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Orlando City vs. Toronto FC: Final Score 3-2 as Junior Urso Scores Late Winner for Lions

The Lions saw their early 2-0 lead evaporate but the Bear came to the rescue.

Published

4 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Junior Urso’s 84th-minute goal saved Orlando City the embarrassment of having thrown away an early two-goal lead. Tesho Akindele and Nani had staked the Lions (4-1-3, 15 points) to a 2-0 advantage in the first eight minutes, but Toronto FC (1-5-2, 5 points) — technically the home side in this match due to the COVID-19 situation — rallied to draw level at 2-2 before the first half ended. Ultimately, Orlando played a good second half and won 3-2 over the Reds in Exploria Stadium.

City improved to 2-0-0 against Toronto this season and 4-8-2 in the all-time series. Technically it would be the team’s first road win against the Reds, but obviously it’s not the same as winning at BMO Field. The Lions climbed into second in the Eastern Conference for the moment, pending the result of Sunday’s match between Philadelphia and Atlanta.

Head Coach Oscar Pareja dedicated the win to Rodrigo Schlegel, who lost his father recently.

“It was emotional day for us, and we want to share this joy that we have with Rodigo (and) his family,” Pareja said after the match. “We dedicate this to him and also to people who have been dealing with this COVID.

“Regarding the game, exceptional performance for us. It has been a challenge to be together again. The team has been separated in many ways. Today we played against a good team and especially in the second half we had the personality to resolve the game and we scored three goals today. Great victory. Great three points.”

Without Pedro Gallese and Sebas Mendez — both away with their national teams in Copa America — Pareja gave Brandon Austin his first start in goal behind a back line of Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. Andres Perea slotted into central midfield with Urso, while Uri Rosell made the bench for the first time this season. Silvester van der Water and Mauricio Pereyra dropped into the attacking midfield with Nani roaming and Akindele up top.

The Lions wasted no time jumping on top. Pereyra slotted a gorgeous through ball between the Toronto defense to Akindele, who slipped the ball past Quentin Westberg in the first minute to put Orlando City on top.

“A soon as Mauricio gets the ball with space, I know he can make a pass forward, so my idea was just to take off as soon as Mauricio got the ball, I took off into space,” Akindele said. “He was able to turn quickly and find me.”

The team celebrated on the sideline with Schlegel’s jersey to let the defender know that he’s in his teammates’ thoughts.

“We talked a lot this week about Rodrigo, about his family,” Urso said. “So, I said to Nani, tell the guys when we score a goal, let’s keep Rodrigo’s jersey in your hand. Let’s try to (have) some celebration for him. It was an emotional time for all of us.”

Toronto jumped on Orlando after the early goal with a lot of possession in the attacking third. Orlando players were able to get into passing lanes but it seemed like every blocked pass found a random Toronto player anyway. Alejandro Pozuelo fired off target from just outside the box in the third minute.

Despite that, Orlando doubled the lead in the eighth minute. A promising buildup seemed to evaporate when a ball got in a bit too far and made its way to Westberg. Van der Water pressured the goalkeeper and took the ball away, passing back to Akindele. The Orlando striker sent the ball right to left where Nani headed home to make it 2-0.

“The assist — I think that goes to what Oscar has been drilling into me: What’s the right decision,” Akindele said. “Silvester passed me the ball back and the goalie was out, so I could have tried to shoot. But I didn’t because I didn’t think that was the best decision in that moment. I thought it was better for me to try to put in a cross and we scored. I think if I would have shot in that moment, it would have been blocked or gone over or something, but I kind of calmed myself down and sent a cross and Nani was able to score.”

Akindele’s goal and assist continued his great run of form.

“It is a good sign for the depth of the group, the complexion of the team,” Pareja said of Akindele’s form. “When you have some options there and all of them are very valued and natural. It just makes the team stronger. Tesho’s doing a great job of not just scoring goals but working so hard on the field.”

The Reds pulled a goal back almost immediately. A shot from former Lion Richie Laryea from the left was saved by Austin but the rebound went high in the air and Ayo Akinola out-jumped Jansson to head home in the 10th minute.

Van der Water nearly restored the two-goal cushion in the 15th minute, getting his left foot into a shot that Westberg was able to fight off. The Dutchman then served in a dangerous ball on the ensuing corner but no one from Orlando could get onto it and Westberg dove to keep it from sneaking in the back post.

