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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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3 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. Philadelphia Union: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions continue on the road, looking to avenge their opening day loss to the Union.

Published

10 hours ago

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April 5, 2025

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Welcome to your match thread for a Saturday opening night matchup between Orlando City (3-2-1, 10 points) and the Philadelphia Union (4-2-0, 12 points) at Subaru Park (7:30 p.m., MLS Season Pass on Apple TV). This is the second and final scheduled regular-season meeting between the Eastern Conference clubs in 2025.

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

History

Orlando City is 7-8-6 in the 21 MLS meetings with the Union since the club joined Major League Soccer in 2015, and 8-9-7 in all competitions. The Lions are 4-5-1 against the Union on the road in league play and 4-6-1 at Philadelphia in all competitions.

These two teams kicked off the 2025 season against each other in Orlando on Feb. 22, with the Union stunning the Lions by scoring on all four of the team’s shots on target, taking advantage of individual mistakes in a 4-2 win. Marco Pasalic scored his first two goals as a Lion in his first OCSC appearance that night, but Tai Baribo scored a brace, with Daniel Gazdag and Mikael Uhre also scoring for Philadelphia. The Lions dominated open play but could not pay off their chances while the Union were lethal. It was Orlando’s first loss on opening day in its MLS existence.

The teams last met in 2024 on Oct. 2, when the Lions won 2-1 at home. Facundo Torres and Duncan McGuire pushed Orlando out to a 2-0 lead. Luis Muriel assisted on both goals. Quinn Sullivan pulled one back but the Lions hung on. The teams met for the first time last year on May 11, with the Lions snatching a 3-2 road win at Subaru Park. Muriel scored his first two MLS goals, McGuire added a strike, and Nico Lodeiro assisted on all three tallies for the Lions to offset an early goal by Uhre and a penalty by Gazdag.

The last meeting of 2023 took place in Orlando on June 21, with the Lions blowing a two-goal lead in a controversial 2-2 draw. McGuire and Martin Ojeda scored early in each half, only to see Jack McGlynn score on a cross into the box that missed everyone and got past Mason Stajduhar at the far post, followed by a rocket shot by Jose Martinez from distance. Ivan Angulo’s would-be game winner was chalked off after a questionable foul call in the buildup against Ercan Kara.

The teams met in Philadelphia on March 25, 2023 with the Lions jumping out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Angulo and Ojeda. Former Lion Andres Perea pulled one back, but the Lions held on for a 2-1 road win. The victory snapped Philadelphia’s incredible 24-match home unbeaten streak.

The Union put the Lions to the sword in the last meeting of 2022, a dominant 5-1 win by Philadelphia on Sept. 10 of that year. That was Orlando’s first match since winning the U.S. Open Cup title three days earlier. Joao Moutinho’s own goal started the scoring and the Union got goals from Uhre, Gazdag (penalty), Alejandro Bedoya, and Jack Elliott. Perea, who was then still a Lion, scored for Orlando, but the team was trailing by 4-0 at the time.

The Eastern Conference foes met on July 23, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. Two controversial video review decisions went against Orlando that night and the Lions were wasteful with their chances in an evenly matched 1-0 Philadelphia win. Gazdag scored the game’s only goal off a set piece.

The teams also met in U.S. Open Cup play on May 10, 2022, with the Lions winning 2-1 at home. Kara and Perea hoisted Orlando to a 2-0 lead. Stuart Findlay pulled one back late, but the Lions saw it out and advanced.

On Sept. 19, 2021 the Union prevailed 3-1 at Subaru Park, largely due to a brace by Kacper Przybylko after he got away with what appeared to be a clear elbow to the face of Rodrigo Schlegel. Instead of being sent off and/or conceding a free kick to Orlando City, the Union scored on the ensuing play and went on to win the match. The teams met in Orlando on July 22, 2021 and the Lions got goals by Benji Michel and Perea on the team’s only two shots on target to win 2-1. Przybylko, who had feasted on Orlando since arriving in Philadelphia, pulled one back for the visitors but the Lions hung on.

