Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Arsenal, International Friendly: Final Score 3-1 as Lions Fall vs. Gunners

Orlando City played like the better side for 45 minutes in a midseason friendly against Arsenal, but the English Premier League giants took control in the second half en route to a 3-1 win over the Lions at Exploria Stadium. Facundo Torres canceled out an early Arsenal goal but Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson scored after the hour mark to put the match away.
βThat exposure today was positive,β Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said about the clubβs showing. βI think in the first half especially, we had a lot of personality. And Iβve gotta say that probably we were the best team on the field. And then we knew who is Arsenal and after that they started getting on top of us.β
The start of the match was delayed by more than an hour due to lightning in the vicinity of the stadium. Fans huddled on the concourse or waited in their cars through a heavy downpour, and nearly every time it seemed the skies would calm, another lightning strike came. Eventually, Mother Nature let the lads play.
Parejaβs lineup included a lot of starters despite the heavy weather and congested fixture schedule, offering Arsenal the respect of at least beginning the game with close to a full-strength starting XI. Pedro Gallese started in goal behind a back line of Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Michael Halliday. Cesar Araujo was joined in central midfield by Andres Perea, behind an attacking midfield line of Jake Mulraney, Torres, and Benji Michel, with Alexandre Pato as the striker.
Many fans were surprised to see so many regulars β and some key starters play a lot β in the midst of a heavy schedule. Pareja said he rested Mauricio Pereyra and Ercan Kara as a precautionary measure but wanted some players who needed to regain their rhythm some minutes β particularly Carlos, Pato, Perea, and Moutinho, who saw his first minutes since pulling up prior to the road game at Cincinnati.
βYou always want to compete,β Pareja said. βThey donβt want to lose games. They want to compete. They donβt want to come off. They want to stay (in the game). It was a great experience for the club.β
Halliday mostly played well, particularly in the opening 20 or 25 minutes, although he did show his inexperience a few times. One of his few errors was when he had a good chance to get in a cross with the Lions in transition and didnβt hit it well, sending it over everyone.
βItβs crazy to me, being so young and just coming into it so quickly, like with the national team, getting minutes there, building experience, and then hopping from there into playing vs. Arsenal,β Halliday said. βIβm critical to myself on mistakes I make, but a pretty solid performance, but I definitely want more and I think a lot of that just comes with more experience and more minutes played.βΒ
It didnβt take the Premier League side long to score but it was unlucky for Orlando. Gabriel Martinelli played a nice 1-2 with Sambi Lokango and fired the return pass toward goal. The ball hit Carlos in the back and changed directions, which gave Gallese no chance to stop it and Arsenal was up 1-0 just five minutes in.
MARTINELLI NELES! π₯π§π· Nesse jogΓ£o do @FC_Series que vocΓͺ vΓͺ na @tntbr, @estadiobr (https://t.co/QfVGLo0yCh) e YouTube, o brasileiro fez boa jogada, contou com um desvio e abriu o placar pro Arsenal frente ao Orlando City! #FCSeriesNaTNTSports
ποΈ: @andrehenning pic.twitter.com/D6Q6OVGpnP
— TNT Sports Brasil (@TNTSportsBR) July 21, 2022
Orlando kept its shape well in the first half and the Lions were accurate with long balls and switches, which led to more chances than the visitors. Pato had a great opportunity in the 10th minute but got under his shot and sent it into the stands. Michelβs pass to him bounced and the forward just didnβt make good contact.
O QUE FOI ISSO, PATO? π³π MANDOU LΓ NA LUA, PΓ! Nesse jogΓ£o do @FC_Series que vocΓͺ vΓͺ na @tntbr, @estadiobr (https://t.co/QfVGLo0yCh) e YouTube, o brasileiro teve a chance de fazer um gol e ISOLOU! #FCSeriesNaTNTSports
ποΈ: @andrehenning pic.twitter.com/sxDDymzwxq
— TNT Sports Brasil (@TNTSportsBR) July 21, 2022
Michel should have leveled the game in the 24th minute when Torres sent him a good through ball. The Orlando Homegrown Player was away for a breakaway but fired straight at goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who made the save to preserve the Gunnersβ lead. Michel and other Lions were able to take advantage of Arsenal center backs Rob Holding and Pablo Mari throughout the first half, particularly with direct balls and timely switches of play.
