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Lion Links: 3/13/21

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4 years ago

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Happy Saturday, everyone. It’s inching closer and closer to the 2021 MLS and NWSL season and our teams are gearing up for what will hopefully be a great year. The Pride are in action today against Florida State and, while we’re not going to be in Tallahassee to see it today, we eagerly await news that the team is scoring goals again. It should be interesting to see who plays today with another preseason friendly tomorrow against Flagler College.

Let’s get to the news of the day.

Orlando City Reportedly Turned Down $10 Million for Dike

This one goes out to the “but it’s not a $20 million buyout!” crowd. The BBC reported Friday that Orlando City had turned down a purchase bid of $10 million from a “big six” Premier League club for striker Daryl Dike, who is currently on loan with Barnsley FC. Further, Orlando Sentinel reporter Julia Poe reported that a source confirmed that the bid was made and that it included the same retention of 20% of the sell-on fee that was included in the purchase option in Dike’s loan to Barnsley. Poe’s story, as well as the BBC’s, both reiterated that the loan to Barnsley has a $20 million purchase price.

What this all means is that the club places a great deal of faith in Dike’s continued development and, so far, Luiz Muzzi has earned the benefit of the doubt when it comes to personnel decisions. The club wants Dike to stay in Orlando a while longer, continue to grow as a player, and then wish him well and sell him on to a European side for a large sum. A $10 million sale seems hard to turn down and I’m sure the club had to think long and hard before doing so. It would be — by far — a club record sale. So, to turn that down is an indicator of what Orlando City thinks Dike will become. Gifted strikers bring good financial returns and the Lions are betting on making bank on Dike down the road. Atlanta sold Miguel Almiron to a non-big six club for $21 million. Dike’s sale could bring in more than that if he keeps filling the goal.

The Duck Migrates to Orlando

Brazilian forward Alexandre Pato has arrived. Orlando City released comments from Pato and photos of ‘The Duck’ at Exploria Stadium, showing off his new purple ‘Thick N Thin’ No. 7 kit on Friday. Pato seems excited to be here and to play for Oscar Pareja.

“He’s like a father,” Pato said. “He loves you, but sometimes he knows [you] need a push. … I will give everything for him. From the first impression, he’s amazing.”

…

“I’m so empowered now,” Pato said. “My mentality is empowered. I understand what I need to do to enjoy my work. I need to work hard. You get some things important in your life, you need to work hard. So that’s my challenge when I accept[ed] to come to Orlando.”

Orlando Stepping Up as Soccer Destination

We’ve been saying for years that Orlando is the soccer capital of the south and we will continue to irrationally believe that until the sun explodes, but the soccer world really has made its home in Central Florida since the pandemic began.

At a time when sports events closed down, Orlando hosted a combined 94 matches at Exploria Stadium and ESPN Wide World of Sports — only nine of which were closed to fans.

The ability to host games helped to absorb a year of loss for a city dependent on tourism and potentially bolstered Orlando’s bid to become a World Cup host city in 2026.

“I think that in tough times like these, it could have exposed weaknesses and instead just the opposite happened,” Greater Orlando Sports CEO Jason Siegel said. “It showed our true character. I believe that’s the reason that our community was able to come together and start the process of recovering.”

Pulling off events like the MLS is Back Tournament, the Concacaf Champions League, the SheBelieves Cup, international friendlies, and MLS and NWSL Fall Series matches during such a crazy time can only improve Orlando’s chances of becoming a World Cup host city.

Ex-Lion Alex De John Signs with Atlanta United

Like many of you, I was surprised to see that former Orlando City defender Alex De John had signed with Atlanta United on Friday. After all, De John just signed with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds a month ago and seemed poised to get a lot of playing time in the USL Championship. It turns out that the Riverhounds are magnanimous folks who apparently just let their players walk away. Pittsburgh released De John from his contract so he could sign with the Five Stripes. Pittsburgh released a statement yesterday about it.

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC has released defender Alex De John from his contract with the club after De John was offered an opportunity to sign with Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United FC.

“We were excited to have Alex’s USL rights for the 2021 season, but we were very clear with him and his agent prior to signing that we would not stand in his way if an MLS opportunity presented itself,” Riverhounds Head Coach Bob Lilley said. “Although we are disappointed to lose his services, we wish Alex success moving forward with Atlanta.”

It’s unclear if the Riverhounds received anything for De John’s rights from Atlanta, but if they did not, they are now on our Arya Stark list of names for letting him go to Atlanta. This should only add some more spice to the growing rivalry.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City is among the MLS teams with the highest percentages of returning minutes played (88%) from a year ago, which is a sharp rise from the transition from 2019 to 2020, when the club returned below 75% of its minutes played.

