Orlando City started out hot in its last match of the 2019 MLS season as Tesho Akindele scored early. But the team fell apart in the second half and lost to the Chicago Fire 5-2 at Exploria Stadium. The Fire scored three goals in seven minutes in the second half to ultimately seal the win. Here’s how everyone individually performed in the tough loss at home.

Starters

GK, Brian Rowe, 4 — He probably should have done better with the first goal. Rowe led with his feet to try and clear the initial cross but missed, and it led to Kyle Smith’s own goal. Rowe made a good save in the 30th minute. Brandt Bronico sent a good shot on frame and Rowe made the diving, fingertip save to keep the score tied at one. I’m not sure what he was doing on the fifth Fire goal, which popped up off his hands then he stood and watched Przemyslaw Frankowski walk by and head it in. He finished with five saves, but the big number here is the five goals allowed. Not all of them were his fault, but he did not have a good match.

D, Kamal Miller, 4 — Miller attempted to defend Aleksandar Katai in the 17th minute. Katai was no match though, and literally spun Miller around, before sending a great ball to C.J. Sapong that resulted in the tying goal. Katai toyed with Miller on the third Chicago goal, working his way into position and freeing himself up for the shot. The rookie had just one tackle in the match and struggled defensively.

D, Robin Jansson, 6 — Just after the half hour mark, he went up to clear a ball. Sapong pushed Jansson while he was in the air and the defender collapsed onto Kyle Smith’s knee. The medical team immediately came onto the field, and Jansson had to be stretchered off the field. He finished with 14 touches, one tackle, and two clearances. The good news is our Michael Citro talked to him after the game and Jansson said he was OK.

D, Kyle Smith, 3.5 — Smith scored the second goal of the match, but in the wrong net. He attempted to defend Sapong but was on the wrong side of the forward. Smith got back into the correct position but wasn’t able to clear the ball and scored an own goal. On Chicago’s third goal, Smith defended awfully as Katai toyed with him before scoring. Minutes later he dove in but missed the ball completely as Przemyslaw Frankowski back heeled the Fire’s fourth goal. Still, he was tied for the most tackles on the team (three) and clearances (four).

D, Ruan, 6 — Ruan did what he did best in the 11th minute. He intercepted a pass in the defensive end and then burst onto the other side of the field. He glided by Nicolás Gaitán, but then Francisco Calvo came in with a hard tackle and Ruan stayed down on the field. After the trainers looked at him, Ruan was able to get back up and stay in the game. He had a typical night making runs and finished with three tackles and a clearance. Offensively though, he did not add too much.

MF, Uri Rosell, 6 — Rosell had a very quiet first half, although he did finish with the most touches out of both teams (46). He also had the most passes (45). He continued that production in the second half, finishing with 83 passes and an impressive 89% passing accuracy. He had three shots, one on target, and one key pass. Defensively, Rosell had one tackle, one interception, and two clearances. He was quiet on the night, but solid in the middle of the field.

MF, Will Johnson, 6 — Johnson did an excellent job defending in the 27th minute. Jansson pushed up but lost the ball, and Johnson expertly dropped into the back line. Frankowski got the ball over the top and Johnson fought for a goal kick. He finished with two shots, one on target. He was one of the best defenders for the Lions with four clearances and a tackle before being subbed out for Sacha Kljestan. He had a 91% passing accuracy — second highest in the game behind Chicago’s Johan Kappelhof.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 6.5 — On the opening goal, Pereyra showed his vision and passing ability as he found Michel over the top, and was awarded an assist. In the 22nd minute, he gave a one touch pass from Nani that freed Akindele in the box. Akindele should have scored as it was a perfect pass from Pereyra. He had a fantastic dummy in the 42nd minute to feed the ball into Michel, a great play as there were three defenders around him. He had a brainless, lazy foul in the 69th minute but nothing came of the free kick. He ended the match with three key passes. His greatest ability is his vision and he was a key part of the match.

F, Nani, 4 — Orlando City started the match with plenty of energy and this was evident just seconds into the game when Nani committed a foul. He got a yellow card in stoppage time of the first half for yelling at the referee. He sent a perfect ball into Tesho in the 54th minute and the forward hit the post on the header, but was offside anyway. In the 93rd minute, he should’ve scored when one-on-one with Kenneth Kronholm but hit the right post. He had no key passes, just one shot on target, and was not a big factor in the match.

F, Tesho Akindele, 5 — He opened the scoring in the fifth minute. His shot hit the post, then Kenneth Kronholm’s heel, and trickled in the back of the net to get to 10 goals on the year — a career high. He should have had his brace in the 22nd minute. After a perfect pass from Pereyra, Akindele was one-on-one with Kronholm, but shot it right at the goalkeeper. That was about all he did in the match and was quiet the rest of the game. If not for his goal, his grade would be much lower. He finished with two shots, both on target, and two key passes.