The teams faced each other in the group stage of the MLS is Back Tournament in 2020 in the only meeting to date that did not take place in either side’s home stadium. The game ended in a 1-1 draw after a Mauricio Pereyra goal canceled out a strike by Ilsinho. That draw allowed the Lions to win Group A in the competition and they went on to reach the final.

The Lions and Union tangled in what was then known as Talen Energy Stadium on July 7, 2019, with the teams drawing, 2-2. Dom Dwyer and Santiago Patino brought Orlando back from 1-0 down but Przybylko poached a goal in the 90th to capture a share of the points for the Union.

The two teams had met just a few days earlier on July 3, ending in Orlando’s 3-1 home loss against the Union. Chris Mueller and Przybylko swapped goals in the first half before Robin Jansson was sent off just prior to the break. Afterwards, the 10-man Lions gave up two more goals — to Przybylko and Fafa Picault — and then went down another man with Sacha Kljestan seeing red.

In 2018, the teams drew 2-2 on Sept. 1 in Orlando. The Lions prevailed over the Union in Philadelphia on April 13, 2018 by a 2-0 score. Orlando and Philadelphia also met that season in U.S. Open Cup play, with the Union capturing a 1-0 home win back on July 18, 2018 on a goal by Bedoya.

The teams split their two matches in 2017, with the home side prevailing both times. The Lions won 2-1 at Orlando City Stadium on March 18. The rematch was an ugly 6-1 Philadelphia win in the season finale for both teams.

The Lions were 1-1-1 against Philadelphia in 2016. The team’s first road victory in the series came on Oct. 16, 2016, as the Lions roared, 2-0. The teams played to a 2-2 draw on May 25 in Orlando. Tranquillo Barnetta’s free kick gave Philly a 2-1 win.

Orlando drew 0-0 at home and lost on the road, 1-0 (on a penalty kick), against Philadelphia in 2015.

Overview

Orlando City is coming off a 2-1 comeback win over the Galaxy in LA a week ago. Christian Ramirez scored in the first half for LA, but Ojeda converted a penalty won by Eduard Atuesta and Muriel scored in the 90th minute on a high, long-range free kick that John McCarthy spilled into his own net. The Lions have won two consecutive matches for the first time in 2025 and are unbeaten in their last three (2-0-1). Tonight marks the team’s fourth road match in a five-game span. Orlando is 1-1-1 away from home this season.

The Union have lost two of their last three after last Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Inter Miami in a battle for first place in the Eastern Conference. Philadelphia is 2-1-0 at home this season and is generally difficult to beat in Subaru Park. Under new coach Bradley Carnell, the Union trail only Orlando City in goals scored in MLS, with 13 to the Lions’ 15. However, Philly has conceded eight times in 2025 compared to Orlando’s co-league-worst 12.

Baribo is not only the MLS Player of the Month for February/March, he’s leading the Golden Boot race with six goals in five matches played. A third of those goals came against Orlando in the opener, meaning the Lions will need to stay focused and compact defensively. Baribo is by no means the only Union player that can do damage. Gazdag, who has two goals and two assists on the season, seemingly nearly always scores against Orlando and Uhre has hurt the Lions in the past as well. The trio accounted for 36 goals and 11 assists in 2024.

Philadelphia will look to take the ball away and create in transition. The key to Orlando’s success will be beating Philly’s press and getting at the back line in front of standout goalkeeper Andre Blake. Orlando did well with the first part of that in late February, but struggled to either beat Blake or put shots on frame, firing 24 times with 10 on target, but only scoring twice.

“Preparation has been good so far. The aura within the group is great after a great result in LA,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the match. “We’re enthusiastic about going on the road again and trying to add more points. This is a game that we played in the opener not long ago, where we have some context that we can use, and surely they [Philadelphia] will do it too. At this point, we have that ambition to go and fight for our three points there.” 

