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Orlando City vs. Columbus Crew: Final Score 3-2 as Urso’s Goal Lifts Lions to Seventh Straight Result

The Lions blew a 2-0 lead but Junior Urso called game and Adam Grinwis won his first MLS game since 2018.

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3 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City looked like it would cruise to an easy win over the Columbus Crew at Exploria Stadium after getting goals from Daryl Dike and Silvester van der Water to go up 2-0. But Antonio Carlos scored a bizarre own goal early in the second half, and the Crew tied it up moments later before Junior Urso’s goal lifted the Lions (10-4-8, 38 points) to a 3-2 win over Columbus (7-10-6, 27 points).

The win lifted the Lions to their longest unbeaten streak of the year at seven matches (3-0-4) and it was Orlando City’s fifth consecutive win over Columbus. Orlando jumped back into second place in the Eastern Conference with the wins tiebreaker over Nashville.

“It was a great effort by the players,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “Once again they took us over many hurdles today. The game was like a rollercoaster of emotions for us — dominating not just the score but dominating the game in the first half. Then we conceded two goals that came from nowhere. That put us in a difficult situation emotionally.”

Pareja became the club’s winningest coach in the MLS era, surpassing Jason Kreis’ 65 wins.

With Pedro Gallese on international duty and Mason Stajduhar unavailable due to injury, Pareja started Adam Grinwis in goal for the first time since he was re-signed. Grinwis lined up behind a back line of Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Carlos, and Ruan. Joey DeZart and Urso started in central midfield, with Chris Mueller and van der Water on the outside and Nani and Dike up top in the attack.

Nani got the game’s first shot attempt with a long free kick that he got on frame but from that distance Eloy Room was able to get over and make the save in the 10th minute.

Six minutes later, Ruan got down the right side and cut a pass back for Dike who directed it toward goal. The ball hit a defender and came back off Dike and caromed toward the net but Room made the save.

Columbus was dangerous on the counter and from the wings, and Derrick Etienne’s cross just needed a touch in the 21st minute but none of his Crew teammates were close enough to provide it.

Mueller cut inside and had an excellent scoring chance in the 24th minute, but he made a mess of his right-footed effort and hit it into the sky. Nevertheless, the Lions opened the scoring moments later.

Nani won the ball and sent it forward over the top from his own defensive half. Dike out-muscled Aboubacar Keita and broke in on goal down the right. He faked a couple of times and then smashed a shot into the roof of the net to make it 1-0 in the 26th minute. There was a delay for the video assistant referee to take a look to see if Nani had fouled Pedro Santos, but the goal was awarded. It was Dike’s third of the year and first since June 22 vs. San Jose.

“It was a good win from Nani and then, you know, battling with my UVA teammate Abouba (Keita),” Dike said. “Once I got the ball I just saw the grass in front of me and the goal in front of me. I think that’s when the instincts kind of kick in and that’s when you do anything you can to get the ball in the back of the net, and that’s where it ended up.”

The Lions struck again three minutes later. Ruan cut a ball back from the right corner to van der Water, who sent what appeared to be a cross in for Mueller but he couldn’t get a touch on it and it bounced into the net to double Orlando’s lead in the 29th minute. It was the Dutchman’s first goal since July 30 against Atlanta and his third of the year.

Columbus spent much of the rest of the half winning the ball in the middle of the field and trying to score in transition. Harrison Afful sent a cross/shot just wide of the far post in the 32nd minute. Grinwis then made a spectacular save to deny Lucas Zelarayan from outside the box in the 36th minute. Zelarayan had a couple of dangerous free kick opportunities but hit them off the wall of defenders as the half wound down.

The best chance for Orlando down the stretch fell for Mueller but he fired his shot on target only for Dike to stray into its path and block it. The Lions took a 2-0 lead into the half but the Crew had built some momentum in the final minutes of the opening 45.

Columbus held the advantage in shots (8-7) but Orlando got more on target (4-1). The Crew held the advantage in possession (51.7%-48.3%), passing accuracy (81%-79%), and corners (5-1).

