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Orlando City vs. FC Cincinnati: Final Score 1-0 as Urso’s Early Goal Stands Up for Lions

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5 years ago

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Junior Urso scored the game’s only goal and Pedro Gallese made three saves to keep a clean sheet as Orlando City beat FC Cincinnati 1-0 at TQL Stadium. The Lions (12-8-9, 45 points) are now unbeaten in three straight matches (2-0-1) and got a crucial three points against FC Cincinnati (4-17-8, 20 points), which lost its seventh consecutive game — and its fifth of those by a single goal.

The match had plenty of controversy at the end, with substitute Tesho Akindele seemingly scoring a golazo off the crossbar that was (apparently) never reviewed and a potential penalty review against Rodrigo Schlegel in stoppage time that was not given after referee Marcos de Oliveira went to the monitor.

The Lions remained in fourth place, closing to within a point of the Philadelphia Union, who drew against Montreal earlier today.

“A great result for us. We needed it,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “The boys came convinced about getting those three points. I think the effort on the field was great. They showed one more time their character during the whole game.”

Pareja’s lineup once again featured Gallese in net, but there was a change at left back as the questionable Joao Moutinho (lower body, naturally) was left home. Emmanuel Mas slotted in for Moutinho next to Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Ruan. Andres Perea slotted into central midfield with Urso rather than Sebas Mendez, who was on the bench. Mauricio Pereyra and Chris Mueller were tasked with facilitating the attack to Nani and Daryl Dike. Alexandre Pato returned to the bench for the first time since opening day, although he didn’t get a runout.

Orlando controlled play in the opening minutes and Ruan had a lot of success getting down the right flank without Ronald Matarrita in the Cincinnati lineup. However, the Brazilian right back did not have a lot of success with his crossing, as time and again he put balls in areas without teammates or behind them. Still, he created the opening goal after peeling back to the top of the box and finding a trailing Urso, who sent a perfectly placed shot just inside the right post. The Bear’s fourth goal of the year had Orlando up 1-0 in the 13th minute.

“Sometimes I try to put power in my shot, but I saw one guy in front of the keeper too,” Urso said. “So I tried to make some curve to bend it and it was perfect. Important goal for City.”

Ruan got back in the box in the 16th minute and had his shot blocked. Pereyra’s follow-up was deflected out for a corner. Moments later, Ruan got loose again on the right and had a speeding Mueller to his left but played his pass behind the Lions’ winger.

Gallese made a huge save off a strange play in the 24th minute on Cincinnati’s best chance of the half. A corner kick to the back post came off Urso’s head and deflected back toward his own goal, falling at the feet of Cincinnati’s Geoff Cameron. The defender seemed sure to score but El Pulpo made a vital save to preserve the lead.

Orlando was wasteful with some good buildup play, either passing up potential shots or working the ball around until a poorly placed pass allowed the hosts to collect. As the first half wore on, Cincinnati got more of the ball but didn’t do much with it. Alvaro Barreal fired well over the bar from long range in the 34th minute.

Perea tried a shot from the right side in the 40th minute but hit his shot right at goalkeeper Przemysław Tyton. Nani tried to curl one inside the upper left corner from the right side in the 42nd minute but couldn’t get the shot to curl quite enough. Late in the half, Nani had his shot blocked and it fell to Pereyra on the left. The Uruguayan fired on target but Tyton got a hand to it.

Mueller got a late chance off a corner kick but didn’t hit his shot cleanly and it sailed high into the stands. The Lions took their 1-0 lead into the break.

The Lions dominated in shots (14-4) and had more shots on target (4-2). Orlando also earned more corners (5-2) and was slightly better passing (84.6%-84.5%). Cincinnati held a little more of the possession (50.2%-49.8%).

The hosts made a change at the break, bringing on Allan Cruz for Isaac Atanga and the switch gave Cincinnati a jolt of energy that pushed the Lions back on their heels. Orlando didn’t help matters by being a lot looser with the ball against the pressure.

Brenner thought he’d tied the match in the 48th minute when he fired a shot past Gallese but the whistle had blown for a foul on the entry ball as Perea was pushed to the ground to win the duel.

Orlando finally got a good buildup that led somewhere in the 60th minute when Perea sent Mueller down the right side, but his cross in front of goal was too close to Tyton, who smothered it.

