Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Columbus Crew: Player Grades and Man of the Match
Orlando City went on the road and lost 3-2 against the Columbus Crew in an important match for both sides. The Crew avoided elimination from playoff contention while the Lions will have much more pressure on them in their final two matches. Columbus scored off of two set pieces in the first half and then Lucas Zelarayan scored a golazo that ultimately sank Orlando.
Let’s dive into how each player performed in the loss.
Starters
GK, Pedro Gallese, 5 — El Pulpo was able to get a hand to Miguel Berry’s strong header but not enough to keep the ball out of the back of the net as the Crew took the lead in the 20th minute. On the Crew’s second goal, Gallese misjudged a corner kick lofted towards the back post and couldn’t make a play on the ball as it landed at Derrick Etienne’s foot and he put it into the net. There wasn’t much he could do about Zelarayan’s strike from distance as the swerving ball was perfectly placed and dipped under the crossbar. Gallese finished the match with two saves, including a great effort to keep Zelarayan from scoring off of a free kick. The Peruvian goalkeeper didn’t attempt any long balls but was successful on all 12 of his passes.
D, Kyle Smith, 4 — In his first start since Sept. 19, Smith struggled at left back with Joao Moutinho unavailable and Emmanuel Mas on the bench. After conceding a corner, his poor clearance served the ball on a silver platter back to Zelarayan, the one player on the Crew you don’t want to give time and space to pick out a cross. Zelarayan whipped a good second ball in and Berry scored for the Crew’s first goal. Smith completed 84% of his 37 passes and didn’t make much of an impact on offense as his lone cross was unsuccessful. He had 48 touches, two tackles, an interception, and three clearances in 73 minutes of action. He also received a yellow card after getting turned inside out by Etienne and fouling him right outside the box, giving Zelarayan a dangerous opportunity that forced a save from Gallese. It was far from Smith’s best game in purple to say the least.
D, Robin Jansson, 6.5 (MotM) — Jansson scored his third goal of the year by hustling down the field and making a great run to get on the end of a cross by Tesho Akindele and tuck the ball into the far corner. He also had a key pass in the match, delivering a cross that Dike headed wide. Only Mauricio Pereyra had more than Jansson’s 74 touches and he completed 91% of his 65 passes — the most on the team. While he didn’t have any tackles as the Crew built their attack through the wings, Jansson had an interception and two clearances to take care of most issues that came his way. He perhaps could have done more against Berry on the first goal after switching men with Antonio Carlos, but it was an outswinging ball for the 6-foot-3 Berry. Jansson’s overall game and ability to keep the Lions in it thanks to his goal and some sound defending earns him the title of Man of the Match.
D, Antonio Carlos, 6 — Like Jansson, Carlos didn’t have any tackles over the course of the match, but he did lead Orlando with three interceptions and also had three clearances and a pair of blocks. Carlos had 58 passes at an 81% success rate and his 72 touches were third most on the team. He and Jansson continue to play well together as the backbone of Orlando’s defense and he couldn’t do much about the Crew’s goals.
D, Ruan, 5 — The right back gave up an unnecessary corner kick that led to the second Crew goal when he seemed to have plenty of room to have instead headed it upfield or out for a throw, and then he compounded his own problem. Ruan simply had to do better when defending the back post on the Crew’s second goal as Etienne had little trouble tapping the ball into the net after it sailed over Gallese. He had inside position on his man and failed to track his movement or the flight of the ball on the play. Doing either one could have kept it a one-goal game. Columbus did a good job limiting Ruan’s offensive capability by keeping him pinned back in defense. The right back led the team with five clearances as he sprinted around to put out fires and he also had a tackle and an interception. He didn’t have any key passes and was successful on one of his three crosses. Ruan had 62 touches and completed 83% of his 36 passes as the Crew kept the wings crowded.
