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Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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6 years ago

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Orlando City hosted New York City FC at Exploria Stadium after having the previous match against the Columbus Crew postponed. Óscar Pareja was finally able to send out the speedy Ruan, which was important with Pedro Gallese and Sebas Méndez still away on international duty. Unfortunately, João Moutinho, Uri Rosell, Mauricio Pereyra, Tesho Akindele, and Dom Dwyer are all still out with injuries and both Kyle Smith and Benji Michel joined the parade of unavailable players, so we saw a mixed unit of normal starters and newer guys. Let’s see how they did.

Starters

GK, Brian Rowe, 7.5 (MOTM) — Rowe had one of his best matches as a Lion on Wednesday night. He made seven saves in the match, including three difficult saves in the 26th, 64th, and 83rd minutes. He initially stopped Keaton Park’s scoring attempt in the 43rd minute, but it squirted past him and Park got to it first to level the score. Rowe attempted 20 passes at a 70% passing rate, and completed six of 12 long balls attempted. His distribution was solid, but it was his shot stopping that helped earn the point for Orlando City.

D, Kamal Miller, 5.5 — Like the rest of Orlando City’s defense, Miller had a strong showing. He made several good defensive tackles, including one that made up for a giveaway in the 71st minute on a bad pass to Nani. After giving that ball away, he tracked back, caught up, and dispossessed NYCFC in Orlando’s area. Defensively, Miller had one tackle, three clearances, five interceptions, and committed two fouls, earning a yellow card. He attempted 47 passes and had an 83% passing rate, and connected on four of eight long balls attempted. He had one shot that went wide left in the 62nd minute.

D, Robin Jansson, 6 — As usual, Jansson seemed to be wherever he was needed in leading the defense. He even came out of nowhere to make an interception in the opposing half. Defensively, Jansson made one tackle, one interception, three clearances, one blocked shot, and committed two fouls, earning a yellow card. Jansson attempted 43 passes at an 86.1% passing rate, and completed three of five long balls attempted. The Lions tried the Nani/Jansson “who’s going to take the free kick” thing again, and though it gave Jansson a shot attempt on the score sheet, it once again didn’t work.

D, Antonio Carlos, 6 — Carlos continued to show why he is a first choice starter on a club with several good defensive players. He made numerous key solo defensive plays to keep NYCFC off the scoreboard. Defensively, he made one tackle, eight interceptions, two clearances, and suffered one foul. Carlos attempted 54 passes with a 77.8% passing rate, and completed four of his 10 attempted long balls. However, it was his turnover that led to NYCFC’s goal.

D, Ruan, 6 — Ruan made his return after several weeks on the injured list. He played all the way into the 92nd minute before being subbed off. Often a player that has not seen the field in a while has trouble getting back up to speed. That isn’t the case with the fleet feet of Ruan. He was seemingly as fast as usual, leaving defenders in his wake. He did his usual job roaming up and down the right side to contribute on both ends. In addition to taking one shot, he provided the very pretty assist on Mueller’s goal, and earned a corner in the 20th minute. Defensively he made two tackles, three clearances, had one blocked shot, and one interception, and committed no fouls. Ruan attempted 26 passes, had an 80.8% passing rate, with two key passes, and completed one long ball. He did pass up a good opportunity to shoot late in the game.

MF, Joey DeZart, 5.5 — With plenty of the usual starters out, DeZart got his second start for the Lions, He took no shots on his 43 touches. He didn’t make many mistakes and looked a little nervy at times in the midfield — not that he’s gotten many minutes. He attempted 37 passes with a 91.9% passing rate, and completed one long ball. Defensively he had one clearance, and suffered one foul.

MF, Junior Urso, 5.5 — Urso put in a decent if a bit quiet shift. He attempted 30 passes with an 83.3% passing rate, and attempted one long ball. On defense he made one tackle, one interception, suffered one foul, and committed one foul. He did give NYCFC something to think about in the middle of the field, and that doesn’t always show up in the box score.