Six minutes later, Perea made a mistake that will have ramifications for Wednesday’s match. Cutting in from the left to the middle of the field, he tried to send a pass across to Carlos, but he not only caught his teammate off guard, he also didn’t get enough on his pass. Carlos was late to the ball and his challenge resulted in a booking that will have him suspended for Wednesday’s game.

The service on the ensuing set piece found the foot of Tyler Blackett at the back post but the fullback could only get a toe on it and pop it straight to Gallese.

Pareja sent Akindele and Benji Michel on for Dike and Mueller, getting fresh legs into an attack that was just not able to get into gear in the second half. The move nearly paid dividends right away, as Michel got down the left side on a pass from Jansson and had Akindele lurking at the far post but Benji’s cross was way too far out in front of his teammate and went out for a goal kick.

Michel was robbed by Tyton in the 77th minute. Pereyra sent Mas down the left flank and the left back found Michel in front. Benji spun and fired a hard shot on target but Tyton was able to get an arm on it and Nick Hagglund sent it out of play a split second before Urso could get to the loose ball.

The Lions should have put the game away in the 84th minute. Akindele found himself in space and fired a cannon shot off the underside of the crossbar that appeared to land across the goal line before bouncing back into the field of play, where Tyton collected it. There was never a stoppage for a review and Pareja said he was never able to talk to the ref after the game about the play to get an explanation.

“I thought we could have that second goal of Tesho’s. I cannot understand why it wasn’t seen,” Pareja said.

The Lions went to five at the back in the 90th minute, sending Schlegel on for Pereyra with the final substitution. His first involvement nearly ended in disaster. A set piece was sent into the box and bodies got tangled. Cincinnati lobbied for a penalty but none was given during live play. However, de Oliveira went to the monitor to take a second look after consulting with VAR Fotis Bazakos. Schlegel’s arm clearly came up and hit the head and neck area of forward Brandon Vazquez on the play but Hagglund appeared to send Schlegel off balance with a foul prior to the play in question. The referee ended up seeing it that way and Gallese took a free kick instead of facing a penalty.

The Lions defended desperately as the game went through nine minutes of stoppage time before de Oliveira ended the proceedings.

Cincinnati finished with slight advantages in possession (52.5%-47.5%) and passing accuracy (83.2%-82.8%), but Orlando out-shot the hosts (18-9) and got more on target (5-3), while earning more corners (6-4).

“The second half was very choppy,” Pareja said. “The first half was much better for us.”

Gallese earned the team’s eighth clean sheet of the season and first since a 0-0 draw against Inter Miami in late August. El Pulpo now has six clean sheets on the season and nine in his Orlando City career, which pushed him past Brian Rowe and into sole possession of second on the club’s all-time list. He is four shy of Joe Bendik’s career club record of 13.

Pareja said that Gallese was adamant about playing in the match despite arriving in Cincinnati late the night before after playing for Peru in the international window.

“In our conversation this morning, the first thing that he said is that he wanted at any cost to play tonight and for us to give him the opportunity to be in the squad,” said Pareja. “That shows his commitment as a great professional. The team is first for him.”

Orlando snapped a six-match winless streak in road games (0-3-3) with the win.

“We’re very happy for those three points. It’s very necessary at this stage,” Pareja said.

The Lions have a quick turnaround with Montreal visiting Exploria Stadium on Wednesday.

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Orlando City vs. Atlanta United, 2026 U.S. Open Cup: Final Score 4-1 as Lions Maul Five Stripes

A big first half filled with breakaway opportunities helped Orlando City knock Atlanta out of the U.S. Open Cup.

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4 hours ago

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May 19, 2026

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Image of Tiago celebrating a goal with Justin Ellis against Atlanta.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Orlando City ran wild over Atlanta United in the first half, building a huge advantage in what was ultimately a 4-1 victory over their Southeast rivals at Inter&Co Stadium in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals tonight. David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey, and Tiago (twice) provided the fireworks in a wild first half that could have seen Orlando ahead by even more goals if not for the offside flag and good goalkeeping by Atlanta’s Jayden Hibbert.

“I’m happy, of course, for the result, as well for the performance. But more than anything, I’m happy first of all for our group of players, because they do a huge effort every day,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the game. “From the very beginning they have been fighting and I’m happy they were able to gift us a performance like this.”