Pereyra and Perea worked a perfect give-and-go in the 25th minute but the young Colombian-American was bodied cleanly off the ball in the box before he could fire a shot.

Three minutes later, Laryea darted in and fired from a tough angle but Austin kicked the shot away.

Toronto’s tying goal came off a quick free kick after Laryea went down far too easily for about the third time in the game. The AR took the bait and awarded a set piece. The Reds took it quickly and Orlando nearly defused a good passing sequence with a poke from behind, but it ended up falling right back onto a Toronto foot and Osorio finished to even things up in the 39th minute.

Toronto had a great opportunity to counter off an Orlando corner kick in the 44th minute, breaking in 5-on-3 on the Lions, but Smith dispossessed Laryea in space to thwart the chance. A minute later, Pereyra slipped another perfect through ball to van der Water, who scored but the flag came up. He was about half a yard offside, so the call was correct, if unsatisfying.

After three minutes of stoppage, that was it for the first half.

Toronto out-shot Orlando 10-6 in the opening half (4-3 on target) and had more corners (6-4). Possession was nearly dead even, with Orlando holding a slim edge (50.2%-49.8%) and the Reds holding a tiny edge in passing accuracy (87.5%-87.2%).

Pareja said the team’s defending block was too low in the first half and made an adjustment to start the second.

“We made a mistake in letting them play in between the lines. I think more as a look of the defense, it was a collective difficulty that we had,” Pareja said. “We gave them a lot of space and then we started defending too low. They’re good. They have good players in that phase of the game. When they put you inside of your box, they have people who have a solution and good passers.”

The adjustments worked well, as the Lions looked the more dangerous team for the most part in the second period. Orlando buzzed around the Toronto penalty area in the opening minutes of the second half but couldn’t quite connect that final ball.

With the defensive block positioned higher, Toronto appeared to get more frustrated. Laryea forced a shot from distance in the 51st minute but the attempt was always going high.

Nani sent several good crosses into the area in the second half but either his teammates couldn’t quite get to them or Toronto did a good job of defending. Chris Mavinga in particular played well for the Reds to break up what could have been several dangerous opportunities. The Lions won a few set pieces but, again, couldn’t quite do anything with them.

Shortly after a decent free kick opportunity for Orlando, the Reds got possession and Laryea again went down easily and it nearly gave Toronto the lead. The free kick went short to Laryea on a darting run toward the end line. The former Lion crossed and the ball deflected toward goal already behind Austin. But Smith swept the ball off the line with a timely defensive play to keep the game level.

Carlos got a header on a corner kick in the 59th minute but his shot hit Omar Gonzalez in the back. Gonzalez was turned and knew nothing about it, and Westberg was fortunate to watch that one go off his defender before eventually being cleared.

Daryl Dike checked in for Akindele in the 64th minute and was a menace. He won a few free kicks in good spots and drew a yellow card on Gonzalez, but he didn’t make the score sheet.

Toronto again nearly made something out of nothing in the 72nd minute when a wayward pass was picked off and sent immediately into the area. Patrick Mullins stuck out a foot and the redirection went just over the bar.

Second-half sub Chris Mueller had a mixed outing, badly missing Dike alone in the box and a couple other passes, but he also showed his typical hustle. He tried a curling shot in the 83rd minute but couldn’t get the bend on it and it went wide. But a minute later he set up the game winner.

Auro Jr. sent a terrible pass across the field in his own half and Urso picked it off. He played a quick one-two with Mueller and slotted home past Westberg to restore Orlando’s lead in the 84th minute.

“The last 15 minutes we tried to push to score the goal because if we score it’s done — the game,” Urso said. “So Oscar put Benji on the field and (we) tried to make some long balls to Benji. We waited for some mistake from Toronto and I want to say thank you to Chris (for giving me) a good ball to score the goal.”

Former Lion Dom Dwyer subbed in late and nearly tied the game in stoppage time. In what appeared to be a miscommunication, Jansson let a cross go and Dwyer came flying in to try to get onto it, but he couldn’t quite get good contact on it.

From there, the Lions saw out the final moments of stoppage, including a key clearance on a late Toronto corner.

Toronto ended up out-shooting Orlando, 15-12, but both teams had four on target over the 90-plus minutes. The Reds also held slight advantages in corners (8-6), possession (52.3%-47.7%) and passing accuracy (88.1%-87.6%).

