Connect with us

Orlando City

Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Final Score 1-1 as Lions Improbably Advance on Penalties

Things looked dire when Pedro Gallese got a second yellow during spot kicks but Rodrigo Schlegel’s save (really!) and Benji Michel’s goal see Orlando through to Round 2.

Published

6 years ago

on

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Only a madman would try to sort through what just happened in a first-round MLS playoff match between Orlando City and New York City FC at Exploria Stadium. So here goes…

The Lions advanced to the second round after an improbable shootout victory following a 1-1 draw against the Pigeons, which included:

  • Ruan getting sent off in the 87th minute.
  • Tesho Akindele missing a sitter in the 10th minute of stoppage time that would have seen Orlando City win, 2-1.
  • Maxi Moralez hitting the crossbar with the first shot of the penalty shootout.
  • Starting Orlando City goalkeeper Pedro Gallese getting sent off with a second yellow card after making a save in penalty kicks that appeared to win the game — video review showed he came off his line a little early.
  • Orlando City being allowed to sub on goalkeeper Brian Rowe, who was then sent back to the bench after a lengthy delay, then brought back on, then sent back off, because there were no subs allowed during spot kicks.
  • Center back Rodrigo Schlegel replacing Gallese in goal and allowing Valentin Castellanos to tie the shootout at 4-4 with one Orlando shooter remaining.
  • Nani, the fifth OCSC shooter, having his penalty saved by Sean Johnson to force sudden death penalties.
  • Schlegel saving a shot by Gudmundur Thórarinsson, knocking it off the left post.
  • Benji Michel making the ensuing penalty to send Orlando through to the second round of the MLS playoffs.

The game was utter madness. A movie about it would be seen as too unbelievable. And yet, somehow Orlando City survived all of the insanity to advance past its fellow 2015 expansion side into the second round of the MLS playoffs.

Nani made an early penalty and New York City FC nearly immediately canceled it out with a Maxime Chanot set piece goal off a corner, and then neither team could find the net for 122 minutes of normal, stoppage, and extra time.

“I think we need more time to calm down and reflect [on] what happened tonight,” Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “The analysis of the game may wait for tomorrow when we can analyze the soccer side. What just happened at the end, I never saw it before. And this is the beauty of this game…but today the ball bounced our way. We are proud to win and beat one of the best teams in Major League Soccer with 10 men on the field,”

“I think we deserve it, after a difficult game with a lot of emotional moments during the game.” Nani said. “I think our team did great. We wanted to win from the first minute. We worked so hard during this week to prepare ourselves to be able to perform well. And our fans were amazing.”

Pareja’s lineup included Pedro Gallese in goal behind a back line of Kyle Smith, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Ruan. Uri Rosell returned to the starting XI after missing 13 games with an undisclosed injury. Joining him in the midfield were Junior Urso, Mauricio Pereyra, and Chris Mueller, with Nani and Daryl Dike leading the attacking line.

The Lions started brightly, with some early passing sequences into the attacking third. Those paid off when a penalty was awarded four minutes into the match. Mueller sent in a cross for Nani at the back post and the captain’s header deflected off the outstretched arm of Anton Tinnerholm for an obvious handball. Nani stepped up coolly and had an agonizingly slow run-up before sending Johnson the wrong way and scoring inside the right post to make it 1-0 just under five minutes in.

New York City answered immediately. Off the ensuing restart, the Pigeons worked the ball into the box and forced Gallese to make a big stop but the ball skipped out for a corner. Chanot scored on the set piece, freeing himself with a two-handed push on Urso while Jesus Medina’s delivery was in flight, and sending his header in to make it 1-1 in the eighth minute.

Urso’s complaints went unheeded and it was simply the way the game was called all day. Allen Chapman was consistently inconsistent, and you never knew what was or wasn’t going to be called.

Dike tried to restore the lead in the 15th minute with some nice moves to free himself in the box before sending a spinning shot toward the near post. Johnson was there to scoop it up and the rookie may have been better served trying the far side, where there was more traffic, but also no goalkeeper.

New York City FC then started to get most of the good chances for the rest of the half. A deflected cross fell perfectly for an onrushing Medina, who fired but had his shot well saved by Gallese in the 24th minute. Two minutes later, El Pulpo denied Keaton Parks after a collision with no whistle set up a NYCFC transition opportunity.

The game got sloppy on both sides for about the next 15 minutes. NYCFC struggled to connect down the wings, while Orlando City wasted numerous good forays into the attacking third by dribbling straight into the visitors’ traps while ignoring runners to either side.

The Pigeons nearly took the lead in the 43rd minute but Gallese made two incredible saves to keep the game at 1-1. Castellanos fired a rocket from the top of the area that Gallese stopped but the Peruvian couldn’t control the rebound. Parks came in from the right to tuck it home and Gallese stuck up one of his eight arms at the last second to deny the shot.

Orlando’s last good look came at the beginning of first-half stoppage time when Dike set up Mueller at the top of the area. Unfortunately, Mueller got way under his shot and skied it into the roof over the north end of the stadium.