Perelman’s lineup included Javier Otero in goal behind a back line of Adrian Marin, Robin Jansson, Brekalo, and Dorsey. Braian Ojeda and Eduard Atuesta started in central midfield between wingers Ivan Angulo and Tiago, with Martin Ojeda and Justin Ellis leading the attack up top.

The Lions decimated Atlanta in the opening 45 minutes to build a huge 4-0 halftime lead that could have been more if not for Tiago and Angulo being offside on breaks that they finished and a couple of huge saves by Hibbert. Orlando City ripped the Atlanta defense to shreds either by moving the ball quickly or simply placing perfect through balls or long balls into the gaps in the visitors’ three-man back line.

However, the first goal of the game came off a set piece. Atlanta cleared a corner kick in the fifth minute, but Braian Ojeda sent in a good ball on the recycle and Brekalo was able to sneak in behind by timing his run well, nodding home for his first goal of the year to get the scoring party started.

“I’m so relieved that it happened, and it happened in this kind of game, magnitude of importance, and I hope this is the first of many this season, because I know I’m capable of scoring more goals,” Brekalo said.

Three minutes after the opening goal, Dorsey came forward and beat Hibbert but the defense cleared the shot off the line.

Atlanta’s first good look at goal came in the 14th minute on across from the left that found Aleksey Miranchuk on the right. The Atlanta attacker sent his header just wide of the left post.

Tiago nearly got in behind in the 15th minute but the defense knocked the ball away for Hibbert to collect. Orlando scored a minute later anyway. Marin sent a good ball forward for Angulo to run onto. The Colombian got down the left and centered a pass for Dorsey to tap home to make it 2-0 in the 16th minute.

Ellis played Martin Ojeda in behind in the 20th minute. The Argentine put his shot on goal and Hibbert made a good save, but the flag came up for offside anyway, although that one looked clean to me.

Atlanta United could have cut the lead in half a minute later when Emmanuel Latte Lath caught Otero off his line but the chip shot hit the right post.

It was a costly miss for Latte Lath, because Tiago made it 3-0 in the 24th minute on a good hustle play. The Brazilian pressed high and blocked Hibbert’s pass attempt. Martin Ojeda was offside, so he let the ball go and Tiago recovered and fired past Hibbert to triple the lead.

Like Dorsey just did recently, Tiago celebrated with the traditional ball under the shirt to honor his pregnant wife.

“It was recent news that we found out my wife was pregnant, obviously very happy about it, and today we actually found out it’s a boy,” Tiago said. “So, that’s what kind of gave me extra motivation for the goals, for my wife and now my son. They’re the two most important people in my life.”

Angulo got in behind and scored in the 33rd minute but the flag came up for offside again.

Miranchuk redirected a cross on goal in the 34th minute but sent his effort straight at Otero for a comfortable save.

The Lions then had more excellent chances to extend the lead just after Atlanta’s chance. Hibbert made an excellent save to deny Tiago in the 36th minute, getting his hand up just in time to keep it out of the net. Two minutes later, Dorsey bombed forward again on the break but the defense forced him wide. The fullback chipped it toward goal anyway and the defense cleared it off the line just before it could cross. In the 39th minute, Martin Ojeda got behind on a pass from Angulo but Hibbert made another solid save to keep the game at 3-0.

Brekalo got his head to the ensuing corner kick cross but the post denied the center back a brace in the 40th minute. A minute after that, Dorsey blasted a hard shot that Hibbert palmed over the crossbar.

Tiago thought he had his brace in the 44th minute, getting in behind and firing past Hibbert, but the flag came up once more.

Otero made a good save to stop Jay Fortune’s shot in the third minute of first-half stoppage time on one of Atlanta’s best chances of the game.

The Lions went the other way and made it 4-0. Braian Ojeda sent a good through ball to unlock Tiago. The Brazilian put the ball past Hibbert again to bag his first brace in an Orlando City uniform in the fifth minute of stoppage time on the last chance of the half.

“Extremely happy,” Tiago said of his brace. “I know the quality of the player that I am. I’ve spoken to Coach Martin (Perelman) during the week, and he told me the runs I should make, so naturally the goals came out of it.”

At the end of the first half, the Lions had the advantage in shots (11-7), shots on target (9-3), and corners (4-0). Atlanta led in possession (60%-40%) and passing accuracy (85%-80%).