Torres tied the match five minutes later. Taking a good long ball from Carlos, he fired from the top of the semicircle just outside the area and sent a perfect strike inside the right post to tie the match at 1-1.
OLHA O EMPATE DO ORLANDO CITY PRA CIMA DO ARSENAL! π₯π Nesse jogΓ£o do @FC_Series que vocΓͺ vΓͺ na @tntbr, @estadiobr (https://t.co/QfVGLo0yCh) e YouTube, Facundo Torres bateu no canto do gol de Ramsdale e fez 1×1 no Orlando City Stadium! #FCSeriesNaTNTSports
ποΈ: @andrehenning pic.twitter.com/WExv4XT2s2
— TNT Sports Brasil (@TNTSportsBR) July 21, 2022
Araujo did well to block a shot by Eddie Nketiah off an Arsenal corner kick in the 37th minute to keep things level.
Perea was teed up at the top of the area in the 44th minute but he sent his shot into the upper deck, paying his respects to Carlos Rivas.
Arsenal had the last decent look in first-half stoppage, as Nketiah did well to free himself up in the box for a shot but hit it wide of the right post. The teams went to the break level at 1-1.
Orlando City held more possession (55%-45%), won more corners (2-1), attempted more shots (5-3), and got more on target (3-1). The Lions were also more accurate in the passing game (86.4%-85.7%).
The energy changed a bit after the break, possibly because Arsenal brought on Gabriel Jesus, who fired his first shot attempt in the first minute of the second half, but it was straight at Gallese.
Mulraney made a good move to beat his defender in the 52nd minute but his cross in for Michel was too close to substitute goalkeeper Matt Turner.
A minute later, Jesus fired a shot from distance that seemed to catch Gallese a bit off guard. He made the save but couldnβt control the rebound, which resulted in an Arsenal corner but the Lions dealt with that. The visitors stayed on the front foot, with Nuno Tavares firing into the upper deck in the 57th minute. A minute later, Gallese made a big save on Nketiah in front and then had to knock aside an overzealous back pass from Halliday.
Arsenal regained the lead in the 66th minute during a scramble in the box. Substitute Kyle Smith slid across the area and tried to clear but only succeeded in teeing up a shot for Nketiah to knock into the net, making it 2-1.
Γ GOL DO ARSENAL! E TEVE HOMENAGEM PRO GABRIEL JESUS! π£οΈπ Nesse jogΓ£o do @FC_Series que vocΓͺ vΓͺ na @tntbr, @estadiobr (https://t.co/QfVGLo0yCh) e YouTube, Nketiah desempatou pros Gunners e, na comemoraΓ§Γ£o, fez o "alΓ΄, mΓ£e"! Fofo, nΓ©? #FCSeriesNaTNTSports
ποΈ: @andrehenning pic.twitter.com/MBMEu07Ayc
— TNT Sports Brasil (@TNTSportsBR) July 21, 2022
The Lions tried to pull that goal back in the 71st minute when Tesho Akindele made a great move to get by a defender and picked out Michel with a good cross. Benji chested it down and then…well, I think he tried to play the ball over a defender to himself, but he didnβt come close to pulling it off, and the chance evaporated.
After another miss by Tavares from outside the box in the 79th minute, Arsenal put the match away. Reiss Nelson was left unattended by Ruan in the box and when the ball came to him, it was an easy finish. The Gunners led 3-1 in the 80th.
BELO GOL DO ARSENAL! πβ½ BOLA TRABALHADA DE PΓ EM PΓ! Nesse jogΓ£o do @FC_Series que vocΓͺ vΓͺ na @tntbr, @estadiobr (https://t.co/QfVGLo0yCh) e YouTube, Reiss Nelson ampliou a vantagem dos Gunners sobre o Orlando City! #FCSeriesNaTNTSports
ποΈ: @andrehenning pic.twitter.com/rJXnu9tojV
— TNT Sports Brasil (@TNTSportsBR) July 21, 2022
Granit Xhaka narrowly missed a free kick in the 86th minute and Gallese made a big save late on Nelson to prevent the final tally from getting any worse.
Arsenal turned all of the statistical advantages around in the second half, finishing with more possession (56.6%-43.4%), shots (19-5), shots on target (11-3), corners (4-2), and passing accuracy (90.3%-82.7%).
