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Orlando City vs. LAFC: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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4 years ago

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Well, I don’t think that went the way any of us were hoping it would. Orlando City had an excellent first half but a lapse of concentration and house of horrors error saw the Lions fighting an uphill battle all night long. The question now is, how did the men in purple grade individually in Orlando City’s 4-2 home loss to LAFC?

Let’s have a look at my player grades and Man of the Match from a night to forget for the good guys.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 5 — It was a pretty quiet game from El Pulpo. Gallese passed at a 100% rate on his 13 attempts, which was good, but he was unable to do anything about any of the four LAFC goals, finishing with zero saves on LAFC’s four shots on target. The first two he was completely helpless on, and he might have gotten a bit stranded at his near post on Brian Rodriguez’s opener for the visitors, but it’s hard to be too picky considering the defensive breakdowns in other areas. He’ll have wished he did better on Ilie Sanchez’s go-ahead goal, since it went in fairly close to him, but he didn’t see it until late as it came through a mass of bodies. Overall, a tough night for Orlando City’s netminder.

D, Joao Moutinho, 7 — This was probably one of Moutinho’s better games of recent memory. He was menacing going forward and popped up in the attack often, usually to good effect. He completed a dribble, passed at a 77% rate, made two tackles, three interceptions, a clearance, a blocked shot, and won an aerial duel. His 92 touches led the team and he also did very well to move into unoccupied space at the back post and blast his shot low into the far corner for his goal. He loses points for failing to track Rodriguez into the box on the opening goal, but it was a mostly good night for him. He led the team in shots (4) and tied for the team’s most shots on target (2), creating one scoring chance.

D, Antonio Carlos, N/A — It was not good to see Carlos go down after only 15 minutes, and even worse to see him need a stretcher to be taken off the field. Hopefully the injury is nothing more than a nasty hyperextension but only time will tell. The Brazilian was playing pretty well up until he went down, and it might not be an accident that Orlando shipped an unusually high amount of goals in a game played mostly without him. Before going off, Carlos completed all 11 of his pass attempts.

D, Robin Jansson, 6 — It was a mixed bag from Jansson. He did some really good things like winning two aerial duels and recording one tackle, two interceptions, and a clearance, passing at a 91% clip, and getting forward into the attack a couple times. Nine of his 11 long balls were accurate. Unfortunately, he and Moutinho failed to communicate in time to track Rodriguez on the first goal. It wasn’t a bad game from the Swede, but it wasn’t his best either.

D, Ruan, 5 — The good things Ruan did were recording a tackle, an interception, and a clearance, and completing a dribble. The bad is the hesitation on Carlos Vela’s ball that led to the first goal and the monstrously ill-advised back pass that gifted LAFC its second goal. He seemed to be trying to head it back for Gallese to collect, but he was in traffic and it was horribly misjudged, and the visitors couldn’t have asked for anything easier. That he was subbed out in favor of Kyle Smith while Orlando City was chasing the game was likely half due to tired legs and half due to a performance that he’ll want to put in the rearview mirror.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6 — At 89%, Araujo passed the ball well, creating two scoring chances and completing two of his four long balls, and defensively he also made two tackles. He picked up a completely needless fourth yellow card of the season for getting in Francisco Ginella’s face after he was deemed to have fouled his fellow Uruguayan, and he took umbrage with the decision. The youngster also had a couple of bad giveaways in the midfield on a night where LAFC looked dangerous on the counter to begin with.

MF, Junior Urso, 5.5 — This score maybe feels a little harsh, but the Bear’s influence on proceedings faded badly after halftime. He recorded a tackle and an interception and passed at 89% on the night. He also attempted one shot that didn’t hit the target and drew five opposition fouls, but his second half display contrasted badly with what he was able to do in the first period. Like the rest of Orlando City, he wasn’t able to get involved offensively as much during the second 45 minutes, and he also struggled to slow LAFC in transition moments.