“We were obviously extremely focused on the game,” Tiago said. “We know Atlanta is a tough team. We played them over the weekend, obviously we drew them, so we came into this game very focused, and we knew the quality of the group and knew we could advance.”

“I think I have to give credit to the coaching staff here, where they prepared the plan really well,” Brekalo said. “That was the main point: either take the ball super high or super low when we’re defending and counterattack them, so it worked exactly like the planned, and like we saw first half, I think many times, three or four times, that didn’t result in a goal, could be a goal, I think by a few inches or something. So, I would say that that was the whole plan, so it was either take it super low when in the our last third or super high up, and obviously the hard work of everybody, you know, defenders shifting, midfielders running like crazy. Everybody worked so hard today.”

Atlanta made four substitutions at the break and went to four at the back. This prevented Orlando City from getting the numerous breakaways the Lions enjoyed in the first half. Saba Lobjanidze’s introduction also gave the Five Stripes more bite in the attack.

The Five Stripes offense looked better right from the jump as the visitors looked to get something on the board to make a game of it. Matias Galarza fired just off target in the 49th minute on the good first look of the second half.

Orlando’s first look at goal came three minutes later, when Martin Ojeda fired a hard shot straight down the middle at Hibbert.

Lobjanidze just missed the left post from the right side in the 54th minute as Atlanta pressed numbers forward. Two minutes later, Lobjanidze dropped a cross onto Miranchuk’s head but the redirection went wide.

Tristan Muyumba volleyed a cleared corner kick toward goal in the 68th minute but missed the target badly.

“I think the challenge when we went out in the halftime, we imagined that they were going to make substitutions and strong players were going to come in, because they have a really good roster and talented players,” Perelman said. “And we knew the first 15 minutes were going to be very important. We tried to maintain the plan. I think we were able to do it, maybe not the first five minutes of the second half, but yes, we knew we needed to go over those first 15 minutes, and fortunately we could.”

Having weathered the early second-half storm, Orlando settled into protection mode, still looking to get forward when it could, but not taking many chances in possession. The Lions won a couple of corner kicks in the 72nd and 73rd minutes but couldn’t do anything with them.

Galarza again fired over the bar in the 75th minute, and Lobjanidze missed on a good opportunity in the 83rd minute as the visitors kept coming. A minute later, Latte Lath spoiled the shutout by volleying a beautiful shot just under the crossbar from the top of the box to make it 4-1.

Angulo got forward and fired over the bar in the 88th minute in the first good look for Orlando in quite some time. Two minutes later, the Lions broke forward and Braian Ojeda looked for a passing route, but the defense kept the channels blocked, so the midfielder went for goal himself. It was a good effort, but Hibbert made a nice save to push it wide. The corner kick was cleared out to second-half sub Wilder Cartagena in space. The Peruvian fired from outside the box but sent it right at Hibbert at the near post.

The match ended without another look at goal for either team and the Lions advanced past their rivals.

Atlanta’s second-half surge allowed the visitors to finish with the advantage in possession (59.5%-40.5%), shots (16-13), and passing accuracy (84.7%-79.4%). The Lions finished with more shots on target (10-4) and corners (6-1). Most importantly, Orlando won on the scoreboard by a wide margin.

“I’m happy to move forward in this competition, to put the team in a semifinal, which is important for us, for our club,” Perelman said. “I’m happy for our fans, because they deserve it. They support us always in the good ones and in those ones that are not that good ones. And of course, I’m happy for the entire club, managers, owner, Ricardo (Moreira), everybody here. We work really hard, so I think today is a good day for us and I’m happy for us.”

“I’m so happy that we advanced to the semifinals,” Brekalo said. “The team performed really well. We know we played against the same opponent, a tough game three days ago, so it was not easy, like energy-wise. And yeah, I’m so happy and proud of this team.”

The Lions advance to play the winner of tomorrow’s match between New York City FC and the Columbus Crew on the road on Sept. 15 or 16. Orlando City returns to league action Saturday on the road against FC Cincinnati. After that, the team is off for the World Cup break until late July.

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Orlando City vs. Atlanta United, 2026 U.S. Open Cup: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions look to bounce back after conceding late Saturday in their draw vs. Atlanta in tonight’s knockout game against the Five Stripes.