One of the main reasons Arsenal emerged in the second half was the introduction of starters Jesus, Xhaka, Martin Odegaard, and center backs Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba. The more solidified Gunners were going up against more tired starters and an assortment of substitutes that were either backups, OCB players, or β in the case of Ruan β just plain switched off.
In the end, the result doesnβt matter much and Orlando City at least acquitted itself well against a top European side.
βI was happy to see a very enjoyable game for the fans and against a fantastic rival,β Pareja said. βI was proud and ready to move on to the next one.β
With the friendly out of the way, Orlando City can focus on Saturdayβs huge home match against the Philadelphia Union.
Lion Links
Lion Links: 6/23/25
Pride fall to Racing Louisville, Seb Hines and Giles Barnes share insight on path to success in Orlando, USMNT defeats Haiti, and more.

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been busy working and catching up with friends over the past week. Before we get started, let’s wish a belated happy birthday to Orlando Pride Vice President of Soccer Operations and Sporting Director Haley Carter, who turned 41 on Saturday. The Pride was the lone team in action over the weekend, while the Lions and OCB were off. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.
Pride Fall at Racing Louisville
The Orlando Pride fell to Racing Louisville 2-0 Friday at Lynn Family Stadium. Arin Wright scored the opening goal in the first half, and former Pride midfielder Taylor Flint converted a penalty kick for Racing Louisville. The Pride struggled offensively and failed to capitalize on their scoring chances. Orlando’s struggles in Louisville continue, as the club is winless in five matches at Lynn Family Stadium. The Pride will be on a long break, and their next match will be Aug. 3, taking on the Utah Royals at Inter&Co Stadium.
Seb Hines, Giles Barnes Share Insight on Path to Success in Orlando
Orlando Pride Head Coach Seb Hines and Assistant Coach Giles Barnes were featured in an interview in The Guardian. Both Hines and Barnes shared insight into their longtime friendship, which began with playing in English youth international camps, their different paths to playing in Major League Soccer, and how they became involved in coaching. Hines discussed his time as interim manager of the Pride in 2022 and how he brought in Barnes to help change the club’s culture. Hines and Barnes helped change the perception of the club and led the Pride to winning both the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship last season.
USMNT Defeats Haiti to Win Group D in Gold Cup
The U.S. Men’s National Team defeated Haiti 2-1 Sunday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, in their final match in the group stage of the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup. The USMNT finished atop its group with three wins and nine points. Orlando City defender Alex Freeman made his third consecutive start and played 90 minutes.
Malik Tillman scored the opening goal 10 minutes into the match to give the USMNT the early lead. Haiti tied the match not long after Tillman’s goal. In the second half, Patrick Agyemang pulled the USMNT back in front. The USMNT advances to the quarterfinals as the group winner and will play its next match Sunday against the Group A runner-up which was the late game Sunday night and had yet to conclude as of this writing.
Club World Cup Weekend Recap
Another weekend of matches from the FIFA Club World Cup is in the books. On Friday, Benfica crushed Auckland City FC 6-0, while Flamengo beat Chelsea 3-1. LAFC was eliminated from advancing to the knockout round after a 1-0 defeat to ES Tunis. Bayern Munich edged Boca Juniors 2-1. On Saturday, Borussia Dortmund defeated Mamelodi Sundowns 4-3. Inter Milan needed a late stoppage-time winning goal from Valentin Carboni to edge Urawa Red Diamonds 2-1. Fluminense beat Ulsan HD 4-2, and River Plate and Monterrey ended in a scoreless draw. On Sunday, Juventus cruised to a 4-1 win over Wydad Casablanca. Xabi Alonso secured his first win as manager of Real Madrid with a 3-1 victory against Pachuca. Red Bull Salzburg and Al-Hilal played to a scoreless draw, with Manchester City playing Al-Ain in the late match Sunday. Today’s matches feature Atletico Madrid facing Botafogo, the Seattle Sounders hosting Paris Saint-Germain, FC Porto vs. Al Ahly, and Inter Miami taking on Palmeiras.
Free Kicks
- Orlando Pride midfielder Ally Lemos and forward Simone JacksonΒ have been called-up to the U-23 U.S. Women’s National Team. The U-23 camp will be led by Orlando Pride Assistant Coach Yolanda Thomas.
USL Championship side San Antonio FC has signed former Orlando City defender Abdi Salim to a 25-day contract.