MF, Facundo Torres, 6.5 — Torres looked lively out there, and was unlucky to not get an assist on an absolutely beautiful run of first-half play. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to hold or curl his run long enough to beat the offside trap. Still, he led the Lions with three successful dribbles, had one tackle and one interception, created two scoring chances, completed one of his two long balls, and passed at an 87% rate. He drew three fouls on LAFC with his quick movement, and all three could have been yellow cards. He looks more and more comfortable every week.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 7 — Pererya’s pass over the top to Ercan Kara for Orlando’s opening goal was perfection. The vision to see it, the weight and accuracy to put the ball exactly where it needed to be…chef’s kiss. He then did just as well to pick out Moutinho and deliver the ball to him for Orlando’s second goal, and he had a hugely influential first half. Like most everyone else, his second half was less effective but he still finished with four chances created, one dribble, two tackles, and two assists (one primary, one secondary). He was accurate on four of six long balls. The biggest knock on his performance is that he struggled to connect with teammates in the attacking half after halftime.

MF, Alexandre Pato, 7.5 (MotM) — Man, Pato is just different gravy. He looked dangerous from the moment the ball was kicked. He combined well with Torres and Kara on the goal that was chalked out for offside and he continues to see passing lanes and runs that no one else on the field does. His volleyed goal was supremely difficult to pull off, yet he made it look easy. He waited for the ball to drop, kept his knee over it without leaning back, and fired it low into the corner where Maxime Crepeau couldn’t reach it. He was heavily involved aside from his goal with two successful dribbles, two chances created, a tackle, and he even won an aerial duel. He maybe could have done better with a late header that he didn’t place far enough away from Crepeau late, and his passing rate of 53.9% needs to be better, but he was still the Lions’ best performer on the night.

F, Ercan Kara, 7 — It was a good night from Kara. He’s still yet to open his scoring account but his awareness to head the ball back across goal for Pato to volley home — for his second MLS assist — was excellent and the quality of the header itself was also top notch. His dummy for the offside goal was very clever, and he too looks to be meshing better in the attack with every passing game. He was unlucky not to grab a late equalizer for the Lions but he couldn’t generate enough power on a well-placed header and was unable to get it past Crepeau. He had the second-most shots on the team, with three (one on frame), created a scoring chance, and it feels like a matter of time before he gets off the mark. He chipped in a pair of defensive clearances as well.

Substitutes

D, Rodrigo Schlegel (18’), 5.5 — Schlegel had a difficult task on the night, as he came in completely cold for the injured Carlos and was asked to deal with the high octane LAFC attack. For the most part, he did well. The Argentine led the team in tackles with three, won one aerial duel, recorded two interceptions, two clearances, and a block, and passed at a 95% rate. However, he got caught well up the pitch on the first LAFC goal and he could maybe have smacked the ball clear before Sanchez scored, but he didn’t, and then got picked by an LAFC player and was unable to fight through and get his body in the way. All in all, it was a typical hard-working shift from him but one he’ll want to improve upon.

D, Kyle Smith (72’) 6 — Smith had an interception, a tackle, and won an aerial duel in a little over 15 minutes on the field. Overall, he didn’t impact the game much and he wasn’t able to add anything offensively, but the numbers back up that he was his usual solid self defensively.

F, Benji Michel (72’) 6 — Benji provided a bit more verticality to the Orlando attack after coming on, and was given long balls to run onto several times. He had a decent chance to shoot or pass on the left side of the goal shortly after coming on but a heavy touch meant that Orlando had to settle for a corner. He whistled a shot very close to the far post and made an absolutely lung-busting recovery run to make a slide tackle and prevent a chance for LAFC on the counter.

F, Tesho Akindele (83’) N/A — In a brief cameo, Tesho didn’t have a ton of influence on the game with only three touches of the ball. He did win an aerial duel and pressed hard from the front as usual.

F, Silvester van der Water (83’) N/A — Van der Water had 10 touches in his brief time on the field and his deflected cross very nearly resulted in a goal for Alexandre Pato.

That’s how we saw the individual performances in this one. Feel free to share your opinions down in the comments, and make sure to vote for the Man of the Match in the poll below.

Polling Closed

Player Votes
Joao Moutinho 12
Mauricio Pereyra 4
Ercan Kara 1
Alexandre Pato 39
Other (Shout them out in the comments) 0
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Orlando City

Daryl Dike Returns to Orlando City, Signs Deal Through 2027

Daryl Dike is back with the Lions after being out of contract with West Bromwich Albion.