  • Those born on this date include singer/songwriter Neil Sedaka (1941), open-wheel racer Lyn St. James (1947), actor William H. Macy (1950), singer and actress Charo (1951), U2 bassist Adam Clayton (1960), Annabeth Gish (1971), actor/rapper Common (1972), racer Marco Andretti (1987), and basketball’s Tristan Thompson (1991).

That’s all for me this morning. Enjoy your weekend as we get closer and closer to meaningful OCSC games in 2021.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/2/25

Orlando Pride players on International duty, NWSL power rankings, USWNT friendlies, and more.

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16 hours ago

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April 2, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. There is plenty of Orlando Pride news today, which is good considering we’re heading into an international break. That means we can look forward to some women’s international matches in addition to Orlando City’s next bout against the Philadelphia Union. Before we jump into today’s news, please join us in wishing Orlando City midfielder Cesar Araujo a happy 24th birthday. Let’s get to the links.

International Duty, Pride Edition

Four players from the Orlando Pride have been called up for international duty. Anna Moorhouse (England), Angelina (Brazil), Emily Sams (U.S.), and Zara Chavoshi (U.S. U-23 training camp) will all head to their respective national teams. Moorhouse’s England will compete in the UEFA Women’s Nations League, while Angelina and Sams will face off in a pair of friendlies between the USWNT and the Brazil Women’s National Team.

Pride Still on Top

It seems that there are more outlets providing NWSL power rankings every week, but as long as they keep the Pride on top, I’ll keep letting you know about it. Given that the Pride are undefeated, with the most goals scored and the best goal differential, it isn’t surprising that the club is sitting atop the official standings along with these “highly scientific” power rankings. Goal.com, Sports Illustrated, and All For IX all rank the Pride in first place just above the Kansas City Current. I suppose even power rankings are occasionally correct.

Orlando’s Various World Cup Ties

You probably know that Orlando wasn’t selected to be one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. As disappointing as that was, there’s still a chance that the city, and Orlando City SC’s training grounds at Osceola Heritage Park will host team training during the event. The top notch facilities, plus the relatively close proximity to host cities Miami and Atlanta, make Orlando a good option.

On a more positive note, Orlando was chosen as a host city for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Camping World Stadium will see Club León vs. CR Flamengo, and Juventus vs. Manchester City. The Group H runner-up vs. Group G winner match and one of the quarterfinal round matches will also be in Orlando. There’s plenty to see and do in the City Beautiful, including some great soccer.

USWNT Youth Movement

Sams won’t be the only younger player in Emma Hayes’ lineup for the friendlies against Brazil. Hayes wants to deepen the player pool, which means bringing in players with an average age of just over 25 years old, and the average number of appearances is less than 35. Hayes also believes this is a chance for the younger players who appeared in the loss to Japan in the SheBelieves Cup. The first of the two matches is this Saturday at 5 p.m., with the second coming up Tuesday at 10:30 p.m.

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That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for the Orlando City and OCB matches this weekend. Hopefully, you have two screens since the match start times overlap. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/1/25

Barbra Banda’s continued importance, Americans in midweek action, USWNT announces friendly, and more.

Published

2 days ago

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April 1, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Good morning everyone! It was a great weekend for Orlando’s soccer teams as Orlando City and the Orlando Pride both won, meaning that we got treated to a six-point weekend (OCB was off). As always we have plenty to talk through this morning, so let’s get into today’s links.

Barbra Banda Keeps Rolling in 2025

After a wildly successful debut season with the Orlando Pride in 2024, Barbra Banda has showed no signs of slowing down this year. A brace in the season opener meant that she picked up right where she left off last year, and the team has continued to be successful too. The Pride have made it three wins from three to start the 2025 season, and while Banda hasn’t scored since the opener, her blend of pace, power, dribbling, passing, and movement have continuously helped open things up for her teammates, and she drew a penalty that led to the Pride’s game-winning goal Saturday. She isn’t the Pride’s only offensive weapon, but the team clicks into a different gear when she’s at her best.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans who will be playing in games during the working week, and there are some very important clashes on hand. Things get going later today when Antonee Robinson and Fulham visit Arsenal in Premier League play as the Cottagers are in hot pursuit of a coveted European place. Wednesday has Chris Richards, Matt Turner and Crystal Palace facing Southampton, while Tyler Adams and Bournemouth take on Manchester City. Also on Wednesday, Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan will face Inter Milan in a Coppa Italia semifinal. Things finish up on Friday as Aidan Morris and Middlesborough travel to Blackburn Rovers in the EFL Championship.