MF, Chris Mueller, 7 — The rest allowed by the postponed match against the Crew might have helped Mueller as much as anyone. In the early part of the game he was the Energizer bunny energy we’ve come to expect, but he didn’t have as much of the sloppiness he’s shown recently. Though he wasn’t able to connect on a diving header on an early Nani cross, he did score in the 18th minute on a header from Ruan’s excellent assist. Mueller was credited with two shots, with one on target for a goal. He committed one foul, and suffered two. Mueller attempted 31 passes with a 74.2% passing rate, and completed one of two long balls attempted.

MF,Andrés Perea, 6 — Perea started the match out very hot, missing just left on his only shot on goal in the second minute. That shot followed after he took the ball off a NYCFC player, made a nice give and go with Nani, and found himself in front of goal. Like the rest of Orlando City, Perea looked very good in the first half. He made three tackles, one clearance, and had one blocked shot. He attempted 33 passes, had a 97% passing rate, made one key pass, and connected on both of his long ball attempts.

MF, Nani, 6.5 — The captain looked like a man determined to put the team on his shoulders and win the thing all by himself at times. I’m not sure if he wasn’t feeling very trusting of some of his teammates, or if he just wanted the ball himself, but he had mixed results. Nani made some ridiculous moves on the NYCFC defense, making them look silly, but he also gave the ball up quite a bit. Still, he earned six fouls and only committed one. He had two shots, with one on target, and four crosses. He attempted 34 passes but with only a 58.8% passing rate, while creating three key passes and completing two of his five long ball attempts. Defensively he chipped in two tackles and an interception. Nani created havoc in his attack on NYCFC, but at times he also created issues for his own team in this game.

F, Daryl Dike, 5.5 — It’s not easy being the only available striker, and as such Dike was also a player that benefitted from the postponed match against the Crew. Dike only had one shot, a missed header in the 14th minute after a great team buildup to put the ball in the six-yard box. Generally, the big man was effective in occupying space, holding up play, and making good turns once he had the ball. However it wasn’t his best match either, as he was caught offside three times. Statistically, he suffered four fouls while committing none and made two tackles. Dike attempted 11 passes with a 63.3% passing rate.

Substitutes

MF, David Loera (76’), 5— Loera was brought on for DeZart to provide some energy and relieve some tired legs. Unfortunately, he was only able to get three touches. He completed his only pass attempt and drew a foul but it was a quiet appearance for the final 14 minutes plus 10 minutes of stoppage time.

MF, Robinho (84’), N/A — Robinho subbed in for Mueller, but only had four touches and one pass, which didn’t connect, and came on a bit too late to earn a grade.

MF, Jordan Bender (93’), N/A — Bender made his MLS debut in stoppage time. It was a bit of a time-wasting move as he relieved Dike. He committed a foul as his first action in MLS. That is all. He didn’t even register a touch of the ball.

D, Alex De John, (93’), N/A — De John came on late for Ruan, and only had three touches, and one (incomplete) pass.

That was how I saw it. Vote for your Man of the Match in the poll, and comment below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Brian Rowe53
Antônio Carlos0
Chris Mueller0
Nani2
Ruan2
Other (write in comments)0

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/6/26

Pride fall to Angel City, OCB draw Crown Legacy, World Cup roundup, and more.

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1 hour ago

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July 6, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City B

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope you all had a great Fourth of July holiday weekend down in Florida. I was busy working over the weekend, but I got to check out a fireworks show at Wrigley Field. Let’s wish a happy belated birthday to Orlando City B goalkeeper Juan Rojas, who turned 18 Saturday. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Pride Fall to Angel City

The Orlando Pride fell 2-0 to Angel City FC at BMO Stadium Friday in their first match after the month-long World Cup break. Maiara Niehues scored the opener for Angel City in the first half. Sveindis Jonsdottir added another goal for Angel City to seal the win. With Barba Banda sidelined with a thigh injury, Orlando struggled to get anything going offensively and couldn’t get the ball out of its own end throughout the match. That result keeps the Pride in eighth, one point ahead of Angel City in the NWSL table. The Pride will look to bounce back at home Friday, facing the Kansas City Current at Inter&Co Stadium.