The Lions roared out of the locker room looking to put the match away and nearly did so in the 46th minute. Urso stole the ball from Santos, took it to the top of the box and tried to finesse it around Room, just inside the left post. However, the Crew keeper did well to make a diving, one-handed save.

The Crew got back into the match on a strange play. The ball was knocked high in the air with two Lions and one Columbus player about 10 yards in front of Grinwis’ goal. Carlos went high to head it away but ended up nodding it just inside the right post and into his own net to put the Crew on the board in the 52nd minute.

“It was a fluky moment,” said Grinwis, who won in his first MLS start since 2018. “It took a little deflection. The ball went sky high and I kind of assessed the situation. I saw Antonio Carlos going up to battle at six yards away. I would take him 10 (times) out of 10 in this league to win that header and he did, and it was just an unfortunate bounce where it kind of comes back towards school, as opposed to going away from it.”

That goal seemed to unsettle the Orlando defense, as the Lions conceded the equalizer just two minutes later. A good passing sequence by the Crew, combined with Carlos stepping up and leaving room behind him, sent Miguel Berry in behind and he beat Grinwis to tie things up at 2-2. VAR Jorge Gonzalez took a long look at the play to see if Etienne was offside in the buildup to the goal. The play was close but it wasn’t judged to be a clear and obvious error and the goal stood up.

“It was a tough moment for us and that’s when the character, the togetherness, and the glue that this team has came out again and took us over that hurdle,” Pareja said.

While waiting for the video review, Dike was in the center circle, visibly urging the crowd to make noise.

“I looked around and everyone was kind of obviously in shock, because going up from two-nil up to being 2-2, I think it’s a big shock,” Dike said. “In moments like that I truly believe in the 12th-man effect. With the crowd pushing us, you can instantly see the players, including myself, having a little lift, having a little extra burst of energy and extra belief. I think having that kind of support around you, especially in a situation like that, is important.”

Pareja sent on Mauricio Pereyra — a player who he said he didn’t want to use for more than a few minutes due to his ongoing recovery from a knock — and Benji Michel just after the goal to settle the team down and it worked.

“The game was asking for somebody to settle the pace of the team and just try to be more creative in that zone,” Pareja said. “Just being able to bring the boys from the bench now and have people who can change the direction of the game, it will make us a very strong team.”

Just eight minutes after the subs were introduced, the Lions took the lead. Dike played a ball back to Urso just outside the area and the Bear picked out a spot and fired through traffic just inside the left post to restore Orlando’s lead at 3-2. Room didn’t see the shot come through the crowd until it was too late to do anything about it and the eventual game-winner found its way home in the 69th minute. Like Dike and van der Water, Urso scored his third of the year.

“It was a great third goal,” Pareja said.

With the Crew needing a goal, Caleb Porter sent on some offensive subs in the form of Erik Hurtado and Bradley Wright-Phillips. Orlando continued to stay organized and looked for insurance, which Mueller nearly found in the 77th minute when he sent a ball toward the net that sliced just wide to the right.

Columbus sent in crosses, looking for someone to get onto one, but most of those found the heads of Carlos, Jansson and Moutinho. Pereyra sent a ridiculous ball behind Vito Wormgoor in the 84th minute that should have provided an insurance goal by substitute Tesho Akindele. Akindele beat Room from the left side, only to see his shot skip an inch or two wide of the right post.

Pareja sent on Rodrigo Schlegel for Mueller and went five at the back for the final minutes, and the Lions were able to prevent any good chances and spent some time taking the ball to the attacking corners to bleed clock. The ref blew the full time whistle just after Moutinho blasted a shot just wide of the left post from the top of the area.

Orlando City held a slim edge in shots (13-12) and had more on target (6-2), while Columbus won more corners (5-2), and held slight advantages in possession (51.9%-48.1%) and passing accuracy (82.6%-81.7%).