MF, Andres Perea, 4 — The 20-year-old was kept busy defensively by the Crew throughout the game. Perea had three tackles, four clearances, and an interception, but he was part of a midfield that was completely overrun in the match. He switched from Zelarayan to take Steven Moreira and that left the DP open to score the eventual game winner, though Perea should have had some help — likely from Benji Michel, who didn’t track back to defend — on that play, because he was forced to cover two men. Hey, when in doubt, cover the bigger threat who is more centrally located.
Perea played every minute of the match and only had 58 touches while completing just 35 of his 45 passes for a mediocre 78% success rate. Like Mauricio Pereyra, Perea tried to force passes into congested areas, wasting attacking buildup. He had no crosses or key passes and his only shot went over the crossbar from long range when he had more dangerous options he could have picked out. It was a rough outing for the young midfielder.
MF, Sebas Mendez, 5 — With Orlando trailing at halftime, Mendez was subbed off in favor of Tesho Akindele for the Lions to hunt goals in the second half. The yellow card Mendez picked up in the 13th minute also likely contributed to Oscar Pareja’s decision to take him off at the half. Mendez had one shot in the match, sending the ball high into the stands in an attempt from outside the box. He finished with 33 touches and 27 passes at an 89% success rate and helped out defensively with two tackles.
MF, Chris Mueller, 5 — All three of Mueller’s shots were headed efforts at goal. His best chance to score came in the 63rd minute as he received a cross in front of goal at close range but he headed the ball right into the hands of Eloy Room. It was his only shot on target and his header in the 26th minute robbed Carlos from getting to it from a better position (although he couldn’t have known that at the time). Mueller also had a key pass in the match, setting Mendez up for a shot after a corner. His only attempted cross was deflected out for a corner. Mueller had 32 touches before being subbed off in the 73rd minute and completed 86% of his 21 passes.
MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 5.5 — The Designated Player led the Lions with three key passes, including two nice crosses from free kicks that easily could’ve ended up as assists for the Uruguayan if they’d been finished better. While Pereyra did well creating chances from free kicks, he had a tougher time from the corner flag as he was successful on just one of the team’s four. He led the team with 78 touches but was only successful on 45 of 59 passes for a 76% success rate. While many of those 14 inaccurate passes were long attempts while dealing with a crowded midfield, Pereyra was brought to Orlando to find those tighter spaces that spring players into dangerous areas and he struggled repeatedly to do so in this match. Defensively, he had two interceptions and a block. It was Pereyra’s sixth straight appearance without a goal or an assist and the DP will need to end that drought soon as the Lions hunt for a playoff berth.
MF, Nani, 5 — Orlando’s other Designated Player wasn’t able to get much going and was subbed off at halftime. Nani didn’t have any shots and just one key pass — a low cross that Dike couldn’t get on target from a tough angle. It was his only cross in the match and he drifted into the midfield once Orlando was trailing to try to make more of an impact. Nani finished with 30 touches and 23 passes at an 83% success rate while chipping in on defense with three tackles. The captain is capable of bending a match to his will, but was fairly ineffective on the road in Ohio and may have been replaced down two goals to save his legs for Sunday more than for his performance.
F, Daryl Dike, 5.5 — The forward’s only shot on target was the penalty he converted early in the first half. Dike’s first attempt was saved by Room, but the goalkeeper came off his line early and the kick had to be retaken. Despite the pressure of retaking a kick that was initially saved, Dike was cool as can be and fired his shot in practically the same spot to power it past Room for Orlando’s first goal. His other two shots came from crosses into the box but he wasn’t able to get either on frame. Dike dueled with Jonathan Mensah throughout the match and had an understandably hard time breaking through. Regardless, he had just 28 touches and 10 passes at an 80% success rate in a match where the Lions spent most of their time trailing. Some of his holdup play was marred by heavy touches, and, while it’s great that Dike’s proven himself as a more than capable penalty taker, three of his past five goals have come from the spot and Orlando needs to find a way to get him more involved in open play moving forward.