Orlando City will be without Wilder Cartagena (Achilles), Yutaro Tsukada (knee), Nico Rodriguez (thigh), and Favian Loyola (thigh). Philadelphia’s Kai Wagner (oblique) is also out.

Match Content

Official Lineups:

Orlando City (4-2-3-1),

Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.

Defenders: David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, Alex Freeman.

Defensive Midfielders: Joran Gerbet, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.

Attacking Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Martin Ojeda, Marco Pasalic.

Forwards: Luis Muriel.

Bench: Javier Otero, Rafael Santos, Kyle Smith, Thomas Williams, Colin Guske, Gustavo Caraballo, Shak Mohammed, Ramiro Enrique, Duncan McGuire.

Philadelphia Union (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Andre Blake.

Defenders: Nathan Harriel, Ian Glavinovich, Jakob Glesnes, Frankie Westfield.

Midfielders: Quinn Sullivan, Danley Jean-Jacques, Jovan Lukic, Daniel Gazdag.

Forwards: Tai Baribo, Bruno Damiani.

Bench: Andrew Rick, Olivier Mbaizo, Olwethu Makhanya, Jesus Bueno, Alejandro Bedoya, Cavan Sullivan, Chris Donovan, Indiana Vassilev, Mikael Uhre.

Referees:

REF: Ismir Pekmic.
AR1: Gerard-Kader Lebuis.
AR2: Eduardo Jeff.
4TH: Luis Diego Arroyo.
VAR: Younes Marrakchi.
AVAR: Brian Dunn.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Subaru Park — Chester, PA.

TV/Streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish).

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

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Orlando City

Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. Philadelphia Union

Find out how the season has been treating the Philadelphia Union since the two teams met in the season opener.

Published

1 day ago

on

April 4, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City has strung two wins together for the first time in the 2025 Major League Soccer season, and now the Lions will try to make it three on the bounce. Along with the chance to extend the winning streak to three games comes the opportunity for revenge against the Philadelphia Union. The Union got the better of Orlando in the first game of the season to the tune of a 4-2 victory, and now we’ll have a chance to see what sort of progress OCSC has made since then.

Before that, though, I spoke to Matt Ralph, the managing editor of Philadelphia Soccer Now, to see how things have been going for Philly since that first game of the season. He was kind enough to help get us up to speed on a Union side that’s been one of the best in the league so far.

The Union don’t seem to have had much problem in adjusting to how Bradley Carnell wants to play. What’s made this team so successful through its opening six games?

Matt Ralph: The players have bought in, and the new additions have fit in well. One of Carnell’s strengths is his communication, and like Jim Curtin before him, he has done a great job of being consistent with his messaging and has created a challenging training environment that has prepared his players well week to week. Carnell has put his stamp on the “Philly tough” approach, no doubt, but many of the ingredients were already in place, and if anything, he’s cranked things up another notch with the intensity he expects day to day in training and within the 90 minutes. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but both losses have shown that there is little margin for error, which is not really a new phenomenon for a team over the last decade that’s become known for punching above their weight. 

Let’s talk about Golden Boot leader, Tai Baribo. Outside of the great scoring numbers, what does he bring to the team?

MR: Baribo will be the first person to deflect credit to his teammates and his humility and team-first mentality is one of his greatest attributes. When you see him get stuck in to make a tackle in the middle of the park in the 80th minute, it illustrates how much his work rate and willingness to do anything to win — whether the goals come or not — impacts the team. 

Obviously it’s pretty early in a long season, but the Union have been impressive so far. What would be seen as a successful season for this group?

MR: It’s pretty much playoffs or bust, and once they get to the post-season, as we know, all bets are off. A competitive U.S. Open Cup run would be nice, though the schedule in May is not very kind.

Will any players be unavailable due to injury, suspension, etc.? What is your projected starting lineup and score prediction?