USWNT Announces Canada Match

The United States Women’s National Team has announced another friendly taking place this summer, as the team will face Canada on July 2 in Washington, D.C. The match will be the third that the USWNT will play during the window, following a pair of friendlies against Ireland in late June. The neighboring countries will meet at Audi Field with the match designated as the Allstate Continental Clasico, with this being the first time that the match will feature the USWNT. The U.S. faced Canada twice in 2024, with both matches ending in 2-2 draws and the USWNT emerging victorious in shootouts.

Concacaf Champions Cup Preview

The Concacaf Champions Cup returns this week, with the first legs of the four quarterfinal matches set to be played today and tomorrow. Things get started tonight with what should be an exciting match between Club America and Cruz Azul, with the crosstown rivals two of the winningest teams in the competition. Cruz Azul’s Angel Sepulveda leads the CCC’s golden boot race with four tallies. The late game sees the LA Galaxy taking on Tigres as the Galaxy will try to distract themselves from a difficult start to their MLS Cup title defense. Wednesday’s slate has the Vancouver Whitecaps taking on Pumas UNAM in Canada in what will be the second-ever meeting between the two teams. The late game will be an all-MLS affair as LAFC hosts Inter Miami in the first meeting between the two sides in CCC play.

Sporting Kansas City Fires Peter Vermes

The longest-tenured coach in Major League Soccer is out of work, as Sporting Kansas City announced the firing of Peter Vermes on Monday morning. It’s an end of an era in Kansas City, as Vermes was the head coach since 2009, back when the team was still called the Kansas City Wizards, and he had been named the club’s technical director three years earlier in 2006. He guided the team to an MLS Cup win in 2013; claimed U.S. Open Cup titles in 2012, 2015, and 2017; and helped the team be consistently competitive for a majority of his tenure. Despite all of that, SKC missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons and was mired in the midst of a 13-game winless streak in all competitions that stretched back to Sept. 18 of last year. After being an assistant on Vermes’ staff, Kerry Zavagnin will take over as interim head coach.

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That’s all I have for this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/31/25

Lions and Pride win, NWSL weekend recap, FA Cup quarterfinals, and more.

Published

3 days ago

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March 31, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been very busy at work but will attend the Chicago Cubs’ home opener at Wrigley Field later this week. Our Lions and Pride won while OCB was off this weekend. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Beats LA Galaxy on the Road

On Saturday, Orlando City fought back from a 1-0 deficit, scoring two goals in the second half to defeat the LA Galaxy 2-1 at Dignity Health Sports Park. The Galaxy struck early in the first half to jump on top. In the second half, the Lions were awarded a penalty kick after Eduard Atuesta was taken down in the box, and Martin Ojeda buried the spot kick to tie the match at one. In the 90th minute, Luis Muriel scored the winning goal on a long-range free kick to complete the comeback. Orlando is on a three-match unbeaten streak and beat the LA Galaxy for the third consecutive time. Orlando City’s next match will be on the road Saturday against the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park.

Orlando Pride Defeat San Diego Wave at Home

The Orlando Pride defeated the San Diego Wave 2-1 Saturday afternoon at Inter&Co Stadium and extended their win streak to three matches to start the season. After a scoreless first half, Haley McCutcheon scored to give Orlando the lead. The Wave equalized before Marta converted a penalty kick goal to seal the win for Orlando. The Pride are off to a great start this season, outscoring their opponents 10-1, and are atop the NWSL standings ahead of the Kansas City Current on goal difference. The Pride are off this weekend due to the international break but will be on the road in their next match against the Seattle Reign on April 12.

NWSL Weekend Recap

The National Women’s Soccer League’s third week of matches is in the books. On Friday, the Houston Dash and NJ/NY Gotham FC match ended in a scoreless draw. The Washington Spirit defeated Bay FC 2-0, with Ashley Hatch scoring both goals. On Saturday, the Kansas City Current defeated the Utah Royals 3-0, while the Portland Thorns and North Carolina Courage match ended in a scoreless draw. On Sunday, the Chicago Stars fell 1-0 to Racing Louisville and remain winless, while Angel City FC edged the Seattle Reign 2-1 to secure its first win of the season.

FA Cup Quarterfinals Recap

The FA Cup quarterfinals wrapped up with thrilling drama as four clubs booked a spot in the semifinals. Crystal Palace cruised to a 3-0 victory against Fulham, while Nottingham Forest edged Brighton 4-3 on penalties after a scoreless draw to advance. Aston Villa dominated Preston North End as Marcus Rashford scored twice to seal a 3-0 win, while Manchester City edged Bournemouth 2-1. The FA Cup semifinals are set for April 26 as Crystal Palace faces Aston Villa while Nottingham Forest will take on Manchester City.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City GM Luiz Muzzi provided some insight in an ESPN.com article on player transfers and highlighted the importance of building connections with different clubs to facilitate transfers.
  • Former Lion Benji Michel is going to play for HJK Helsinki.
  • That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.

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