“There are things that we need to be better, of course,” Pareja said. “We would like to keep being solid defensively. But scoring three goals today by the players is great.”

While it was far from a perfect win, it was an emotional one for Grinwis, who battled back from a torn ACL while playing at the USL Championship level. To get back to winning an MLS game was a great moment for him.

“It’s just an honor to play in front of such a great committed fan base. Feels good to be home,” Grinwis said after getting his first MLS win since 2018. “Tough to put into words. I think these are the kinds of situations I was dreaming about and was telling myself, ‘No, I believe it can happen,’ although I’ve not seen anybody go through an injury in the second division and then find their way back into MLS and then play.

“But this game is crazy, and through a lot of prayer and a lot of hard work, I found myself in this position. And I want to hold on tight because it feels amazing to be back out there.”

The Lions will travel north to face Atlanta United on the road next Friday night in their next match.

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Orlando City

How Orlando City’s Offense Stacks Up Against What Atlanta Does Defensively

How Orlando City has performed against teams playing with three or four defenders, and how that may influence the playoff game against Atlanta United.

Published

11 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

The most famous quote about real estate is that “there are three things that matter in property: location, location, location.” Soccer coaches also like to think in threes, especially when it comes to points, but for a soccer coach, the three things that matter might be the rhyming triplet “formation, formation, formation,” as that is where they will have the biggest influence on every game that their team plays.

Throughout his tenure as head coach, Óscar Pareja has preferred to use a 4-2-3-1 as his formation (fbref.com’s lineup data shows that the Lions primarily played a 4-2-3-1 in 65% of their MLS matches this season, and 79% of their MLS matches during the last three seasons). The Lions have lined up in a 4-2-3-1 during each of their last 14 games, and my confidence level is strong to quite strong (can you believe Meet the Parents came out 24 years ago?) that they will do so once again on Sunday when they host Atlanta United.

Atlanta United also prefers to deploy a 4-2-3-1, but was less consistent than Orlando City this season during MLS play, as evidenced by the chart below that shows how Atlanta lined up this season:

The purpose of this image is a table to show how Atlanta United lined up in 2024 (mostly in a 4-2-3-1 but also in one of six other formations).

I am relying on the coders at Opta for their evaluation of the formation, as I do not watch a lot of Atlanta United matches (sounds terrible), but though Atlanta primarily played with four defenders in more than two-thirds of its matches, during the last two matches it played a 3-5-2, the only two matches all season in which interim coach Rob Valentino rolled out that formation. I suspect that the formation change was related partially to playing Inter Miami and trying to defend the Herons’ dynamic offense and partially due to an injury suffered by defender Brooks Lennon in the first game of that series. So, while Atlanta primarily played four in the back for most of the season, there is a good chance it will roll with what worked against Florida’s second-best MLS team when it plays Florida’s best MLS team this weekend.

Now, if you want to read more about Atlanta, then you can read our match preview, which will drop Sunday morning, but I want to look at how Orlando did against teams that play similar styles. Looking only at MLS games, the table below shows how Orlando City performed against different back line structures this season (the left side is how the Lions’ opponents lined up, the right side is how Orlando City performed against opponents in those formations):

Table embedded as an image showing Orlando City doing best in goal differential in 12 games against three-man back lines, second best against four-man back lines, and having played once against a five-man back line (a 1-1 draw).

Orlando City earned slightly more points per game — the stat that matters most — against teams that played four in the back, but the Lions had a better average goal differential when teams played three in the back. Atlanta will likely deploy one of those two formations. In both games against Orlando City this season, Sunday’s visitors went with a 4-2-3-1, but as mentioned earlier, they used three in the back in each of their last two matches, so it really could be either.

Soccer is not like baseball, where players primarily stay in the same spot throughout the game, so some of these stats have to be taken with a grain of salt, as players are not always rigidly in the same position throughout a match. A team may also primarily play with four in the back but switch to three when chasing a game, or five when trying to protect against a late goal.