OCB Falls in Penalty Shootout After 1-1 Draw vs. Crown Legacy

Orlando City B overturned a 1-0 deficit to secure a 1-1 draw against Crown Legacy on the road at the Sportsplex at Matthews Sunday. After a scoreless first half, all the goals came in the second half. Crown Legacy struck first to take the lead, but Dylan Judelson leveled the match for the Young Lions. Crown Legacy won the penalty shootout 4-2 to earn a second point. OCB will be back on the road to take on FC Cincinnati 2 Sunday at NKU Soccer Stadium in Highland Heights, KY.

Crepeau and Canada Shut Out by Morocco in World Cup

The World Cup Round of 16 kicked off Saturday, with Canada falling 3-0 to Morocco at NRG Stadium in Houston. Orlando City goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau got the start for Canada. Former Lions Cyle Larin and Richie Laryea were in action as well. After a scoreless first half, Azzedine Ounahi scored twice in the second half for Morocco to take a 2-0 lead. Soufiane Rahimi added the insurance goal in stoppage time to put this match away as Morocco booked a spot in the quarterfinals, while Canada’s run in the tournament came to an end.

World Cup Roundup

In the other matchups from the Round of 16 over the weekend, Kylian Mbappe scored from the penalty spot for the only goal of the match in France’s 1-0 win against Paraguay Saturday. Orlando City midfielder Braian Ojeda was on the bench but did not play. On Sunday, Erling Haaland scored twice to help Norway edge Brazil 2-1 to reach the quarterfinals for the first time, and Jude Bellingham scored twice for England in a 3-2 win against Mexico. France will play Morocco, while England takes on Norway in the quarterfinals. Today’s Round of 16 matchups feature Spain facing Portugal and the U.S. Men’s National Team taking on Belgium.

Folarin Balogun’s Red Card Ban Suspended by FIFA

FIFA announced Sunday that the federation’s Disciplinary Committee suspended U.S. Men’s National Team forward Folarin Balogun’s one match red card ban. After being issued a one-match ban following his red card in the USMNT’s 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Round of 32, Balogun will be available to play in tonight’s Round of 16 match against Belgium at Lumen Field in Seattle. Balogun’s one-match ban will be placed on a one-year suspension status, but if he commits a similar infraction within that time, he will have to serve the ban. With Balogun back in play, it’s a huge boost for the USMNT attack, as he has scored three goals for the Yanks in the World Cup.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City gave a shout-out on social media to Crepeau, Marco Pasalic, and Ojeda for their great runs with their respective countries, reaching the knockout stages of the World Cup.
  • Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is reportedly set to become the new manager of the German Men’s National Team.

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

Flashback Friday: July 4, 2023 vs. Toronto FC

Let’s rewind to an Independence Day affair that had plenty of offensive fireworks.

Published

3 days ago

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July 3, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

The United States Men’s National Team picked up a gritty, resilient 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Round of 32 on Wednesday, and will now face Belgium in a rematch of the 2014 World Cup Round of 16 next Monday. While we patiently wait for that game, it’s time to continue our Friday tradition of revisiting some classic Orlando City games from years past.

Last week, we rewound to a high octane affair against the Chicago Fire in late June 2022, that saw the Lions douse Chicago’s flames and pick up a much-needed 4-2 victory. Today, let’s hop in the time machine and travel back to Independence Day 2023, when Toronto FC came to town.

At the time of Toronto’s visit, things were going relatively smoothly for OCSC. The team was riding a three-match unbeaten streak and had scored five goals across those three games. Oscar Pareja lined up his team in its customary 4-2-3-1, with Pedro Gallese in goal; a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith; Wilder Cartagena and Cesar Araujo in the double pivot; Ivan Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres in the attacking midfield; and Duncan McGuire up top.