San Diego Wave winger Maria Sanchez has reportedly reach an agreement to return to her former club, Tigres of Liga MX Femenil, on a four-year contract.
Paul Pogba is reportedly set to return to playing soccer and has signed a two-year contract with Ligue 1 side AS Monaco.
That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and Iβll see you next time.
Opinion
Orlando City Has Been Better than Expected Halfway Through the Season
While there was plenty to worry about at the start of the season, Orlando has had a good first half of 2025.

With 18 matches in the books, we’ve moved just past the halfway point of the 2025 Major League Soccer season, and based off my feelings before Orlando City played its opening game of the season, the Lions have performed above expectations so far. There were plenty of valid reasons to be concerned heading into the year. Orlando had sold its all-time leading goal scorer, and there were questions about whether he’d been adequately replaced. There were worries about depth at multiple positions, and the defense was coming off an uncharacteristically poor year. Here we are though, with the Lions sitting fifth in the Eastern Conference, just three points out of second place and seven points out of first. So how did we get to this point?
For one thing, Marco Pasalic has been much better than I (and I think a lot of other people) expected him to be. The Croatian has six goals and four assists across 18 matches, and is second on the team in both categories. He scored 10 goals in 49 appearances in the Croatian first division before coming to Orlando and was extremely one-footed, which was enough evidence to sow real doubt about whether he could adequately replace the impact of Facundo Torres.
So far, it’s mostly been so good. His direct style of play is a good complement to the styles of Martin Ojeda and Luis Muriel, and he’s largely hit the ground running in a league that can be difficult to adapt to. It hasn’t been perfect, as he’s still very one-footed, and can sometimes disappear if he’s stringently man marked, but on the whole there’s been much more good than bad.
Speaking of Ojeda and Muriel, they’ve also had strong years. Ojeda in particular has continued his great second half of the 2024 season and has nine goals and five assists in 18 games to show for it. He looks fast, confident, and decisive and is a far cry from the player who struggled frequently during his first year as a Lion. Muriel has cooled off a little after a scorching start to 2025, but he still has six goals and three assists in 18 matches. He looks vastly improved from last year, when he looked a little off the pace of play and quickly lost the starting striker role. He still has a tendency to not be as selfish as he needs to be in front of goal, but he’s been much better than 2024.
I mentioned depth being a big concern, and not just at one position. At the beginning of the season Orlando City was, and arguably still is, thin at striker, center back, defensive midfield, and fullback. Duncan McGuire was injured to start the year and is now injured again, leaving Orlando with two true strikers in Muriel and Ramiro Enrique. There was no true backup left back, only one reliable backup center back, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson starting at right back meant that defensive midfield depth consisted of rookie Joran Gerbet and the Swiss army knife that is Kyle Smith.
Things have mostly worked out though. David Brekalo has supplanted Rafael Santos, meaning the Brazilian is now a proven backup option at the position, and Smith has filled in there as well. That means that in games in which Rodrigo Schlegel or Robin Jansson are unavailable, Brekalo fills in at center back, Santos starts at left back, and Smith is the backup for both positions, so it isn’t a flawless system. Gerbet has been playing better and better and got some valuable minutes when Eduard Atuesta and Cesar Araujo were unavailable. His emergence has been a crucial piece of the puzzle this year. So too has the rise of Alex Freeman, as his locking down the right back role has allowed Thorhallsson to fill in at defensive midfield, attacking midfield, and right back. The situation isn’t perfect, as a couple untimely injuries to the wrong guys would leave the Lions looking pretty threadbare, but so far it’s just about worked.
Another big concern was the defense. The Lions conceded 50 goals in the regular season last year, which was tied for the second-most of any Eastern Conference playoff team and fourth-most of any playoff team. With no defensive signings and the aforementioned depth concerns, there were plenty of reasons to worry about Orlando’s ability to keep the ball out of the back of the net.
Things have looked much better in 2025, though. The 22 goals OCSC has conceded are the fifth-fewest in the league, and Pedro Gallese’s eight clean sheets are tied for most in the league. Aside from a few egregious defensive performances against the Philadelphia Union, Atlanta United, and the Chicago Fire, things have mostly been tidy at the back, and when they haven’t been, El Pulpo has been around to pick up the slack. Again, things haven’t been perfect, as there have been moments where individual and collective errors have hurt the team, but it’s been better.