That said, using the data around Orlando City’s opponents’ general formations, here are the attacking groups who played the most frequently against four defenders during the 24 MLS games where Opta coded the opponents as using a defensive group of four:

Table embedded as an image showing the most frequently used lineups against teams who deploy four defenders. The most frequently used attacking group has a plus eight goal differential for the season.

It is a little ominous that the main starting group, shown in row one, has played 666 MLS minutes against back lines of four this season, but do I like that green goal differential of +8 in those minutes, which is a strong +1.08 per 90 minutes. I like that goal differential more than I like all the things that Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin like on their song that is creatively named “I Like It.” Coincidentally, when people ask me what I think about that song, I say, “I like it.” I am very creative.

If we look at the lineups that Orlando City has used against back lines of three defenders then there are some pretty major differences in personnel groupings, but it must be noted that more than half of the games against teams playing three in the back came early in the season, when Ramiro Enrique was unavailable to play. Enrique, my presumed starter at striker, has played fewer than three games’ worth of minutes (265 total) against back lines of three this season, and only 28 minutes with the main starting group, which ranks 13th among all the attacking lineups for minutes played against three defenders. That group scored one goal in their 28 minutes together though, for a robust 3.21 goals-scored-per-90-minutes average.

While the team as a whole has been successful against three-man back lines, I do not expect any of the lineups shown in the table below to play more than a few minutes together this weekend, though the first row and the last row are strong groups and had a lot of success.

Table embedded as an image showing the most frequently used lineups against teams who deploy three defenders. The most frequently used attacking group has a plus three goal differential for the season.

I am sure that all week long the Orlando City coaching staff has been going back and forth on whether it is more likely that Atlanta reverts to its most commonly used four in the back, or if the Five Stripes try for three wins in a row with three in the back. I would prefer that Atlanta plays with zero defenders and goalkeeper Brad Guzan wears a blindfold, but I think that is unlikely to be the case.

Even though Atlanta defeated Orlando City both times while in a 4-2-3-1, based on available personnel and recent results, I believe that the team will come out in a 3-5-2 in Inter&Co Stadium in the conference semifinal. Good things come in threes, and Orlando City’s best offensive production this season has been against three defenders, so I am going to be hoping that this continues, and in the third game against Atlanta the Lions grab the three points. Three’s company!

Well, it is a playoff game, so there are no actual points at stake, but you know what I meant.

Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Atlanta United: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Lions need to do to get a victory to advance to the Eastern Conference final?

Published

13 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City continues its playoff journey against Atlanta United Sunday at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions are coming off an emotional penalty shootout win over Charlotte FC in their best-of-three, first-round series. Likewise, Atlanta United stunned everyone by taking out Inter Miami to advance in its own best-of-three matchup. Now, the rivals meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

What does Orlando City need to do to get past Atlanta United to advance to the Easter Conference final?

Beat Guzan

Brad Guzan made 16 saves over Atlanta’s three matches against Inter Miami, including seven in the 3-2 win on the road in Game 3. The 40-year-old former USMNT keeper is in excellent form and is a big reason why the Five Stripes are facing Orlando City. Converting chances against Guzan will be crucial to earning a result. There have been times this season when the Lions have struggled to convert their chances. Despite that, the team has done enough offensively to get to this point. Facundo Torres, Martin Ojeda, Duncan McGuire, Ramiro Enrique, and others have contributed and will need to do so this weekend.

Cartagena is Essential

Orlando City lost twice to Atlanta United during the regular season. What is interesting, and perhaps relevant, is that Wilder Cartagena was out for both of those matches. Cartagena was shown a straight red in the match against Minnesota United prior to the first match against Atlanta way back in March. He was shown a yellow card in the match against FC Cincinnati and then served a yellow card accumulation suspension for the final match of the season against Atlanta. Fortunately for Orlando City, Cartagena will be available for the match this weekend. I’ve mentioned before the importance of Cartagena to Orlando City’s success. When he and Cesar Araujo are on the field together, the defense is simply better. Cartagena is frankly one of the better defensive midfielders in MLS. Atlanta scored five goals in the series against Miami, and Orlando will need to keep the visitors from having that kind of offensive success.