Published

16 hours ago

on

May 19, 2026

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Image of Justin Ellis driving at Atlanta defenders.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Welcome to your match thread for a Tuesday night U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal matchup between Orlando City and Atlanta United at Inter&Co Stadium (7:30 p.m., Paramount+, CBS Sports Golazo Network). It’s the second of three scheduled meetings between the Eastern Conference rivals — the second in three days — with the Lions scheduled to make the return trip to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Sept. 9 in MLS play.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s match.

History

The Lions are 5-11-8 in the all-time series against Atlanta in league play and 3-6-4 at home. Orlando City is 6-12-8 against tonight’s visitors in all competitions (regular season, playoffs, and U.S. Open Cup), 4-7-4 at home in all games played, and 0-1-0 in the U.S. Open Cup against the Five Stripes.

Orlando City and Atlanta United met just three nights ago on Saturday, playing to a 1-1 draw. Griffin Dorsey gave Orlando the lead early but the Lions squandered chances to extend the lead, allowing Jay Fortune’s late goal to steal a point for the visitors.

The Lions led 2-1 in Atlanta on May 28, 2025, on goals by Cesar Araujo and Ramiro Enrique to more than offset Alexey Miranchuk’s goal. However, Araujo foolishly got himself sent off. The Five Stripes turned the game around on Bartosz Slisz’s goal with seven minutes remaining in normal time and Jamal Thiare’s winner deep in stoppage time in a 3-2 victory for Atlanta. The teams just met in Orlando a month earlier on April 26. The Lions prevailed 3-0 on goals by Luis Muriel (from the penalty spot), Alex Freeman, and Marco Pasalic.

The rivals met in the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals, with the Lions eking out a 1-0 home victory on Nov. 24, 2024. Enrique provided the game’s only goal, and the Orlando defense was dominant, allowing the visitors just seven total shot attempts — none on target. That win pushed the Lions into their first-ever conference final.

Prior to their postseason meeting, these two teams met on Decision Day 2024, with Atlanta scoring two early goals and holding on for a 2-1 win on Oct. 9. Saba Lobjanidze and Thiare gave the visitors an early lead. Martin Ojeda pulled one back and Duncan McGuire appeared to tie the game late, but the latter goal was overturned on video review for a handball. The teams also met at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on March 17, 2024, when Orlando City fell 2-0 on goals by Lobjanidze and Giorgos Giakoumakis.

The last meeting of 2023 took place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, with Orlando City capturing a 2-1 away win. Atlanta took the lead through Caleb Wiley, but Antonio Carlos and McGuire scored to lead the Lions’ comeback. The southeast rivals also met in Orlando on May 27, 2023, at Exploria Stadium and played to a 1-1 draw. It was a heartbreaking dropped two points for the Lions, who took the lead through Kyle Smith at the half-hour mark and held that advantage until four minutes from full time, when Tyler Wolff pounced on a fortunate rebound in the box and equalized.

Atlanta went 1-0-1 in the season series in 2022. On Sept. 14 at Exploria Stadium the Five Stripes won 1-0 on a Thiago Almada goal despite the Lions out-shooting Atlanta 20-10. The sides played to a 1-1 draw in their first meeting of that year on July 22 in Atlanta. Mauricio Pereyra staked the Lions to an early 1-0 lead on a beautiful free kick. Juan Jose Purata equalized in the second half, but Atlanta bombarded Orlando the majority of the game and completely controlled the midfield, outshooting the Lions 18-3 in the match.

Orlando had a six-match unbeaten streak in the series (3-0-3) snapped on Sept. 10, 2021, as the Five Stripes won 3-0 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. George Campbell and Ezequiel Barco scored for Atlanta, sandwiched around a Daryl Dike own goal to hand Gonzalo Pineda his first win as manager for United.

The second of three 2021 meetings took place July 30 at Exploria Stadium, with the Five Stripes taking the lead twice on goals by Josef Martinez and Marcelino Moreno, but the Lions not only fought back twice on strikes by Smith and Silvester van der Water, but Nani scored a late game winner by heading in VDW’s cross in Orlando City’s 3-2 win. The first meeting of that season between the two rivals came on opening day — April 17 — and they played to a 0-0 draw.