MR: Kai Wagner is questionable again, so look for him to come off the bench at the very least. I think there will be one or two changes in the starting XI, be it Indiana Vassilev, Bruno Damiani, or Olwethu Makhanya starting, but it will mostly be a similar look (with Nathan Harriel healthy) from match day 1. 

Projected starting XI: Andre Blake; Frankie Westfield, Ian Glavinovich, Jakob Glesnes, Nathan Harriel; Jovan Lukic, Danley Jean-Jacques, Quinn Sullivan; Daniel Gazdag, Bruno Damiani, Tai Baribo.

The Union haven’t drawn a match yet this season and Orlando has shown they can score (first in the league with 15 goals), so I’m going with a 2-2 draw.

Thank you to Matt for the refresher on the Union. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links: 4/4/25

Orlando City gets ready for the Philadelphia Union, OCSC partners with Footy Access, USWNT prepares for Brazil, and more.

Published

2 days ago

on

April 4, 2025

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Happy Friday! It may feel a bit like the calm before the storm today, as Orlando City, Orlando City B, and the United States Women’s National Team are all in action on Saturday. It all makes for a fun next few days and I’m looking forward to it and also watching some kart racing on Sunday. Let’s get to the links!

Orlando City Gets Ready For the Philadelphia Union

The Lions are back in action Saturday with an away game against the Philadelphia Union at 7:30 p.m. Orlando has won its past two games and leads the league with 15 goals this season. The Union remain near the top of the Eastern Conference, but have lost two of their past three games. Duncan McGuire detailed how healthy competition and a willingness to defend has the offense firing on all cylinders heading into this match.

This will also be a rematch of the season opener on Feb. 22 when the Union won 4-2 at Inter&Co Stadium. Philadelphia Union Head Coach Bradley Carnell spoke on how Orlando is a different team compared to that match due to changes on offense and center back Robin Jansson’s recovery from a knock.

Orlando City Partners With Footy Access

With the Generation Adidas Cup set to take place later this month, Orlando City has partnered with Footy Access, which is a media company focused on youth soccer. This collaboration means fans will be able to enjoy highlights and interviews from Orlando’s academy as it progresses through the tournament. I’m pretty excited about being able to see how well Orlando’s academy is doing.

MLS NEXT also announced that new rankings focused on development rather than results will be used for its U-13 and U-14 age groups. These rankings will use an analytical formula that measures game play and the caliber of offensive and defensive actions. There will also be encouragement for teams to have their own identities on how they want to play.

USWNT Prepares to Face Brazil in Friendlies

The United States Women’s National Team will take on Brazil on Saturday in the first of two friendlies this international break, with the second match set for Tuesday. These friendlies will be rematches of last year’s Olympic gold medal match, which the U.S. won 1-0. Marta has retired from international soccer, but Pride midfielder Angelina was called up for these friendlies, along with former Pride forward Adriana. Lorena, who has only conceded one goal in three games for the Kansas City Current this season, will likely get the start in goal for Brazil behind a talented back line anchored by Tarciane. The USWNT will need to find ways to limit attacking threats like Kerolin and Gabi Portilho as well. These should be matches, with familiar faces on both sides for Orlando fans.

U.S. Set to Host 2031 Women’s World Cup

It looks like the 2031 Women’s World Cup will be held in the U.S., as FIFA President Gianni Infantino stated that the only bid came from the U.S. and potentially other Concacaf nations. The U.S., which withdrew from hosting the 2027 World Cup, would be the first country to host the tournament three times and last hosted it in 2007. The United Kingdom was also revealed as the lone valid bid to host the 2035 World Cup and it would be the first time the tournament is hosted there.

Free Kicks

  • Shout out to Orlando City’s U-19 team for its title win and securing a spot in the MLS NEXT Cup playoffs.

That’s all for this fine Friday, I hope you all have a fantastic day and a relaxing weekend!

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