“I thought we showed a lot of mental toughness, just to stay in the game (when Toronto tied it),” Akindele said. “We didn’t just lose our heads. We kept grinding and I thought we grew into the game more and more. Especially in the second half, I thought we looked good and deserved the win.” 

The Lions are right back in action at home on Tuesday night as the San Jose Earthquakes come to town.

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Orlando City vs. New England Revolution: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 3-3 draw against the New England Revolution?

Published

3 hours ago

on

May 12, 2025

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City saw a 2-0 lead wash away just before halftime and took the lead in the second half. It looked like the Lions were on their way to a big three points, but a late penalty and a disallowed goal resulted in a 3-3 draw. It’s a draw that feels like a loss for the Lions.

Let’s take a look at how the individual players did in this disappointing game.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 6 — Gallese had a difficult night, though it wasn’t all his fault. He faced six shots and conceded three goals. However, two were primarily because of bad defending, and one was a penalty. He made three saves and blocked away a rocket late.  The Orlando City goalkeeper touched the ball 25 times and completed 77.8% of his 18 passes, including four of his eight long balls.

D, David Brekalo, 6 — Brekalo had a good game at left back, touching the ball 65 times, second most on the team. He completed 90.7% of his 43 passes, including a key pass. However, his lone cross and long ball were incomplete. The defender took two shots, putting one on target, and nearly had a goal in the 48th minute with a strong run into the box, but a defender deflected it off the woodwork. Defensively, he recorded two tackles, one interception, three clearances, and a blocked shot. He was a little late trying to deny Ignatius Ganago’s cross through the box to Ilay Feingold, and his sliding effort to do so took him out of position to deny Feingold’s centering pass for New England’s first goal. It was one of his few missteps of the match, and the effort was there if not the execution. He moved from left back to center back for the closing minutes.

D, Robin Jansson, 5 — Jansson is usually rock solid on the back line, but he was a liability in this game. He touched the ball 57 times and completed 86.3% of his 51 passes, including four of his seven long balls. He made three clearances and blocked two shots. His poor grade was due to his contribution to two New England goals. He allowed Matt Polster to get goal side in the 44th minute for the equalizer and stuck his foot out in an ill-advised challenge in the 85th minute, resulting in a game-tying penalty. It was a game the Orlando City captain would rather forget.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 6.5 — Schlegel is usually the higher-risk player at center back, but he had a good game. He touched the ball 49 times and completed 91.4% of his 35 passes, including his lone long ball. He also recorded a tackle, a team-high six clearances, and two blocked shots. Most surprisingly, he managed to end the game without an unnecessary booking. Schlegel’s night ended in the 87th minute when he was replaced by Rafael Santos.

D, Alex Freeman, 6.5  — Freeman started at his usual right back position, touching the ball a team-high 66 times. He completed 76.7% of his 43 passes and his lone cross but not his long ball. His lone shot was on target and he had three key passes. The 20-year-old was also active defensively, recording two tackles, two interceptions, and four clearances.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 6 — Angulo only touched the ball 28 times in this game, but his speed caused problems for the New England back line as he pushed into the attack. The left-sided midfielder completed 82.6% of his 23 passes, including two key passes. He didn’t take any shots, because he was mainly on the wing, but he helped defensively with a tackle and two interceptions. Angulo was replaced by Ramiro Enrique in the 74th minute.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6.5 — Araujo had 57 touches in this game while completing 91.7% of his 36 passes. He had a key pass but failed to complete either of his two long balls. The defensive midfielder took four shots, putting one on target that forced Aljaz Ivacic into a good save. He nearly scored off a corner kick in the 24th minute, but hit the post. Defensively, Araujo had two tackles and a clearance.

MF, Joran Gerbet, 5.5 — Gerbet had an up and down night, making him difficult to grade. He let Alhassan Yusuf get goal side of him in the 38th minute to score New England’s first goal. But his excellent first touch sent Ojeda on a partial breakaway in the 33rd minute for the Lions’ second goal, and his fearlessness earned a penalty for Orlando City’s third goal. The rookie touched the ball 43 times and completed 88.9% of his 36 passes, including a key pass and one of his two long balls. He didn’t take any shots but added an interception defensively. He probably should get a higher grade for participating in two goals, but I can’t get over the defensive midfielder’s error that might’ve cost the Lions two points. Gerbet was replaced in the 69th minute by Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.