New York City dominated in chance creation in the first half, outshooting the Lions 11-6 (5-2 on target), and winning more corners (6-2). Orlando held more possession (53%-47%) and passed better (83%-75%) or the game could have gotten away from the Lions quickly.

The Lions tried to come out of the locker room quickly, with Rosell firing over the bar two minutes after the restart and Dike getting a shot blocked at the top of the area in the 50th minute. Four minutes later, Ruan toe poked the ball through the box, perhaps expecting Urso to continue his run, but the Bear had checked up and it was an easy collection for Johnson.

Orlando started to make sloppy passes that resulted in turnovers and it nearly was costly in the 64th minute when Gallese bailed out his teammates with a save on a rocket by Medina.

Nani nearly scored in the 71st minute with a deflected shot that was dipping under the bar when Johnson pushed it up and over at the last second.

Ruan was sent off as full time approached. Already on a yellow card for running over Anton Tinnerholm 10 minutes earlier, Ruan was taken down by Gary Mackay-Steven on the sideline. Mackay-Steven then pushed both of his hands into the Brazilian’s abdomen and used Ruan to push himself up off the ground. Ruan took exception to the dirty play by kicking out at Mackay-Steven. Chapman showed a yellow to the NYCFC winger and a red to Ruan. The kick was an obvious and automatic straight red, so the earlier yellow was irrelevant.

Due to numerous stoppages for injuries and slow restarts after fouls, there were 10 minutes of stoppage time added to the end. Ismael Tajouri-Shradi fired wide in the seventh minute of stoppage time but it was Orlando with the best look of injury time. Nani was sent down the left and sent in a deflected cross to Akindele at the back post. The entire net was available with Johnson stuck at his post but the Canadian hit his shot over the bar with just a few seconds remaining in stoppage time and the game went to extra time.

New York City led in shots (20-13), shots on goal (6-3), corners (9-3) and possession (50.9%-49.1%), while Orlando was slightly more accurate in passing (80%-78%).

Tajouri-Shradi had a couple of chances early in extra time, having a shot deflect into the outside netting and then firing wide of the far post from the right side in the opening minutes of the first extra period. Castellanos blasted a volley over the bar in the 99th minute.

Orlando got the last decent chance of the first half of extra time when Akindele got the ball wide on the left side and tried to pick out Urso between two defenders, but the midfielder couldn’t get a clean touch on the ball in traffic.

In the second half of extra time the Lions generated a good chance when second-half sub Kamal Miller dribbled down the left, passed to Nani, then continued his run. The captain gave him the ball back and the defender brought it down with his back to goal. Miller turned and fired a shot just wide of the far post in the 107th minute.

That was the last good look for either side in the second 15 minutes of extra time. The teams were largely spent and there were several stoppages for cramping on both sides.

After the extra 30 minutes with the extra man, New York City dominated the stat sheet, leading in shots (26-16), shots on goal (7-3), corners (11-3), passing accuracy (82%-80%), and possession (55.7%-44.3%). But the game was still tied.

All that was left at that point was spot kicks. Moralez banged the first one off the crossbar to hand Orlando City the advantage. From there, four straight Lions scored — Akindele, Andres Perea, Carlos, and Urso. Meanwhile, Medina, former Lion Tony Rocha, and Ismael Tajouri-Shradi scored for NYCFC. When Gallese stopped Castellanos with a diving save, the team celebrated, but the play was reviewed for El Pulpo coming off his line early.

A lengthy delay ensued, in which Gallese was booked for a second time in the game, and backup goalkeeper Rowe came on, was sent off, came back on, and then was sent back to the sideline a second time. Schlegel came on.

Pareja said that in addition to Schlegel — who had played goalkeeper at the academy level — that Perea volunteered to go in goal. Gallese suggested to the coach that Schlegel get the nod and he did.

Castellanos buried his second chance to put the pressure on Orlando City.

Nani tried to go to the same side that he had earlier with a slow run-up, but this time Johnson got his hand to it and things looked dire for the Lions with a center back in goal and new life for New York City.

“I knew that was the important penalty,” Nani said. “But you know, it’s always harder to take the second penalty on the game. You need to take a side and you need to think and play with the goalkeeper’s mind, because you already took one penalty, so it looks more easy for the goalkeeper. I tried to delay the most I can to try to see if he [made] a move and beat him on one side. He did great. I went for the same side and the top of the goal but he did a great save.”

Nicolas Acevedo scored on the next penalty to put the pressure on Orlando City but Jansson buried the team’s next kick, which brought up Thórarinsson. Schlegel got his hand on the Icelandic defender’s shot to send it off the left post and the Lions celebrated again, but the match wasn’t yet over.

The officials cleared the field and Michel stepped up to take the next kick. He made no mistake with his chance and his goal pushed Orlando into the second round. The third celebration was the one that counted.

“I mean that’s that’s football,” Schlegel said through an interpreter after the match. “One minute you think that you’ve won and the next you don’t. What matters is the end result.”