Substitutes
MF, Benji Michel (45’), 4.5 — Michel may have only had one shot, but it was a notable one as his attempt just a few minutes into the second half was blocked by a hand ball from Mensah. Apart from that, Michel didn’t have much of an influence on the match despite playing an entire half. The Homegrown Player had no key passes, one unsuccessful cross, 18 touches, and just nine passes at an 89% success rate. He also had no defensive stats and didn’t track back in time to stop Zelarayan from setting up his goal from range. Brought on to give the Lions some energy and firepower while trailing 2-0 at halftime, Michel wasn’t able to use his speed to really test the Crew’s defense. Michel hasn’t had a goal or an assist since scoring on Aug. 21
F, Tesho Akindele (45’), 5.5 — Although he didn’t have a shot, Akindele came up with a nice assist late in the match. After finding some space with the ball, the Canadian spotted Jansson’s run into the box and whipped a nice ball over the defense for him to score. He had 21 touches and 18 passes at a 78% success rate after coming on for the second half. It was the longest Akindele’s been on the field since his start on Sept. 19 and the assist was his sixth of the year.
MF, Alexandre Pato (73’), 4.5 — Coming on for Mueller, Pato played a central attacking role in the midfield in an effort to help the Lions claw their way back into the match. His only shot was on the volley and came deep into stoppage time with Orlando trailing by just a goal, but the shot was blocked. He finished the game with 11 touches and completed five of his eight passes for a 63% success rate. It was Pato’s third appearance this season after missing most of the year due to the injury and these were some valuable minutes for him, even if he wasn’t able to influence the match much.
D, Emmanuel Mas (73’), 5.5 — The left back replaced Smith as the Lions searched for goals. Mas had a key pass by setting up the transition opportunity that ended in Perea’s shot and he also fed Akindele the ball before the latter’s assist. Mas had 20 touches, a tackle, no crosses, and completed eight of his 13 passes for a 62% completion rate. An argument can certainly made that he should’ve been brought on sooner or that he should’ve started in the first place.
That’s how I saw things play out in Orlando’s 3-2 loss to the Crew. Make sure to weigh in on how you feel about the grades in the comments below and to vote for who you think deserves the title of Man of the Match.
Polling Closed
| Player | Votes |
| Robin Jansson | 18 |
| Daryl Dike | 7 |
| Antonio Carlos | 0 |
| Other (put in the comments below) | 1 |
Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Real Salt Lake: Five Takeaways
Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 2-1 victory over Real Salt Lake.
Orlando City hosted Real Salt Lake at Inter.co Stadium Saturday, and it was a tale of two halves. The first half was one of the most boring first halves of soccer ever, and the second half was a wild free-for-all with Orlando City coming to life. The Lions were able to earn all three points at home, defeating RSL 2-1. Here are my five takeaways from the match.
An Inevitable Goal
Orlando City put out a mostly first-choice team on short rest, while RSL rotated pretty heavily due to their schedule congestion and a Leagues Cup knockout match coming up on Tuesday.The Lions had the majority of the possession through the first 35 mintues, while RSL was able to send the ball over the top a few times early, but the visitors kept getting the timing wrong against Orlando’s high line, resulting in offside calls. That was until the 36th minute, when Dominik Marczuk managed to stay onside, blazed past Zakaria Taifi, and was all alone on the back post. It wasn’t hard to put it in from there. Orlando City had the better of the play up to that point, but it still felt like Real Salt Lake’s goal was more likely.
Possession Without Purpose
Despite holding 58% possession in the first half, Orlando City managed to get exactly zero shots on goal on zero shots total. Zero shots taken the entire first half! As I mentioned above, that was zero shots against a heavily rotated RSL squad. For a team with Antoine Griezmann, Marco Pasalic, and Griffin Dorsey in the starting lineup, that stat is unacceptable. The lack of any chances resulted in Martin Perelman bringing on Justin Ellis and Daryl Dike as offensive halftime substitutions.