MF, Marco Pasalic, 6.5 — Pasalic had a solid night, touching the ball 39 times and completing 73.9% of his 23 passes. He had two key passes and completed one of his three long balls. He put one of his three shots on target, but his offensive performance will be remembered for his 20th minute shot, when Luis Muriel headed the ball down perfectly for him and the midfielder sent it over the open goal. Despite the miss, it was a good game for the attacking midfielder, who also had an interception on the defensive side.

F, Luis Muriel, 6.5 — Muriel started up top but dropped behind Ojeda as the game progressed. He had 36 touches and completed 73.3% of his 15 passes, including four key passes and three of his four crosses. He should’ve had an assist on Pasalic’s miss, and he should’ve scored, especially in the 68th minute, when he made multiple defenders miss before dribbling the ball into the arms of Ivacic instead of shooting. He added two tackles and would’ve had a higher grade if he had any desire to score.

F, Martin Ojeda, 8.5 (MotM) — There can’t be a question about who the Man of the Match was for this game. In his first league start since April 19, Ojeda led the way. He touched the ball 43 times, completing 84% of his 25 passes with two key passes. He completed two of his five crosses but didn’t connect on his long ball. However, the attacker converted on three of his team-high seven shots, scoring the club’s first hat trick since 2015. His first goal was a thing of beauty, as he rocketed a shot off the bottom of the cross bar, creating no chance for the goalkeeper. The midfielder also took his second goal well and converted the penalty that gave his team the lead in the 55th minute. Defensively, Ojeda added an interception in a clear Man of the Match performance.

Substitutes

MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson (69’), 5.5 — Thorhallsson came on in the 69th minute for Gerbet in the defensive midfield. He touched the ball 13 times, completing all of his 10 passes, though they were all of the shorter variety. He picked up a yellow card late in the match.

F, Duncan McGuire (73’), 5.5 — McGuire came on for Muriel in the 73rd minute with his team up a goal. He touched the ball only five times, completing all three of his passes with a key pass and his lone cross. His only shot was off target and he didn’t add any defensive stats. He should have had an assist with a good ball into the box for Enrique, who made a mess of the shot, firing it high over the goal. Unfortunately, his game will be remembered for the 90th minute, when Enrique’s shot hit his back while the striker was in an offside position. The ball went in, and the flag went up to disallow the goal that would’ve been the game winner.

F, Ramiro Enrique (74’), 5.5 — Enrique entered the game in the 74th minute for Angulo. He touched the ball 14 times and completed 45.5% of his 11 passes without any key passes or crosses. He took one off-target shot (officially) but had a great chance to score in the 90th minute when he received a pass from Pasalic at the top of the box with no one on him. His shot hit the back of an offside McGuire, spoiling a potential late winner.

D, Rafael Santos (87’), 5.5 — Santos replaced Schlegel in the 87th minute as the Lions brought on a natural left back and moved Brekalo to his usual center back position. Despite coming on late, the 10 minutes of stoppage time gave him plenty of action. He touched the ball 12 times and completed 83.3% of his six passes, including one of his three crosses. He didn’t take any shots and didn’t record any defensive stats as the Lions pushed hard for the late winner that never came. On the defensive end, he got roasted by Luis Diaz Espinoza in the second minute of stoppage time, allowing a wicked shot on goal that Gallese was able to parry away awkwardly.

That’s how I saw Orlando City 3-3 draw against the New England Revolution. Let us know what you thought of the performance in the comment below and don’t forget to vote on your Man of the Match.

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Lion Links: 5/12/25

Lions and Pride each draw, Pride wins 2024 Golden Brick Award of Excellence, MLS weekend recap, and more.

Published

7 hours ago

on

May 12, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida and belated happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there. I’ve been busy at work and catching up with friends all week. Our Lions and Pride both picked up draws over the weekend, while OCB was off.  We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Lions Draw New England Revolution at Home

Orlando City blew a lead twice and ended up settling for a 3-3 draw against the New England Revolution on Saturday at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions got off to a great start as Martin Ojeda scored two goals in the first half. The Revolution replied with two goals to tie the match just before halftime. Ojeda added a penalty kick goal in the second half to secure his first hat trick of his career. It was also the first hat trick for Orlando in a decade, and he joins former Lion Cyle Larin as the only players in club history to score a regular-season hat trick.