Overcome the Past

That darn international break in the middle of the playoffs is something I don’t love. More precisely, I don’t like it because Orlando City often struggles after a break. It would have been nice if Orlando City could have ridden the momentum from the penalty kick victory into the Atlanta match, but that’s not to be. Now is the time for Orlando City to break some bad habits, including turning around its historical lack of success against Atlanta, and tendency to struggle in the first match after a break. Oscar Pareja needs to have the players in the right frame of mind, and the players need to execute the plan. A full house of supporters can also make a difference. Given it’s a Sunday afternoon match, there’s no reason not to pack the house.

That is what I will be looking for Sunday afternoon. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links: 11/21/24

Marta’s chance to shine in NWSL Championship, NWSL and MLS award winners announced, 2025 SheBelieves Cup details, and more.

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17 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I’ve been spending most of this week plotting out some holiday shopping to make things a little less stressful for myself over the next few weeks. A big weekend filled with Orlando soccer awaits us, so make sure to get any errands or obligations out of the way sooner rather than later. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Spotlight Falls On Marta in NWSL Championship

There are plenty of storylines heading into Saturday’s NWSL Championship between the Orlando Pride and Washington Spirit, including Marta’s opportunity to put an exclamation point on what has been an excellent season for the Pride. Orlando has been enjoying the fruits of its labor this season after a rebuild over the past few years that’s included plenty of change in the City Beautiful. Marta has been a constant, however, enduring some difficult seasons since joining the Pride and adapting her game She’s scored in both of the Pride’s playoff games so far and has a chance to author a storybook ending on Saturday.

Ann-Katrin Berger Named NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year

NJ/NY Gotham FC goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger was named 2024 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year, beating out the Pride’s Anna Moorhouse and Utah Royals FC’s Mandy Haught for the honor. It was Berger’s first year in the NWSL and she’s the first European player to win the award. She only conceded 16 goals across her 22 matches for Gotham this season and was a key reason behind her team’s success. I’m not too surprised that Moorhouse did not win, considering how solid the Pride’s defense was as a whole, but this won’t take anything away from a record-breaking season for her.

Wilfried Nancy Named MLS Coach of the Year

Columbus Crew Head Coach Wilfried Nancy was voted 2024 MLS Coach of the Year after a historic season in which the Crew set club records in both points and goals. The Crew also won the Leagues Cup this summer and their 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup campaign included advancing past Tigres and Monterrey en route to the final. This is Nancy’s first time being named Coach of the Year and he has been a finalist for the award every year since 2021. The Frenchman received 40.02% of the vote, winning the award over Inter Miami’s Gerardo Martino and Colorado Rapids Head Coach Chris Armas.

2025 SheBelieves Cup Details Unveiled

The 10th annual SheBelieves Cup will take place next year and the tournament will return to its usual format where each of the four teams plays each other once. The United States Women’s National Team will host Japan, Colombia, and Australia in February in what should be an exciting tournament. The U.S. will take on Colombia on Feb. 20 in Houston before facing Australia in Arizona on Feb. 23 and finishing the tournament on Feb. 26 against Japan at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego. These games will also be the first domestic games of 2025 for the USWNT as it prepares to qualify for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.

Eric Quill Named FC Dallas Head Coach

FC Dallas announced that Eric Quill will become the team’s next head coach. Quill joins Dallas after a great year with New Mexico United that included trips to the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals and USL Championship Western Conference semifinals. It’s also a reunion of sorts for Quill, as he previously coached North Texas SC and was named USL League One Coach of the Year with the club in 2019. Dallas missed out on the playoffs this season, with Peter Luccin coaching the team on an interim basis after the firing of Nico Estevez in June.

Free Kicks

  • District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser challenged Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer to a bet involving this weekend’s NWSL Championship, with embarrassing lightshows on the line.

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

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