Subs Make a Difference
It took less than 10 minutes for Ellis and Dike, along with fellow substitute Joran Gerbet, to make a difference. While it was ultimately Griezmann who scored the goal, it was Gerbet, Ellis, and Dike that made it happen. Gerbet picked up a loose ball Eduard Atuesta won and sent it to Ellis on the right. Ellis sent the ball into the box to Dike, who took it with his back to goal, pirouetted with the ball, and shot it. Unfortunately for Dike, Mason Stajduhar was there to block it. Unfortunately for Stajduhar, Griezmann was there for the poacher’s goal to level the score for Orlando City. Griezmann positioned himself wisely without the ball, but it was the three halftime subs that really made it happen.
Griezmann Gets Another
After equalizing, Orlando City had all the momentum and pressed for a second goal. It was Griezmann who provided the winning goal with his first brace for the Lions. If his first goal was a “right time, right place” type of goal, his second was luck and skill combined. He took a pass in the box from Tyrese Spicer and tried to back heel it to Dike. The ball bounced off the defender and right back to Griezmann, who wasted no time in putting it in the back of the net. It was a microcosm of Griezmann’s time in Orlando for me. He tried to be unselfish, but ultimately taking the shot himself was what was needed. More of this please.
Possession With Purpose
If Orlando City did almost nothing with the ball in the first half, the Lions did everything needed with the ball in the second half. They actually raised the possession to 60% by the end of the match, scored two goals, and didn’t allow a second from RSL. The defenders were able to clear most of the attacks and Maxime Crepeau cleaned up anything that got through. Orlando City was able to continue to push into the attack even after the second goal. As I said above, it was a tale of two halves, and fortunately, the second half was enough for the win.
That is what I saw in Orlando City’s 2-1 victory over Real Salt Lake. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!
Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Real Salt Lake: Final Score 2-1 as Griezmann’s Brace Lifts Lions to Win
Antoine Griezmann scored twice in the second half to help Orlando City erase a 1-0 deficit and beat RSL at home.
Antoine Griezmann scored two second-half goals for his first Orlando City brace, leading the Lions to a 2-1 comeback win over Real Salt Lake at Inter.co Stadium tonight. After a lethargic opening 45 minutes that saw the visitors take a 1-0 lead into the half on Dominik Marczuk’s goal, an energetic trio of halftime subs injected life into the attack for Orlando (7-11-3, 24 points).
Griezmann’s two goals pushed the Lions past Real Salt Lake (8-8-4, 28 points), but it’s fair to say Orlando City wasn’t clean enough in the first half and couldn’t turn possession into attacking threat until the introduction of second-half subs Justin Ellis, Joran Gerbet, Daryl Dike, and Tyrese Spicer.
The Lions snapped an 0-2-2 winless streak in all competitions and a 0-2-1 skid in league play with tonight’s win, moving just over the playoff line into ninth spot in the Eastern Conference.
“It was a tough game,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the match. “It wasn’t easy the first half; we tried good and sometimes it happens like that, the game. I think the team in the second half was able to to play in a very difficult moment. It’s not easy and the guys did an amazing job.”
Perelman’s lineup included Maxime Crepeau in goal behind a back line of Zakaria Taifi, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, and Griffin Dorsey. Luis Otavio and Eduard Atuesta started in central midfield inside of Ivan Angulo and Marco Pasalic, with Tiago joining Antoine Griezmann up top.
The first half consisted of long spells of Orlando possession that came to nothing against a heavily rotated RSL side, with former Lion Mason Stajduhar having to do nothing in goal, because the Lions couldn’t even manage one first-half shot attempt. The visitors were content to stay in their low block of five at the back and four midfielders, wait for the exhausted-looking hosts to misplace a pass or have a bad touch, and look for chances to hit on the counter or with balls over the top.
Griezmann looked the most in need of a rest, as several of his touches were heavy in the first half, but he was far from the only one.
There was a scary moment early in the game when Jansson collided with Marczuk on an attempted RSL switch of play. The Orlando City captain was fouled and stayed down to get treatment, eventually leaving the field under his own power. He was able to return moments later.