F, Benji Michel, 7 (MotM) — The rookie made a good run in the second minute that ended with a tactical foul from Johan Kappelhof. He then immediately got into the box and just missed on the rebound. Minutes later, his tenacity played a part in the first goal. Later on, when he got his chance he put it in the back of the net. Kljestan played a great through ball and Michel beat Kronholm one-on-one to score. In the 85th minute, he should’ve score again but took one touch too many. Even when the match was well and decided, Michel still kept fighting, kept getting in good positions, and kept trying to find the back of the net. The rookie finished with five shots, four on target, three key passes, and was the most threatening player on the field.

Substitutes

D, Shane O’Neill (36’), 3 — The defender came on for Jansson and O’Neill didn’t have much work to do in the first half, his only defensive stats were two clearances. He did have 10 passes in those 10 minutes, all completed. His first true defensive action was in the 52nd minute. Frankowski had the ball inside the 18, and O’Neill did well to eliminate any real options and Frankowski could only shoot right at him. He should have done better on Sapong’s goal and he watched Frankowski score the fifth goal instead of challenging him on the goal line. The defender ended the match with four clearances and no tackles.

MF, Sacha Kljestan (55’), 5 — He missed a wide open goal just after coming on, albeit from a tight angle and just a couple of seconds after he’d threaded a perfect ball through the defense to Akindele. The ball came from his right and he took a left foot shot but hit the outside of the post. In 35 minutes he tied Pereyra and Michel for the team’s most chances created. He had a nice pass in the 74th minute and showed some clinical vision with a perfect assist to Michel. In addition to Kljestan’s three key passes, 19 total passes on 24 touches, and a 79% passing accuracy.

F, Chris Mueller (80’), N/A — A few minutes after coming on, he sent a cross from Kljestan back across the box to Michel with his head. Michel couldn’t finish but it was an excellent headed pass from Mueller. Still, Mueller was in alone and decided to pass instead of shoot. An odd decision from the second-year player. He had no shots and four passes on five touches.

That’s how I saw things. What did you think? Be sure to vote for your Man of the Match in the poll below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Will Johnson4
Mauricio Pereyra1
Benji Michel11
Uri Rosell12
Other2

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/15/25

Lions earn weekly recognition, United States Men’s National Team announces friendlies, talking points about the women’s Euros, and more.

Published

24 hours ago

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July 15, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Good morning, everyone. I write to you all from the great state of South Carolina, as I continue my summer of frequent and widespread traveling. We have a lot to talk through this morning, so let’s wish a happy birthday to Orlando City B’s Tristan Himes and get into today’s links!

Lions Earn Weekly Recognition

A pair of Orlando City players have earned some recognition for their contributions during the Lions’ 1-1 draw with CF Montreal on Saturday. First up is Martin Ojeda, who garnered a nomination for the MLS Goal of the Matchday for this pinpoint, low free kick he scored which gave Orlando a lead in the first half.

We also can’t forget about Alex Freeman, who got a shoutout as a well-performing young player due to another solid performance at right back. Here’s hoping both men keep up the good work!

USMNT Announces October Friendlies

The United States Men’s National Team has announced that it will play friendlies against Ecuador and Australia during the October international window. The USMNT will face Ecuador on Oct. 10 at Q2 Stadium in Austin, TX, before playing Australia at Dick’s Sporting Good Park in Commerce City, CO. Both opponents are ranked in the top 25 in the world, and have already secured qualification for the 2026 World Cup. The games are exactly the sort of contests that the U.S. should be scheduling in the buildup to the tournament, and it’ll be interesting to see the performances of whatever roster Mauricio Pochettino chooses to deploy.

Women’s Euro Talking Points

The group stage of the women’s European Championship has come to an end, and there are plenty of things to talk about while we wait for the knockout stages to start later this week. Teams like Italy and Sweden have exceeded the expectations that many people had for them ahead of the tournament starting, while others like the Netherlands and Denmark had poor showings compared to what was expected of them. Alexia Putellas has unsurprisingly shone, and the quarterfinal matchup between France and Germany is the one that many people will have circled on their calendars.

Club World Cup Takeaways

Now that the Club World Cup has come to a conclusion, what did we learn from the tournament? For one, the quality of play was mostly good, as teams certainly took the competition seriously. Lessons need to be learned when it comes to pricing tickets appropriately and not kicking games off in the middle of the day during the heat of summer, but if the right adjustments are made, it could grow into a really fun competition to look forward to. Brazilian fans were one of the highlights of the tournament, while extremely low attendance numbers for some games were more of a blemish. Overall, the tournament is probably a net positive, but there are absolutely things that can and must be improved upon if it’s going to continue in this form.