Published

10 hours ago

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July 17, 2026

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Image of Daryl Dike posing in his Orlando City kit after re-signing with the club on July 17, 2026.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Striker Daryl Dike has returned to the club that gave him his professional start. Orlando City announced today that it has signed Dike as a free agent through the 2027 MLS “sprint season” with an option for 2027-2028. The club also had to send $75,000 in 2027 General Allocation Money (GAM) to the Seattle Sounders in exchange for Dike’s Discovery Priority and could owe the Western Conference side another $75,000 in GAM if Dike meets undisclosed performance metrics.

The signing gives Dike a new start after an injury-plagued career at West Bromwich Albion.

“Daryl is a player our club and our fans know well, and we’re very excited to welcome him back to Orlando,” Orlando City General Manager and Sporting Director Ricardo Moreira said in a club press release. “He brings a powerful combination of strength, speed, and physical presence, and his ability to hold up play, bring teammates into the attack, and finish chances gives us another important option up front. Daryl has already shown what he can do in our league and in this city, and we look forward to helping him make an impact again in purple.” 

Dike, who will wear No. 9 for the Lions, returns nearly five years since Orlando City sold him to West Brom on Jan. 3, 2022, for a fee reported by The Athletic to be around $10 million.

The Edmond, OK native was Orlando City’s first-round selection with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft. As a rookie, he started to see minutes on the pitch during the MLS is Back Tournament, making his professional debut against the Montreal Impact in the competition’s round of 16. From there, the striker out of the University of Virginia blossomed, playing in 35 regular-season matches with Orlando, including 30 starts, for a total of 2,547 minutes. He contributed 18 goals and seven assists on 63 shots, getting 27 on target. He passed well (71.1% in 2020 and 72.1% in 2021), providing 14 key passes. Dike drew 71 fouls while committing 40 and was never booked during the regular season in his time in MLS.

He also played in all three of Orlando City’s playoff games during his first stint with the club, starting all three and scoring one goal on five total shots (two on target). He suffered seven fouls and committed four, and picked up one yellow card in the 2020 postseason.

Following his rookie season, Dike went on loan to Barnsley, where he scored nine goals in 22 matches from February to May of 2021.

Dike’s play with the Lions in his first two professional seasons quickly put him on the USMNT radar and before he was sold to West Brom he made eight appearances and scored three goals for the United States at the senior level. He has added two more caps since for a total of 10.

After his sale to West Brom in the EFL Championship, Dike struggled to stay on the pitch, dealing with Achilles injuries that kept him off the pitch for long stretches. Dike managed to score 11 goals in 68 matches when healthy. He scored twice and added an assist in 24 matches in 2025-2026, starting six times, as he was finally able to get a stretch of games in.

“I’m thrilled to be back where it all started,” Dike said in the club’s press release. “Orlando is where I first got the opportunity to play professionally, and returning here feels like coming home. From the moment I arrived the first time, I felt welcomed, and that same feeling has only grown since I’ve come back. Everyone has been incredibly supportive, and I’m grateful to be back in Orlando.” 

What It Means for Orlando City

Dike fills a hole vacated by the trade of Duncan McGuire to the Houston Dynamo a week ago. It will be interesting to see where his salary slots in when the MLS Players’ Association reveals its next salary information. McGuire, who had his own injury struggles in recent years, made a base salary of $600,000 and a total guaranteed annual compensation of over $920,000.

The hope will be that Dike can both stay healthy and contribute at a higher level than McGuire was prior to his trade to Houston. The new scenery may do McGuire good and a return to familiar surroundings may similarly help Dike regain his footing. At just 26 years old, Dike is still in his prime years and there are plenty of miles left in Dike’s legs if he can stay on the pitch. Fans will remember how he tossed center backs around like rag dolls during his two previous seasons in Orlando. That kind of physicality will open a lot of room underneath for Antoine Griezmann and Martin Ojeda.

With just a year and a half on the base deal, this is a low-risk and potentially very high-reward signing for the Lions.

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Orlando City

Flashback Friday: July 15, 2023 at Atlanta United

Let’s rewind to a tense battle up in Atlanta that took place a little over three years ago.