Orlando City won a few set pieces in the opening half but did nothing with them, while the visitors looked dangerous if they could stay onside, which they struggled to do early. When the Lions did manage to find space against RSL’s back line, the crosses were poor, ending up either out of play or in the goalkeeper’s hands.
The visitors broke through the dull affair in the 36th minute. Alexandros Katranis laid off a ball on the left flank for Sam Junqua behind him. Junqua picked up his head and spotted Marczuk’s well-timed run behind Taifi and delivered a nice cross. Marczuk met the ball in the air with his foot and knocked it past Crepeau to make it 1-0.
Crepeau kept things from getting worse just before halftime. Angulo turned the ball over on an attempted recycle of a failed set piece, igniting a Real Salt Lake counter. The ball ended up with Marczuk again on the right and this time Crepeau was able to get a hand on it to palm it out for a corner.
The Lions dealt with the set piece and the half came to an end with Orlando’s starters trailing 1-0 to an RSL B-squad that dien’t allow a single shot attempt.
At the break, Orlando City had the advantage in possession (59.4%-40.6%) and passing accuracy (89.7-84.2%), while Real Salt Lake led in shots (3-0) and shots on target (2-0) and each team won one corner.
“It was a complicated game,” Griezmann said. “It’s never easy starting off with with a negative mark like that, but we made changes at halftime and put more more guys further up the field, and we were able to to get that goal and really kind of give ourselves some time of tranquility to create more opportunities to create those occasions to go out and get the winner.”
Looking to injuct some life into the game, or at least some fresh legs, Perelman sent Gerbet, Dike, and Ellis into the game at halftime for Otavio, Tiago, and Pasalic. It took a few minutes for the subs to settle in, but it made a difference in the Lions’ energy level.
Marczuk had the first look at goal in the second half, however, firing from distance from the right side, but it caused no trouble for Crepeau in the 50th minute.
Gerbet and Atuesta worked well together in the middle, keeping the ball better and allowing Taifi to jump into the play on the left. Taifi had a shot blocked out for a corner in the 51st minute. A minute later, Atuesta played a slick through ball for Griezmann. With Stajduhar coming off his line, the Frenchman chipped a shot over him but it went inches wide of the left post.
Orlando scored seconds after Stajduhar put the ball back into play. Atuesta won the ball to Gerbet at midfield, and he turned and found Ellis on the right. Ellis sent it in front to Dike for the shot, but it was blocked to Griezmann, who cleaned up in front, making it 1-1 in the 53rd minute.
Taifi got down the left in the 55th minute and did well to cut back a cross for Griezmann entering the box. Griezmann hit his shot immediately but it fizzed just over the bar. Three minutes later, Taifi cut inside and fired but hit the outside of the left post.
Real Salt Lake sent on Diego Luna, Saba Lobjanidze, and Morgan Guilavogui to try to counter the energy Orlando’s subs had brought into the game, and things opened up a bit. Dorsey did well to stick out a foot to deny a pass that would have put Luna in on goal in the 64th minute.
Spicer came on for Taifi in the 69th minute and injected even more energy into the match. He quickly won a set piece on the left just moments after coming on near the left corner flag. Atuesta sent his delivery on target toward the near post but it was headed behind for a corner kick. The ensuing corner bounced out to Ellis near the top of the area. The Homegrown forward used some deft footwork to work his way past two defenders before getting his shot blocked out for another corner.
Real Salt Lake broke the other way after the set piece and Luna ended up with it. He fired on target but Crepeau blocked it out of play for a corner. Orlando partially cleared the set piece delivery and Katranis tried a shot from long range that was well off target.
Orlando City took the lead moments later. Jansson sent the ball long out of the back to Spicer on the left. The Trinidad & Tobago international did well to get a cross in for Griezmann in the box. The first touch got away from the Frenchman but he picked up the rebound and slotted it past Stajduhar to make it 2-1 in the 81st minute.
“I think it’s a very good cross from ‘Spice’ and I was thinking to do one touch to score but I did very bad,” Griezmann said. “The defender touched the ball and the ball came to me, and yeah I saw a lot of legs and I tried to just make a pass between the legs of the defender and here is where you need to be patient just for one or two seconds. And today I was very patient in this time and this is why I scored.”