Orlando very nearly got a goal a little under 10 minutes into the game. Former OCSC goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh knocked down a cross in front of the net, and while Pereyra was first to the ball, he could only blast it over the bar with the goal at his mercy. Fortunately, that miss would not come back to haunt the Lions, who bagged the game’s first goal in the 16th minute. Angulo sucked defenders toward him on the left edge of the box before releasing Santos out wide. The fullback played a peach of a first-time, curling cross to the back post, where Araujo was waiting to power a diving header into the side netting at the far post for his first league goal.

That goal broke the game open, and Orlando got another goal six minutes later to double the advantage. It initially looked like a carbon copy of the first goal, with Santos out in space on the left side of the box, sending in a curled cross. The ball deflected off a defender and came in low toward the goal. Ranjitsingh waited for the ball instead of going to claim it, and that allowed McGuire to nip in front of him and get a touch on the ball to sneak it in at the near post.

Orlando nearly got even more goals inside the half hour, with Torres and McGuire both going close in quick succession. Federico Bernardeschi smashed a shot off the post in the 28th minute, and the Lions seemed to be losing focus a little bit, with the hydration break a welcome pause in play when it came. OCSC came out of the pause well, and Pereyra put Angulo through in the 36th minute, but the Colombian couldn’t bring the ball under control and fashion a shooting chance.

Orlando led in every meaningful statistical category at halftime. The Lions had more possession (55.8%-44.2%), shots (6-2), shots on goal (2-0), corners (4-2), and passing accuracy (89.5%-85%). Most importantly, they led 2-0 on the scoreboard.

Toronto tried to change things at halftime by introducing three substitutes, but Orlando settled back into the game quickly and negated the efforts of interim TFC manager Terry Dunfield. Angulo and Torres forced Ranjitsingh into a pair of saves in the 53rd and 55th minutes, and the Lions tried to press their advantage by sending on Ramiro Enrique and Martin Ojeda in the 57th minute for McGuire and Pereyra.

The game then changed in a big way in the 62nd minute. Cartagena and Bernardeschi exchanged words after a turnover, and the Italian winger put Cartagena on the ground with the help of a little theatrics from the midfielder. Bernardeschi had already been yellow carded in the 47th minute for a foul on Smith, and the altercation with Wilder saw him receive a second yellow and his marching orders to go along with it.

With TFC down to 10 men, the Lions started to tee off at goal. Ojeda came close to getting the team’s third in the 69th minute, with Enrique doing the same in the 71st but missing just wide. When the goal finally came, it was from the unlikely foot of Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, who had been subbed into the game alongside Ercan Kara in the 68th minute.

Thorhallsson made a great run behind the defense in the 77th minute, and Araujo picked him out well. Ranjitsingh came out to try to play sweeper-keeper, but DDT beat him to the ball easily, touched it around the former Lion, and rolled it into the empty net to score his first MLS goal and make it 3-0.

Toronto had a halfway decent chance to pull one back in the 82nd minute, but Brandon Servania’s long-distance attempt at chipping Gallese ended up missing high and settling on the roof of the net. Kara then iced the game in the 84th minute. Araujo fired a pass to Ojeda at the top of the box, and even though he had trouble bringing it under control, he had the presence of mind to backheel it toward goal for the big Austrian to pounce on and fire a low, hard shot into the net for 4-0.

Ojeda nearly got a goal of his own two minutes later but had a great effort saved in what was the last truly dangerous moment of the game.

As was the case at halftime, when the final whistle blew, the Lions had created plenty of fireworks on both the scoreboard and the stat sheet. OCSC finished with more possession (59.6%-40.4%), shots (18-6), shots on target (9-0), corners (8-2), and passing accuracy (91%-84.8%).

Marcus Mitchell had Player Grades for this one, and he named Araujo the Man of the Match with a grade of 8 out of 10 for his one-goal/one-assist effort. The other high performers on the night were Antonio Carlos, and Cartagena, who each graded out at 7.5 out of 10.