Published

18 hours ago

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July 17, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Well everyone, Major League Soccer is officially back. The league returned from its summer hiatus with three games Thursday night (four were scheduled but air quality from the Canadian wildfires caused Chicago vs. Vancouver to be postponed), and two more games are set to be played later today. Orlando City won’t take the field until Wednesday night against the San Jose Earthquakes though, so that means we have time for one more trip down memory lane. Last week, we went four years into the past and reminisced on a weird 1-0 win over Inter Miami that came courtesy of a Damion Lowe own goal. Today, we go back to mid-July 2023 and a road trip against Atlanta United.

Orlando had been in mostly good form heading into the team’s trip up I-75 to take on the Five Stripes but had hit a sizable bump in the road in the previous match in the form of a 4-0 hammering out west against Real Salt Lake. Oscar Pareja went to his usual 4-2-3-1 in an effort to get back to winning ways, with Pedro Gallese in goal; Rafael Santos, Antonio Carlos, Robin Jansson, and Kyle Smith at the back; Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena at the double pivot; Ivan Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres in attacking midfield, and Duncan McGuire leading the line.

The Lions seemed determined to put the previous game’s woes behind them and fashioned a chance with not even a minute played. McGuire played a slick pass behind the defense for Pereyra, but a poor first touch let him down and Brad Guzan came off his line well to save from point-blank range. Torres, McGuire, and Araujo then tried shots in the fifth, sixth, and eighth minutes, respectively, but none of them troubled Atlanta’s goalkeeper.

Orlando then took its foot off the gas a bit after trying to come out of the gates and overwhelm the hosts, but some self-inflicted errors gave the Five Stripes some life and eventually led to them opening the scoring. The Lions took a poor throw-in during the 22nd minute which turned the ball over deep in their own defensive third. Miguel Berry drew four OCSC players to him before flicking a ball over the top for Machop Chol. Carlos saved Chol’s deflected shot off the line but Caleb Wiley was first to the loose ball and did well to lift his shot into the net over a recovering Gallese.

Fortunately, the good guys were able to find a quick response. Orlando had a dangerous free kick just three minutes after conceding, and Pereyra curled in a dangerous ball toward the penalty spot. Carlos rose highest and powered a vicious header into the far corner with Guzan left helpless.

Leveling the game gave Orlando a needed injection of belief. McGuire tried his luck at catching Guzan off his line in the 35th minute, and Angulo put a powerful shot just outside the post two minutes later. Smith even had a pop from distance in the 42nd minute, but it went high and that was the last meaningful action of the half.

Atlanta ended the opening 45 minutes with more of the ball (52.1%-47.9%) and more corners (2-0), while OCSC took more shots (7-5) put more shots on target (3-2), and passed more accurately (81.3%-78.2%).

The two teams traded chances after a slow start to the second half, with a deflected ball trickling just wide of the Atlanta net in the 51st minute, before Santiago Sosa put a ball onto the roof of Gallese’s goal four minutes later.

Orlando then went ahead in the 60th minute. Pereyra split Atlanta’s center backs with a great ball for McGuire, who held off Luis Abram’s recovery efforts, and put a low shot past Guzan and into the side netting.

The good guys really should have bagged an insurance goal in the 68th minute, but Ramiro Enrique’s diving header went off the post and out after a great cross from Torres. Pareja then switched to five at the back to try to see out the game, and Atlanta managed to generate some chances. Thiago Almada and Matheus Rossetto had chances in the 88th and 90th minutes, but nothing came of them. The most dangerous moment occurred deep in stoppage time. Atlanta had a dangerous free kick in the 98th minute, and Almada sent a wicked-looking effort on net, but Gallese got over well and put two strong hands on it to parry away.

Atlanta took the resulting corner, but the Lions cleared successfully and the final whistle blew to give the visitors a 2-1 win and all three points.

Atlanta finished with more possession (59.2%-40.8%), corners (7-1), and shot attempts (17-10), but each side put four shots on target. The hosts were also more accurate when it came to passing the ball (84%-76.3%).