The final meeting of 2020 came on Oct. 28, when Orlando City ran away with a 4-1 win over Atlanta at Exploria Stadium. Dike, Chris Mueller, Tesho Akindele, and Matheus Aias scored the goals for the Lions, with Cubo Torres preventing a shutout with a late goal for the visitors. Prior to that, the teams met in Atlanta on Oct. 7, 2020 and played to a 0-0 draw. Robinho and Nani each hit the woodwork and Brad Guzan stood on his head to prevent Orlando from taking a deserved three points in that one, while Brian Rowe held down the fort at the other end to earn a shutout in Pedro Gallese’s absence.

Back on Sept. 5, 2020, a late, unforced turnover by Kamal Miller led to Adam Jahn’s 92nd-minute tying goal that offset a Benji Michel strike in a 1-1 draw at Exploria Stadium. Orlando City finally got on the board in the series against Atlanta United with a 3-1 win on the road on Aug. 29, 2020. Junior Urso, Mueller, and Nani supplied the offense to more than counter a Brooks Lennon headed goal. That three-goal explosion snapped a three-match scoreless streak against the Five Stripes for Orlando.

Orlando City created an incredible 17 scoring chances on Aug. 23, 2019, yet finished none of them in a 1-0 home loss. Martinez scored the game’s only goal in the second half. Only 17 days earlier at Exploria Stadium, Orlando also failed to score and lost 2-0 to Atlanta, getting bounced from the U.S. Open Cup semifinals. On Mother’s Day of 2019, Atlanta United claimed a 1-0 win at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Pity Martinez scored the goal.

Atlanta won at Orlando City Stadium on Aug. 24, 2018 by a 2-1 final score. Leandro Gonzalez Pirez bundled home a rebound off Joe Bendik, who misplayed Barco’s free kick to open the scoring just 21 minutes in. Scott Sutter tied the game just before the half, but Josef Martinez broke the deadlock in the second half, with only 16 minutes remaining in normal time.

Atlanta easily claimed the June 30, 2018 meeting at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, 4-0. Josef Martinez and Barco each scored a goal and Miguel Almiron added a brace. Orlando lost the first matchup of 2018, 2-1, on May 13. An early penalty on a Cristian Higuita foul gave the visitors a leg up on a Josef Martinez goal from the spot and Barco doubled the lead before halftime. Justin Meram scored his first goal as a Lion to pull one back, but Orlando could get no closer. The unfortunate ending included a shower of debris coming out of the stands due to dissatisfaction with referee Alan Kelly’s decisions that night.

Hector Villalba’s two late goals in the first two meetings turned what could have been an Orlando draw and a win into a loss and a draw. The two teams kicked off their series with Orlando suffering a late 1-0 loss at home on July 21, 2017. Villalba found the net late. He then scored a stoppage-time tally to rescue a 1-1 draw for Atlanta in the second meeting on July 29, 2017. Kaká scored one of his best goals as a Lion in that match to provide Orlando’s lone score.

Orlando City became the first visiting team to take any points out of Mercedes-Benz Stadium with a 3-3 draw in Atlanta that September. Dom Dwyer scored his first brace as a Lion (in MLS, anyway) and also assisted on Cyle Larin’s goal. Josef Martinez’s hat trick spoiled Orlando’s bid to take all three points.

Overview

The Lions and Atlanta obviously played just a few days ago and walked away splitting the points, but not all draws are created equal. The Five Stripes rotated more than Orlando City did, which should position them better for tonight. They were already better rested than the Lions and all Orlando did was add more miles to legs that have logged a lot of them this month. To make matters worse, captain Robin Jansson left with a knock at halftime on Saturday.

Orlando got to this point in the tournament by squeaking past two opponents it should have overpowered. The Lions were fortunate to get a 1-0 road win at FC Naples on April 15, with a Nolan Miller goal-line clearance that was perhaps fortunate to not have to stand up to video review. Naples outplayed Orlando City by a wide margin in the game, especially in the second half, but the Lions got the game’s only goal.

In the Round of 16, Orlando went north to face New England and was met by a youthful Revolution side made up almost entirely of prospects. The Revs didn’t even dress stars like Carles Gil and Matt Turner. City fell behind that makeshift lineup three times but fought back to ultimately win it 4-3 on April 29.