“It’s mandatory for us to enjoy Griezmann,” Perelman said. “We are lucky to be in the moment that he’s here with us. He’s one of the best players in the history of this sport. We have the privilege to see him. It’s just about enjoying him, watching him and enjoying him.”
Real Salt Lake threw bodies forward into the attack, but aside from some corner kicks, the visitors couldn’t produce much. Any time it looked like RSL might create something in the final third, Orlando was able to block crosses or head them out of danger. Orlando City also kept the ball well for spells down the stretch, taking the pressure off and allowing the Lions to see out the game.
At the final whistle, the Lions held the advantage in possession (59.6%-40.4%), shots (13-9), passing accuracy (88.8%-82%), and corners (5-4). Real Salt Lake put more shots on target (4-3). Ultimately, the Lions were sharp enough in the second half to make up for the slow start, although RSL helped out by being offside seven times to just once for Orlando.
“In the final zone, we were a lot more aggressive,” Griezmann said of the second half. “We were pressing more and more aggressive with our press, and it was a really good way to to get the win tonight.”
“The players were wanting to give us that control of the game against a team who sat back a little bit,” Perelman said. “I think the guys did a huge effort. Fortunately we could come back, win, because we really need it, and now we need to rest and think (about) the next one.”
“Just so happy to have the win at home,” Gerbet said. “It’s been like a gritty one, but a necessary one, an important one towards like the end of the season to get some momentum, because we’re going to start to go away as well, so we need to start to gain momentum, and I think that was a great way to do it.”
The Lions now get an honest-to-goodness normal work week. Their next match will be a week from tonight at Minnesota United.
Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Real Salt Lake: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
The Lions look to finish their long homestand with a bounce-back performance against RSL.
Welcome to your match thread and preview for a Saturday night showdown between Orlando City (6-11-3, 21 points) and Real Salt Lake (8-7-4, 28 points) at Inter.co Stadium (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the first and only scheduled meeting between the two teams from opposing conferences and the first time they’ve met since 2023 in Utah.
Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.
History
The Lions are 2-2-3 in seven previous MLS meetings with RSL, including a 1-0-2 mark at home. However, Orlando City is 0-2-1 in their last three games against tonight’s visitors.
The last time the teams met, it was a forgettable result for Orlando City fans. But if you do remember, it’s not for good reasons, because it was a 4-0 beatdown that Real Salt Lake laid on the Lions on July 8, 2023. Cristian Arango, Justen Glad, Jefferson Savarino, and Anderson Julio did the damage.
During the most recent matchup in Orlando, most of us had no idea what COVID-19 was yet. The Lions and Real Salt Lake met on opening day of the 2020 MLS season, playing to a 0-0 draw at Exploria Stadium on Feb. 29. Despite it being a Leap Day, no one wanted to leap onto the scoresheet.
Orlando City lost the previous meeting, a 2-1 Real Salt Lake win in Utah on April 13, 2019. Nani scored Orlando’s only goal that day, but it came late in the match after Sam Johnson and Demir Kreilach had staked RSL to a 2-0 lead.
The May 6, 2018 meeting in Orlando was a wild 3-1 win for the Lions in which RSL missed multiple good scoring chances, hitting the woodwork and forcing Joe Bendik into some big saves. Dom Dwyer, Lamine Sané, and Yoshimar Yotún provided Orlando’s offense to offset Corey Baird’s early strike.
When the teams met in 2017 at Rio Tinto, Will Johnson provided all the offense against his old club in a 1-0 Orlando City victory. Johnson’s tally in the 17th minute was all Orlando City needed to take the first win of the series after two draws the previous two seasons.
In 2016, the teams played a memorable opening day match in which the Lions roared back with a frantic rally, as Cyle Larin and Adrian Winter pulled City level in a 2-2 draw at the Citrus Bowl. Joao Plata scored both RSL goals — one from the penalty spot — and RSL led 2-0 despite going down a man for 25 minutes, prior to Chris Penso evening things out by sending off Darwin Ceren.