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  • Martin Ojeda has now gone seven straight matches with a goal contribution, which is a new club record!

That does it for me this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

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

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 1-1 draw against CF Montreal?

Published

2 days ago

on

July 14, 2025

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

A late penalty saw Orlando City drop two points against CF Montreal, drawing 1-1 at Inter&Co Stadium Saturday. It was a disappointing result against a team sitting last in the Eastern Conference and tied for last in the Supporters’ Shield standings. Despite missing two key players in Pedro Gallese and Robin Jansson to suspension, the Lions should’ve easily come away with three points. Instead, they’ll see it as a missed opportunity.

Let’s take a look at the individual performances in this forgettable game.

Starters

GK, Javier Otero, 6 — It’s tough to grade Otero in this game because he didn’t have much to do. Montreal’s goal was a penalty, which you can hardly blame on the young goalkeeper. However, he did well with his feet and showed poise despite seeing few minutes for the first team. Statistically, Otero touched the ball 19 times, completing 93.8% of his 16 passes, including two of his three long balls.  Since the penalty was the only shot on target, he didn’t make any saves.

D, Rafael Santos, 6 — Jansson’s suspension moved David Brekalo to his natural center back position, opening left back for Santos. He touched the ball 43 times in his return to the starting lineup, completing 92% of his 25 passes, including one of his two crosses. He logged one interception, three clearances, and an aerial duel won on the defensive end. He didn’t do much with the ball, not taking any shots and being dispossessed twice. He came off in the 76th minute for Kyle Smith.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 5.5 — Schlegel had a team-leading 101 touches, completing 94.2% of his 86 passes, including four of his eight long balls. Defensively, he recorded five interceptions, five clearances, and two aerial balls won. He didn’t get into the attack. The Argentine would’ve had an excellent grade, hoowever, he left his leg out in the 81st minute, allowing Prince Owusu to go down, drawing a penalty and allowing Montreal to equalize. The fact that Schlegel single-handedly cost his team two points undoes much of the good he did in the game.

D, David Brekalo, 6 — Brekalo returned center back, touching the ball 58 times. He completed 95.9% of his 49 passes, including one of his three long balls. The Slovenian added two tackles, an interception, three clearances, and two aerial wins. In the attack, Brekalo had one off-target shot, a header late in the first half.

D, Alex Freeman, 6 — Freeman returned from the Gold Cup and had a solid performance. The young right back had 68 touches, completing 85.7% of his 49 passes, including two key passes and one of his three long balls. He had four tackles defensively, won an aerial ball, and took two off-target shots (one of them was blocked on a potential game-winner late in the match).

MF, Martin Ojeda, 6.5 (MotM) — Ojeda had 56 touches, completing 87.5% of his 40 passes, including two key passes and one of his four crosses. He put one of his three shots on target, scoring on a free kick in the 28th minute. He contributed defensively with two tackles and an interception. He wasn’t far and away the best player, but he played well, and his goal earns him my Man of the Match.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6 — Araujo was active, touching the ball 77 times and completing 89.4% of his 66 passes, including two of his five long balls. He only had one tackle defensively and didn’t do much offensively except drawing a team-high five fouls. The defensive midfielder came off in the 88th minute for Nico Rodriguez with the Lions needing a goal.

MF, Eduard Atuesta, 6.5 — Atuesta’s 91 touches were second on the team, and he completed 97.3% of his 75 passes, including two key passes, his lone cross, and both long balls. Defensively, he logged two tackles, two interceptions, and an aerial duel won. The defensive midfielder didn’t take any shots in one of Orlando City’s few strong performances. Without Ojeda’s goal, Atuesta could’ve very well been my Man of the Match in this game.

MF, Marco Pasalic, 6 — Pasalic touched the ball 45 times, completing 84.9% of his 33 passes, including his lone long ball. He didn’t have any key passes or take any shots in a quiet night for the attacker. However, he did add two interceptions defensively, and he drew multiple free kicks in good spots for Orlando, including the one that led to Ojeda’s goal and a late first-half opportunity that was headed off target by Brekalo.

F, Ramiro Enrique, 5 — Enrique had 21 touches, completing 66.7% of his 12 passes without any key passes, crosses, or long balls. His one shot was a late first-half header into the arms of Jonathan Sirois. The forward also didn’t do anything defensively before being replaced by Dagur Dan Thorhallsson in the 76th minute. In addition, he lost the ball trying to dribble through defenders on multiple occasions, which was a factor in Orlando City’s inability to develop much rhythm in possession.