However, late in the second half, the Lions conceded a penalty to New England, and Carles Gil converted from the spot to get the equalizer as the teams split the points. The Lions will have a quick turnaround with their next match on Wednesday at home against Charlotte FC.

Pride Draw North Carolina Courage on the Road

The Orlando Pride needed a late equalizer to escape WakeMed Soccer Park with a 1-1 draw against the North Carolina Courage on Saturday. The Courage struck first, but Prisca Chilufya scored her first goal of the NWSL season late in stoppage time to secure a draw and keep Orlando from losing two matches in a row. The Pride grabbed a crucial point on the road and are second in the NWSL standings. The next match for the Orlando Pride will be Friday as they face the Kansas City Current at Inter&Co Stadium.

Orlando Pride Wins 2024 Golden Brick Award of Excellence

The Orlando Pride were named winners of the Downtown Orlando Partnerships 2024 Golden Brick Award of Excellence on Friday for the club’s historic 2024 NWSL Championship season and downtown victory parade. The Pride broke the league record for the most points (60), most wins in a season (18), and most clean sheets (13), while finishing the 2024 season unbeaten at home. Orlando Pride President of Business Operations Jarrod Dillon expressed his thoughts on Pride winning this award.

“On behalf of our entire Club, I’d like to thank the Downtown Orlando Partnership and its Board of Directors for selecting our organization for this incredible award,” said Orlando Pride President of Business Operations, Jarrod Dillon. “We are incredibly honored to receive this award — a testament to the passion, dedication, and excellence that define our team. Our Club is proud to represent this city, and we hope every Orlando resident shares in this moment of pride. There’s no place we’d rather call home than downtown Orlando — the heart of our community and now the home of the best women’s soccer team in the United States.”

MLS Weekend Recap

The weekend’s slate of Major League Soccer matches ended with some notable results. Minnesota United cruised past Inter Miami with a 4-1 win. The Chicago Fire, FC Cincinnati, San Diego FC, and Nashville SC all won 2-1 matches over Atlanta United, Austin FC, St. Louis City, and Charlotte FC, respectively. Toronto FC defeated D.C. United 2-0 at home, while the San Jose Earthquakes beat the Colorado Rapids 2-0 on the road. Prince Osei Owusu scored the lone goal as CF Montreal beat New York City FC 1-0 and secured its first win of the season. Santiago Moreno scored a late goal in the second half as the Portland Timbers defeated Sporting Kansas City 1-0. Albert Rusnak scored twice as the Seattle Sounders beat the Houston Dynamo 3-1. FC Dallas and Real Salt Lake ended in a 1-1 draw, while the Philadelphia Union and Columbus Crew match ended in a 2-2 draw. The LA Galaxy remain winless through 12 matches this season after getting crushed 7-0 by the New York Red Bulls in a rematch of last year’s MLS Cup final. On Sunday, Brian White scored twice as the Vancouver Whitecaps and LAFC match ended in a 2-2 draw.

Free Kicks

  • Check out this video on Orlando City’s social media pages featuring some players giving their moms a surprise phone call on Mother’s Day.
  • Orlando Pride defender Kylie Nadaner completed 108 passes on Saturday in their match against the North Carolina Courage, which is the most in Pride history.

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 vs. New England Revolution: Five Takeaways

Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 3-3 draw against the Revolution.

Published

1 day ago

on

May 11, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City returned home and returned to league play after a resounding midweek victory in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The Lions faced one of the hottest teams in the Eastern Conference heading into the matchday, as the New England Revolution entered Saturday having won four straight Major League Soccer matches in a row and five straight in all competitions. As the rain fell at Inter&Co Stadium, so did any hopes of a clean sheet for either side as the match saw six goals in total, resulting in a somewhat disappointing 3-3 draw and a splitting of the matchday points. What follows are my five takeaways for the match.

Welcome Back, Martin Ojeda

Head Coach Oscar Pareja inserted Designated Player Martin Ojeda back into the starting 11, and the decision paid off in spades for the Lions, as Ojeda was the Orlando City offense on the night. A first-half brace from the Argentine saw Orlando City take control of the match a little after the half-hour mark. Ojeda was all over the field, and for his first goal, the midfielder fired a rocket blast off the bottom of the crossbar and in, which gave Revolution goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic little reaction time and almost no chance to attempt a save. For his second, just nine minutes later, Ojeda took a beautiful pass from Joran Gerbet, into a 1-v-1 situation and did well to remain composed before picking out the inside of the right post. It was a great start for Ojeda, which saw Orlando City jump out to a 2-0 lead. His third goal of the match, which we’ll get to in a moment, came from the spot in the second half. Ojeda may have scored the team’s first hat trick since 2015, but he led the team with seven shot attempts and any of the other four could also have found the net on another night, as the Lions’ No. 10 found the holes in the Revolution defense all night.