That’ll do it for this week’s trip down memory lane. We’ve been getting spoiled lately, with Orlando putting up four goals in back-to-back time machine games, and it’s made for an enjoyable glimpse into years gone by. With any luck, next week’s edition will be similarly entertaining. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/3/26

Orlando Pride visit Angel City tonight, NWSL free agents to watch, Portugal and Spain advance, and more.

Published

3 days ago

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July 3, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Happy Friday, Mane Landers! I don’t have many plans this holiday weekend beyond enjoying some soccer and indulging myself in a few hot dogs to celebrate. It should be a fun weekend, but make sure to stay safe out there if you plan on setting off any fireworks. For now though, let’s get to the links!

Orlando Pride Take On Angel City FC Tonight

The NWSL resumes today and the Orlando Pride will play against Angel City FC at 10 p.m. in their first match since a 3-1 win over Bay FC on May 29. That win capped off a six-game month for the Pride, including a stretch of three straight road games. Meanwhile, Angel City parted ways with Alex Straus over the break after only winning once in May, and tonight’s match will be Leif Gunnar Smerud’s first since being named interim head coach. It can be tough playing an opponent with a new coach, but hopefully the Pride can bring all three points back to Orlando.

Top NWSL Free Agents to Watch

Free agency is officially underway in the NWSL and the list of players with contracts expiring at the end of the year includes some of the league’s best players. Orlando Pride star Marta was listed as one of the top free agents to watch, though I would be pretty shocked if she plays for another NWSL club if she leaves Orlando after this season. Leicy Santos, Debinha, and Rose Lavelle are other skilled attackers who will become free agents, but Gotham FC goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger is sure to have plenty of clubs reaching out for her talents as well.

Portugal and Spain Advance in World Cup

This World Cup hasn’t been short on excitement and that continued with Portugal’s 2-1 win against Croatia. After a scoreless first half, Croatia took the lead thanks to a goal from Ivan Perisic, but Cristiano Ronaldo equalized from the penalty spot and the game was moments away from heading to extra time. Goncalo Ramos gave Portugal the goal it needed to advance deep in stoppage time, but Croatia nearly came back with a goal that was disallowed due to an offside call. Spain cruised to a 3-0 win against Austria to book its spot in the round of 16 as well. Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice for his second brace of the tournament, with Marc Cucurella assisting on both of his goals. Spain and Portugal will square off in the next round in what should be a fantastic match. Switzerland and Algeria kicked off late.

The round of 32 wraps up today with a trio of matches, starting with Egypt’s game against Australia. Cape Verde will then look to shock the world when it plays Argentina, and the late game will be between Colombia and Ghana.

Columbus Crew Sign New Designated Player

The Columbus Crew have signed Spanish midfielder Brais Mendez to a Designated Player contract through the 2028-2029 season with a club option for the 2029-2030 season. Mendez has spent the past four La Liga seasons with Real Sociedad, recording 33 goals and 24 assists in 166 appearances. He gives the crew some additional firepower as reports swirl regarding Diego Rossi’s departure for CF Monterrey. While maybe not in the same headline-grabbing tier of MLS summer signings like Antoine Griezmann or Robert Lewandowski, Mendez is a big addition to the league as the Eastern Conference arms race continues.

Free Kicks

  • CF Montreal sent $2.1 million in General Allocation Money to Austin FC in exchange for midfielder Dani Pereira. Selected with the first overall pick in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft, Pereira has contributed six goals and 23 assists in 165 appearances across all competitions for Austin.
  • Real Salt Lake reportedly rejected a transfer bid around $3.5 million from CF Monterrey for midfielder Diego Luna.
  • American winger Emma Sears reportedly requested a trade from Racing Louisville, although the club is not reportedly interested in a midseason transfer.
  • The United States Men’s National Team’s win over Bosnia and Herzegovina had record viewership. Understandably so, too, as I spent most of the match pacing around my living room.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!

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