“Well deserved,” Pareja said of the penalty kick shootout win. “The boys showed today the heart of this franchise. They showed all that intensity and sacrifice after we lost Ruan. What happened today, that will keep in my memory forever.”

The Lions have been incredible in shootouts — or incredibly lucky, depending on your point of view. Orlando City is now 5-0 in penalty shootouts in the MLS era and 2-0 against New York City FC. The Lions won via shootout in U.S. Open Cup action in 2015 at Charleston, in 2018 at D.C. United, and last season at home against NYCFC. Orlando knocked LAFC out of the MLS is Back Tournament on penalties July 31.

The upshot of all the insanity is that Orlando City is through to the second round and now must wait for an opponent.

The Lions will next play in the Eastern Conference semifinals, which start Nov. 29, against an opponent to be determined.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

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

2 days ago

on

July 3, 2026

By

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!

Continue Reading

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

on

July 3, 2026

By

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!

Continue Reading

Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/2/26

USMNT shuts out Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kat Asman loaned to Denver Summit FC, MLS transfer news, and more.

Published

4 days ago

on

July 2, 2026

By

Image of Pride goalkeeper Kat Asman
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

Wednesday nights are starting to feel magical. Orlando City has thrived this year when playing on Wednesdays, and now the United States Men’s National Team has provided us with a reason to tackle this Thursday at full force. Before we dive into that result and the rest of today’s links, let’s all wish a happy birthday to Orlando City defender Tahir Reid-Brown!

USMNT Survives Red Card to Advance

The U.S. won 2-0 against Bosnia and Herzegovina in an emotional rollercoaster of a match in the World Cup’s round of 32. Folarin Balogun got the U.S. on the board at a crucial time right before halftime by scoring his third goal of the tournament. But the game flipped on its head in the second half when Balogun was shown a harsh red card by the referee after video review for a foul when he accidentally came down on the back of an opponent’s foot. The Yanks fought hard to make up for the difference of being down a player and doubled their lead after earning a free kick right outside the box. Malik Tillman’s shot went up and over the wall and into the net for a goal U.S. fans will be replaying over and over again.

The U.S. did well to grind out the win after that second goal, with former Lion Alex Freeman doing his part on defense to help shut out Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was a memorable win, and now the U.S. will turn its focus to its round-of-16 matchup against Belgium on Monday.

Pride Loan Goalkeeper Kat Asman to Denver Summit

The Orlando Pride loaned goalkeeper Kat Asman to the Denver Summit for the remainder of the 2026 NWSL season. Asman is coming off of a loan with Lexington SC in the Gainbridge Super League, where she played every minute of the season to help Lexington win the title. She posted 11 clean sheets with Lexington last season and won the league’s Golden Glove as well. Asman has yet to make an appearance for the Pride since joining prior to the 2025 season, and her contract expires at the end of the season. She now heads to Denver, where Abby Smith has done well in goal as the expansion team’s starter.

MLS Transfer News Roundup

Real Salt Lake sent $625,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) to Atlanta United in exchange for winger Saba Lobjanidze and a third-round pick in the 2028 MLS SuperDraft, with another $100,000 in GAM going Atlanta’s way if he re-signs with Real Salt Lake. The Columbus Crew fully acquired defender Andres Herrera from River Plate after an extended loan, signing him to a contract through the 2028-2029 season. The LA Galaxy transferred defender Mauricio Cuevas to Santos Laguna, the New England Revolution added forward Wilson Harris, and Sporting Kansas City signed center back Moises Mosquera from FC Juarez. The San Jose Earthquakes are reportedly close to signing Scottish goalkeeper Angus Gunn, with Daniel heading to FC Dallas in a trade if that happens. It’s somewhat surprising considering Daniel has done well to help San Jose only concede 15 goals this season.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Sources: San Jose Earthquakes closing in on a deal to sign Scotland int'l GK Angus Gunn.🇧🇷 Sources: FC Dallas has agreed to a deal to acquire GK Daniel from San Jose.➕ Daniel trade is contingent on Gunn signing being formalized.

— Tom Bogert (@tombogert.bsky.social) 2026-07-01T16:34:02.297Z

European Nations Move On After Dramatic Comebacks

This World Cup continues to deliver thrilling games during this new round-of-32 phase. Senegal looked certain to go through to the next round until Belgium scored a pair of goals after the 85th minute to knot the game at 2-2 and send it into extra time. The game was decided by a penalty, but not in a shootout, as a foul in the box resulted in Youri Tielemans scoring from the spot to give Belgium the victory. In Atlanta, Harry Kane scored twice to rescue England in a 2-1 win over the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Brian Cipanga gave the Congo an early lead, but Kane struck twice in the second half, with his winner being one of the best goals of the tournament so far.

England is now set to face Mexico at the Azteca on Sunday in what should be a great game. As for today’s action, Orlando City winger Marco Pasalic and Croatia will take on Portugal in a matchup between European heavyweights. The winner of that match will face whoever prevails today between Spain and Austria, with Switzerland and Algeria squaring off in the late night match.

Free Kicks

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

Continue Reading

Trending