Orlando drew 1-1 on the road in 2015 while down to 10 men after Kaká was sent off at the end of the first half. The captain opened the scoring. Sebastian Jaime found the equalizer in the 28th.
Match Overview
Orlando City enters on a poor run of form in a congested fixture schedule. The Lions lost 2-1 at home against the Chicago Fire on Wednesday, making it four games without a win in all competitions (0-2-2) and they haven’t won in MLS play in their last three (0-2-1). While the defense is leaking just one or two goals per game of late, the offense has been less tidy in finishing chances, which could be attributed to some players, including Antoine Griezmann, not getting much rest during this stretch of seven games in 22 days. Orlando is a pedestrian 4-4-2 at home this season and is winless in its last two home matches (0-1-1).
Real Salt Lake sits eighth in the Western Conference after going 0-3-3 in its last six league matches, including a 4-3 home loss to FC Dallas on Wednesday. But, oddly enough, that stretch of matches sandwiches a 2-0-1 run in Leagues Cup, and RSL advanced to the knockout rounds, where it will play Club Leon on Tuesday, so we may see some rotation, assuming the Utah-based club is going all in on trying to win Leagues Cup or at least one of the three coveted Concacaf Champions Cup spots. Tonight’s match will be RSL’s first on the road since Aug. 1, where the team is 1-5-3 in 2026 in league play.
Sergi Solans leads tonight’s opponents in goals (9) and goal contributions (12), with Diego Luna leading in assists (6) while adding five goals for 11 total goal contributions. The departure of Zavier Gozo and his six goals and five assists is a tough break for RSL, because beyond those three, 10 goals are spread across eight different players.
The Lions must rediscover their scoring boots for this game, as the Orlando defense pitches precious few shutouts, and if RSL plays its starters, either Solans, Luna, or both could do some damage on the other end.
The Lions will be without Braian Ojeda (foot), Martin Ojeda (thigh), and Bernardo Rhein (thigh), while Adrian Marin (thigh) is questionable, so left back may be an adventure, with Zakaria Taifi, Ivan Angulo, and David Brekalo as the leading candidates to play there, and all of them are right-footed. Real Salt Lake will be without Zach Booth (hamstring), Griffin Dillon (foot), Emeka Eneli (knee), Glad (adductor), and Ariath Piol (Achilles).
Match Content
- The most recent episode of the PawedCast includes our key matchups and score predictions for tonight’s match.
- David Rohe gave his three keys to an Orlando City victory in tonight’s match.
Official Lineups
Orlando City (4-4-2)
Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.
Defenders: Zakaria Taifi, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.
Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Luis Otavio, Eduard Atuesta, Marco Pasalic.
Forwards: Tiago, Antoine Griezmann.
Bench: Javier Otero, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Joran Gerbet, Gustavo Caraballo, Harvey Sarajian, Tyrese Spicer, Justin Ellis, Daryl Dike.
Real Salt Lake (5-4-1)
Goalkeeper: Mason Stajduhar.
Defenders: Alexandros Katranis, Sam Junqua, Juan Arias, Kobi Henry, Domink Marczuk.
Midfielders: Aiden Hezarkhan, Luca Moisa, Pablo Ruiz, Lineker Rodrigues.
Forward: Victor Olatunji.
Bench: Rafael Cabral, Juan Sanabria, Philip Quinton, Lukas Engel, Noel Caliskan, Colin Guske, Morgan Guilavogui, Saba Lobjanidze, Diego Luna.
Referees
REF: Fotis Bazakos.
AR1: Brian Dunn.
AR2: Jose Da Silva.
4TH: Marcos DeOliveira.
VAR: Edvin Jurisevic.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.
How to Watch
Match Time: 7:30 p.m.
Venue: Inter.co Stadium — Orlando.
TV/Streaming: Apple TV.
Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).
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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