All Good Things Must Come to an End

I had hoped to see Orlando City ride its club-best 653-minute shutout streak across all competitions for a little bit longer than a paltry five minutes after Ojeda’s second goal. If Orlando City fans had a nickel for every time an MLS player earned their first career goal against the Lions, we would all have a lot of nickels. Against the Revolution, another player opened his MLS account when Alhassan Yusuf ran onto a ball sent back across goal and calmly slotted it into the net from point-blank range. The goal cut the lead to one, pulling the Revs back into the game. To make matters worse, New England was able to level the match just before halftime with a Matt Polster header off a short corner. Polster wasn’t covered nearly well enough on the set piece. Orlando City also ended New England’s long streak without conceding, as Ojeda’s first goal Saturday night halted the Revs’ streak at 418 consecutive minutes.

Correcting a Mistake

Ten minutes into the second half, the Lions regained the lead from the penalty spot. Referee Rubiel Vazquez and the assistant referee on the east sideline both appeared well positioned to see Gerbet get kicked in the head by the high boot of Mamadou Fofana, but somehow both missed the call. Gerbet went down in the box with an apparent head injury but it took Vazquez an unacceptable amount of time to stop the match to check on the player. Once he did, there was a longer-than-necessary delay for the video assistant referee to check the play before sending Vazquez to the monitor for another look. The review correctly determined that Fofana fouled Gerbet. Ojeda stepped up to the spot and sent Ivacic the wrong way, completing his first career hat trick and Orlando City’s first hatty since Cyle Larin scored three goals on the road in a win over the Red Bulls on Sept. 25, 2015. Ojeda became the first player to notch a home hat trick in the club’s MLS era.

A Gift for the Opposition

After taking the 3-2 lead, Orlando City found was in control of the match for a good half-hour of game action despite the Revolution increasing their pressure as they hunted for the equalizer once again. The Revs found the reprieve they were searching for in the 85th minute after a head-scratching challenge from captain Robin Jansson resulted in a gifted penalty kick opportunity that Carlos Gil took full advantage of. There was no immediate need for Jansson to stick his foot out, as the attacking player for New England was running away from goal near the end-line. The contact seemed soft, but Vazquez pointed directly to the spot. This time, there was no trip to the monitor for a second look, as Orlando City continues to see inconsistencies within games on review decisions. While we’re not keeping any official records on video review, this seems like at least half a dozen times in Pareja’s time in Orlando when the match referee has gone to the monitor for one close play and not the other, with either one or both of those decisions ultimately benefitting the opposition. Either way, Jansson has to be aware of the situation and make a better decision in that moment when protecting a late lead.

Brekalo Settling In

Defender David Brekalo has struggled to stay healthy since his arrival in Orlando, but Saturday night was part of a recent stretch of games in which the Slovenian international has looked more and more comfortable. Still playing as a hybrid left back/left center back, not only did Brekalo stuff the stat sheet defensively with two tackles, an interception, three clearances, and a blocked shot, but he’s also starting to show more confidence in getting into the attack. He was an unfortunate in the 48th minute not to have scored a vital goal for the Lions. He started the play in the back, dribbled forward past a defender and passed, continuing his run up the pitch. He was rewarded with a return pass in the final third, taking the ball up the left side of the box and firing a shot that was ever so slightly deflected, sending it off the woodwork instead of into the net. Although he was partially culpable on the first New England goal — his sliding lunge was a tad late, allowing Ilay Feingold to get to Ignatius Ganago’s cross through the box and took him out of position to prevent the cross back in from Feingold to Yusuf — it was a good night overall for Brekalo, who seems to be finding his form. He moved to right center back late in the game when Pareja brought on Rafael Santos, hoping more attack-minded players could find a late game winner.

Those are my takeaways from a match that produced more goals than Orlando City fans have been seeing in most recent matches but didn’t produce a better result. What stood out to you? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, and as always, vamos Orlando!

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