Atlanta is 3-0-1 in its last four road games in all competitions (two U.S. Open Cup, two MLS). The Five Stripes got to this point in the competition by beating Chattanooga FC 3-1 in the Round of 32 and Charlotte FC 2-0 in the Round of 16.

Orlando City’s defense will have to keep tabs on Lobjanidze and Miranchuk in particular, but the Lions can’t switch off in their own end regardless of who is on the pitch and what the score is. OCSC has been fragile with late leads and even bringing on defense-for-offense substitutions has not helped. If they again don’t rotate much, the Lions will also need to conserve energy and pick their spots to make long runs as they are playing in their third match in seven days.

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Javier Otero.

Defenders: Adrian Marin, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Eduard Atuesta, Tiago.

Forwards: Martin Ojeda, Justin Ellis.

Bench: Maxime Crepeau, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Luis Otavio, Marco Pasalic, Duncan McGuire.

Atlanta United (4-4-1-1)

Goalkeeper: Jayden Hibbert.

Defenders: Elias Baez, Stian Gregersen, Pedro Amador, Ronald Hernandez.

Midfielders: Cooper Sanchez, Jay Fortune, Will Reilly, Matthew Edwards.

Attacking Midfielder: Aleksey Miranchuk.

Forward: Emmanuel Latte Lath.

Bench: Lucas Hoyos, Juan Berrocal, Tomas Jacob, Tristan Muyumba, Matias Galarza, Sergio Santos, Saba Lobjanidze.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Live Stream: Paramount+, CBS Sports Golazo Network.

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Lion Links: 5/19/26

Lions set for international duty, lessons from MLS matchday 14, Austin FC makes changes at the top, and more.

Published

19 hours ago

on

May 19, 2026

By

Image of Marco Pasalic saluting the fans.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Good morning, everyone! It wasn’t a particularly successful weekend for Orlando’s soccer teams, but we don’t have time to dwell on the past. Orlando City is set for a big U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal match against Atlanta United tonight, and all three teams will be back in action over the weekend. We’ve got a whole host of things to talk about today, so let’s jump straight into the links.

Lions Called Up for International Duty

A busy summer break from MLS is almost upon us, and that means that the international call-ups are starting to roll in. Gustavo Caraballo will be joining Venezuela’s U-20 outfit as it gets ready for an upcoming youth tournament.

In addition, Marco Pasalic has been named to Croatia’s World Cup squad, so Orlando City will be represented on the biggest stage.

Congrats to both players!

Lessons from Matchday 14

Matchday 14 is officially in the books for Major League Soccer, so let’s take a look at what we learned from the weekend’s action. For one thing, despite a slightly slow start to the season by his high standards, Hany Mukhtar’s hat trick against LAFC proved that he should still be considered among the league’s elite. Marco Reus flashed his versatility in the LA Galaxy’s 2-0 win over the Seattle Sounders, as he played striker and got an assist on LA’s first goal. Finally, while its too early to say things are definitely turned around for Sporting Kansas City, back-to-back wins means that there’s at least something to get excited about, and that’s very welcome in a season that’s been difficult for the most part. The spine of Sporting’s midfield looked improved on Saturday, and having Dejan Jovelic up top is never going to hurt a team’s chances.

Austin FC Makes Personnel Changes

Austin FC followed in the footsteps of the Columbus Crew by announcing the firing of head coach Nico Estevez on Monday. Where Austin went a step further was by also firing sporting director Rodolfo Borrell. The team has begun searches for permanent appointments to both positions immediately, while naming Davy Arnaud as interim manager in what will be his second stint in that role with the club. Austin has endured a difficult start to the season and is currently 13th in the Western Conference with a record of 3-6-5 and 14 points from 14 matches. The 2-1 loss to Sporting Kansas City on Saturday seems to have been the final straw, and Austin will now be seeking its third permanent head coach since becoming an MLS club.

Americans in Midweek Action

Most major European seasons have already wrapped up or will be doing so shortly, but there’s still a number of Americans who will be competing during the working week. Things get started later today when Tyler Adams and Bournemouth play host to Manchester City in Premier League action. The stakes ratchet up considerably on Thursday when Kevin Paredes and Wolfsburg play Paderborn in the first leg of the Bundesliga’s promotion/relegation tie. Things then finish up on Friday when Yunus Musah and Atalanta travel to take on Fiorentina in Serie A.

Free Kicks

That’s all I’ve got for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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