Marcus Mitchell was on Player Grades for this one, and he gave Carlos the Man of the Match nod with a grade of 7.5 out of 10. Other high scorers on the evening were Pereyra and McGuire, who each earned grades of 7 out of 10.

Here’s hoping the Lions can pick up some road points in a similar fashion when they return to play next Wednesday. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/17/26

Toluca reportedly makes an offer for Martin Ojeda, Orlando City signs Tristan Himes, Orlando Pride add Zoe Matthews, and more.

Published

21 hours ago

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July 17, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Happy Friday! While we’re still waiting for Orlando City to return to action, we have Orlando Pride and Orlando City B games to look forward to on Saturday. There’s also the last bit of World Cup soccer for us to enjoy this weekend as well. Between all the soccer and work this week, I’ve managed to read three books to put a dent in my reading goals this year and highly recommend “Main Characters” by Bobby Palmer. It even has a couple of soccer references. Let’s get to the links!

Toluca Reportedly Makes Offer for Martin Ojeda

Liga MX club Toluca has reportedly made a $12 million verbal offer to Orlando City for attacker Martin Ojeda. The 27-year-old has been a powerhouse for the past couple of years for Orlando, recording 16 goals and 15 assists last season and scoring 11 goals in the club’s 15 games so far this season.

In January of this year, he signed a new contract with the club that lasts through the 2028-2029 season, with a club option for 2029-2030. While a $12 million transfer fee is nothing to sneeze at, a higher amount seems appropriate for one of the club’s best players to be transferred in the middle of the season. He’s been a revelation in purple and I’ve been excited to see how he combines with Antoine Griezmann as the Lions hunt for silverware.

Tristan Himes Signed to Homegrown Player Contract

Orlando City has signed Orlando City B goalkeeper Tristan Himes as the club’s 20th Homegrown Player, with a new first-team contract lasting through the shortened 2027 season and including club options for the 2027-2028 and 2028-2029 seasons. After developing through the club’s academy, Himes made his OCB debut in July last year and has made 11 appearances for the team. He also played collegiately at the University of South Carolina and Coastal Carolina University before returning to the club. Hopefully the 22-year-old can continue to improve his game with OCB this year as the Young Lions fight for the top spot in the Eastern Conference of MLS NEXT Pro.

Orlando Pride Add Midfielder Zoe Matthews

The Orlando Pride have signed 19-year-old midfielder Zoe Matthews to a contract through the end of this season. Matthews was the youngest signing in Houston Dash history when she joined the club at 17 in 2024, making her league debut that October. She then had stints in Europe with Dux Logrono in Spain and Benfica in Portugal before returning to the U.S. to become a member of the Pride. Matthews has also represented both the U.S. and Jamaica at the youth levels.

Colin Guske Called Up for Concacaf U-20 Championship

Orlando City midfielder Colin Guske was one of 21 players called up for the United States U-19 National Team roster for the Concacaf U-20 Championship that starts later this month. The 19-year-old was signed as an Orlando City Homegrown Player in late 2024 and has made six appearances for the first team this season, starting twice. He’s been consistently called up for the U.S. U-19 team in preparation for this tournament, which will also serve as qualifying for the 2027 FIFA U-20 World Cup, 2028 Summer Olympics, and 2027 Pan American Games. The U.S. will first take on Haiti on July 25 before playing El Salvador on July 28 and Cuba on July 31.

Free Kicks

  • A mural of Antoine Griezmann now graces East Colonial Drive to welcome the French superstar to the city. Artist Steven Teller knocked it out of the park in my opinion, so be sure to check it out.
  • Nashville SC added Tunisian winger Elias Saad on loan from Bundesliga club FC Augsburg. Saad played for Tunisia at this summer’s World Cup and could provide some more firepower to a league-leading Nashville side.
  • More details on Kai Wagner’s reported return to the Philadelphia Union have emerged, with the Union paying much more to bring him back compared to what they sold him to Birmingham City for and making him a Designated Player to boot.

🇩🇪 Sources: The Philadelphia Union will pay a fee of under $4m to re-acquire left back Kai Wagner from Birmingham City.Wagner returns to Philly as a Designated Player.

— Tom Bogert (@tombogert.bsky.social) 2026-07-16T14:35:31.865Z

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!

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