F, Luis Muriel, 5.5 — Muriel had 28 touches in this game, completing 66.7% of his 15 passes, including two key passes and his only cross, but neither of his two long balls. His only shot was a 24th-minute attempt that didn’t cause Sirois any trouble. Meanwhile, he had two unstable touches and was dispossessed twice in dangerous positions as he tried to dribble through the entire Montreal defense. While Muriel did have an assist, he doesn’t get much credit because all he had to do was stop the slow-rolling ball for Ojeda to put away. Muriel’s night ended in the 59th minute when he was replaced by Ivan Angulo.

Substitutes

MF, Ivan Angulo (59’), 5.5 — Angulo came on in the 59th minute for Muriel, touching the ball 17 times and completing all nine of his passes. However, none of them were long or crossed. He took one shot that was blocked and did little else to make his appearance noticeable.

MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson (76’), 6 — Thorhallsson came on in the 76th minute for Enrique as the Lions looked to hang onto their 1-0 lead. He had 10 touches in his 14 minutes, completing 87.5% of his eight passes. He didn’t have any key passes or take any shots, adding a tackle defensively.

D, Kyle Smith (76’), 6 — Smith came on for Santos in the 76th minute in a defensive change. He touched the ball 15 times, completing nine of his 10 passes, including a key pass. Defensively, he added a clearance. Also, a tip of the cap to Smith who made his 200th appearance across all competitions for the club, becoming the second player to do so.

MF, Nico Rodriguez (88’), N/A — Rodriguez was a late replacement for Araujo as the Lions looked to push forward after Montreal tied the game. He completed three of his four passes and took one shot that was on target. He didn’t have any other stats in his short appearance.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s 1-1 draw with CF Montreal. Let us know how you saw the game in the comments below and don’t forget to vote on your Man of the Match.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/14/25

Lions draw against CF Montreal, Pride players in action abroad, OCB wins, and more.

Published

2 days ago

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July 14, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you in Florida. I’ve been keeping myself busy at work. Our Lions and OCB were both in action over the weekend. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Lions Drop Points in Home Draw against CF Montreal

Orlando City picked up a 1-1 draw against CF Montreal on Saturday at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions got off to a good start in the first half as Martin Ojeda scored the opening goal. In the second half, defender Kyle Smith came off the bench and became the second player in club history to make 200 appearances for the club across all competitions.

However, Orlando was unable to hold onto the lead as Rodrigo Schlegel fouled Prince Owusu, and Montreal was awarded a penalty kick late in the second half. Owusu buried his shot from the spot to tie the match as the teams split the points. Orlando is winless in its last three matches and dropped to sixth in the Eastern Conference standings with 35 points. Orlando City will face New York City FC Wednesday at Inter&Co Stadium.

Pride Players in Women’s AFCON, Euros, and Copa America

Orlando Pride forwards Barbra Banda and Prisca Chilufya were in action for Zambia in their final group stage match in the 2025 Women’s African Cup of Nations against Congo DR over the weekend. Grace Chanda did not play, but Zambia defeated Congo 1-0 with a goal from Bay FC forward Racheal Kundananji to book a spot in the quarterfinals.

Zambia finished second in the group behind host Morocco on goal difference with seven points. The Copper Queens will take on Nigeria Friday in the quarterfinals at Stade Larbi Zaouli. On Sunday, England crushed Wales 6-1 in the third match of the group stage in the 2025 UEFA Women’s Euros in Switzerland. Orlando Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse was on the bench. England finished second in its group and will face Sweden Thursday in the quarterfinals. Lastly, Brazil was in action Sunday in the group stage of the 2025 Copa America Feminina against Venezuela. Orlando Pride forward Marta and midfielder Angelina played as Brazil defeated Venezuela 2-0.

OCB Beats Carolina Core FC at Home

Orlando City B beat Carolina Core FC 3-1 Sunday at Osceola County Stadium. The Young Lions struck first with a goal from Justin Ellis. OCB held onto the lead through halftime. In the second half, Orlando City B won a penalty kick, and Ellis converted to give the Young Lions a 2-0 lead. Carolina Core FC scored to pull within one, but Thalles scored his first goal for OCB late in the second half to clinch the three points. OCB won its first home match since June 6 and remains unbeaten in its last three matches. The Young Lions will be on the road to face New England Revolution II Sunday at Gillette Stadium.

Chelsea Wins the FIFA Club World Cup

Chelsea defeated Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 to win the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Sunday at MetLife Stadium. Chelsea dominated PSG in the first half, as Cole Palmer scored twice and Joao Pedro added one. Palmer also assisted on Pedro’s goal. Palmer scored three goals and recorded two assists throughout the competition and won the Best Player of the Tournament Award. Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez won the Golden Glove Award as the best goalkeeper in the tournament. Paris Saint-Germain forward Desire Doue won the Best Young Player Award, and Real Madrid forward Gonzalo Garcia won the Golden Boot, scoring four goals in the tournament.

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

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