I thought the Lions would struggle this year. Going into the start of the season, we were talking about a team that lost Torres, arguably didn’t do enough to strengthen the team across the board, was facing depth issues, and was dealing with a leaky defense β all while pretty much every other contender in the East got stronger on paper. Instead, OCSC tied a club-best unbeaten streak and is just three points out of second place.
That being said, the East is so tight that Orlando is only five points above the playoff line, and injuries to the wrong guys could easily topple the fragile ecosystem that is the depth chart, but so far things are going better than I thought they would be. There are still a lot of matches to play, but this isn’t a bad position to be in at the halfway mark.
Lion Links
Lion Links: 6/20/25
Orlando Pride take on Racing Louisville FC tonight, Orlando Pride players called up by Zambia, USMNT beats Saudi Arabia, and more.

Happy Friday! June continues to fly by as we enjoy the buffet of soccer here in the U.S. this month. I’ll be spending most of the weekend working, but I am hoping to get some reading done after being gifted some books for my birthday. But enough about me, let’s jump right into today’s links!
Orlando Pride Face Racing Louisville Tonight
The Orlando Pride are on the road tonight for a match against Racing Louisville FC at 8 p.m. in the final game before a league break until August. Going into the break with four straight wins would be nice for the Pride, but they’ve struggled at Lynn Family Stadium over the years. Louisville enters this match following a 4-2 loss to the league-leading Kansas City Current and has scored eight goals over the past three games. Orlando’s defense has been phenomenal this year, conceding just eight goals this season and only one during this win streak. Midfielder Cori Dyke spoke on how the team is finding its groove and shutting out opponents.
Zambia Calls Up Orlando Pride Trio
Barbra Banda, Grace Chanda, and Prisca Chilufya were all called up for Zambia’s CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations roster ahead of this summer’s tournament. Banda has eight goals this season with the Pride and had four goals at last year’s Olympics, including a hat trick against Australia. The Copper Queens claimed third place in the 2022 edition of this tournament, and they’ll need to be at their best to win this summer against tough opponents like South Africa and Nigeria. Zambia’s tournament campaign will kick off on July 5 against the host nation, Morocco.
USMNT Beats Saudi Arabia to Qualify for Quarterfinals
The United States Men’s National Team won 1-0 against Saudi Arabia to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals of this year’s Concacaf Gold Cup. After a scoreless first half, the Yanks broke through in the 63rd minute thanks to a free kick. Sebastian Berhalter served the ball on a silver platter to Chris Richards, who buried it for the crucial goal. The defense did well to secure its second shutout of the tournament, with Orlando City’s Alex Freeman starting at right back yet again. The USMNT will play Haiti on Sunday and should be able to win the group for a smoother path in the knockout stage.
FIFA Club World Cup Roundup
An MLS club finally won a game during this year’s FIFA Club World Cup, with Inter Miami beating Porto 2-1 in Atlanta. Lionel Messi scored the winner from a free kick to complete the comeback after conceding an early goal. The Seattle Sounders had a rougher day, falling 3-1 to Atletico Madrid, with Pablo Barrios scoring a brace. Former Lion Facundo Torres started for Palmeiras in the Brazilian club’s 2-0 win over Egypt’s Al Ahly.
Today’s action features more soccer at Inter&Co Stadium, with Benfica and Auckland City squaring off in the City Beautiful. Our Michael Citro will be on hand to report on it. Elsewhere in the U.S., Chelsea will take on Flamengo, LAFC will face ES Tunis, and Bayern Munich will play Boca Juniors.
Free Kicks
- Canada Head Coach Jesse Marsch, who is already serving a suspension for misconduct during the Nations League, is under investigation by Concacaf for incidents during this Gold Cup. Reports detail that Marsch disregarded regulations and used offensive language toward match officials.
- Kylian Mbappe was discharged from the hospital after suffering from a case of gastroenteritis. It’s unclear if or when he’ll play for Real Madrid during the Club World Cup.
- Carlos Cuesta was hired as Parma’s next head coach after five years with Arsenal as an assistant coach. The 29-year-old becomes the second-youngest coach in Serie A history.
- Manchester City was fined over $1 million by the English Premier League for repeated delays regarding kickoff times.
That’s all I have for you all today. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!
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