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Orlando City at D.C. United: Five Takeaways

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4 years ago

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Orlando City scored early but missed multiple opportunities to extend the lead and conceded twice in stoppage time in a 2-1 loss on the road against D.C. United. Head Coach Oscar Pareja rolled out the same lineup as the one used in last week’s U.S. Open Cup semifinal win, but the Lions weren’t able to replicate that success. Although winning on the road in MLS isn’t easy, the Lions had plenty of opportunities to ensure they left Audi Field with all three points. Here are our five takeaways from the loss.

The Bear Stepped Up

Junior Urso’s goal was one of the best scored by Orlando this year and he did a great job providing some needed oomph to Orlando’s offense. When it comes to scoring, the Lions have leaned heavily on their Designated Players this year. While that’s what DPs are for, it’s resulted in opposing defenses locking down those players and daring someone on Orlando to beat them instead. Urso did so in this match and put three of his four shots on target to serve as a constant threat in the first half. The lineup allowed Urso to thrive on the right wing and attack the goal, filling that void on the wing opposite of Facundo Torres that has been empty for most of the year. Missed shots aside, Alexandre Pato and Benji Michel also did great jobs creating chances so that the burden didn’t completely fall on the shoulders of Facundo Torres and Mauricio Pereyra. With Ercan Kara on the bench, it was important that Urso and the others stepped up to provide new ways for Orlando to score. While the floodgates didn’t exactly bust open, it was nice to see a goal between two Orlando players that weren’t DPs.

Poor Finishing Plagues the Lions

Urso’s chip shot to beat Rafael Romo and give Orlando a goal in the ninth minute was a great start to the match. However, the Lions wasted plenty of chances in the first half to increase that lead on the road. While poor finishing has plagued the team all season, misses from Pato and Michel were especially egregious in this match. Pato had four shots and none were on target as he seemed intent on putting the ball in the stands. His worst miss was in the 28th minute as he got too much under a shot that just needed to be on frame as Romo was miles away from the net. It still wasn’t the worst shot of the afternoon as Michel shanked a sitter right in front of goal in the 38th. While the offense did a great job creating chances in the first half, they didn’t impact the scoreboard all too much. Orlando’s one-goal lead was razor thin and D.C. made Orlando pay for not putting the game away when it could.

The Defense Bends and Then Breaks

Orlando’s defense was solid until it wasn’t, conceding twice in stoppage time as all points were lost to the hosts. While the timing of the goals makes it look like a complete collapse from Orlando’s defense, D.C.’s offense was getting closer and closer to scoring as the second half wore on. Heroic goalkeeping from Pedro Gallese and calculated defensive plays from center backs Antonio Carlos and Robin Jansson kept the Lions alive throughout the match, but ultimately it wasn’t enough. The congested July schedule seemed to catch up to the Lions all at once as they were sluggish when D.C. switched the run of play and men were left unmarked in the box. Tired legs or not, Orlando allowed the same player that scored a hat trick in Exploria Stadium earlier this month to beat them yet again. It was the third straight road match that Orlando’s defense was unable to hold onto a lead in the second half.

Mauricio Pereyra’s Exit Changed the Flow

Orlando City’s captain came off the field in the 55th minute due to knee pain and the Lions struggled to maintain possession while he was off the field. Pereyra’s passing ability allows him to sit deep in the midfield to serve as an outlet for passes out of the back while sending accurate balls up the field to jumpstart the offense. He completed all but two of his 30 passes and was sorely missed as D.C. found its footing in the second half. Andres Perea came on for Pereyra but lacked the offensive bite that kept D.C. on its toes. While Perea completed all of his passes, he only had 14 of them in over half an hour of action and Orlando lost some of its flow as a result. The Lions don’t have a like-for-like replacement for Pereyra, so hopefully his injury isn’t too serious.

Four Subs Offered Few Solutions

None of Pareja’s subs helped much in the second half, although a couple of them didn’t necessarily hurt the team either. The substitution of Perea for Pereyra, as noted earlier, was out of necessity and changed the match. Perea simply can’t do what Pereyra can and it’s not fair to expect it from the 21-year-old, especially in his 2022 form. Perea watched the assist pass go right by him on Chris Durkin’s equalizer and he was also a bit passive on the buildup to the winner, allowing Martin Rodriguez plenty of time and space on the ball to pick out Kimarni Smith on the far side. Kyle Smith didn’t necessarily do anything wrong in the match, but Joao Moutinho left the game with the team lead in touches (79) and his exit deprived the Lions of one of their most composed passers and ball handlers in the back. The game may have gone differently had Smith gone in for Ruan, but it’s understandable given Moutinho’s injury history to be careful with the left back’s workload.

Nicholas Gioacchini came on for Torres, but he’s still getting used to the team and the system and didn’t seem quite connected with the group. It might have been better to have used Tesho Akindele in that role, given the game situation, or to have dropped Michel to the wing and brought on Kara. Niko attempted a shot in the 87th minute, but missed well wide of the target from a tight angle.

Rodrigo Schlegel was brought on for the usual see-it-out situation but not until the 89th minute. That didn’t work out either, even if it was tactically sound. The reasons the Schlegel sub didn’t work were down to bad luck and a starter switching off for half a second. With Ruan getting hurt on the lead-up to Durkin’s goal, D.C. had plenty of space to pick out the passes on the two United goals and Schlegel couldn’t stop either from his spot on Jansson’s left. Schlegel could perhaps have blocked Durkin’s effort if he’d shot to the right, but he shot left for the goal. On the second, Jansson switched off for only a heartbeat, calling for an offside on Kimarni Smith. That hesitation was just enough to allow Taxi Fountas the bit of space he needed to cleanly collect the cross and score the winning goal.

That’s what I took from Orlando’s frustrating loss to D.C. United on the road. What stood out to you when watching the match? Let me know in the comments down below.

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions hit the road for the first time in 2026, hoping to turn things around and get their first win of the season.

Published

27 minutes ago

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March 7, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match thread and preview for a Saturday matinee matchup between Orlando City (0-2-0, 0 points) and New York City FC (1-0-1, 4 points) at Yankee Stadium (2:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the first of the two scheduled meetings between the Lions and Pigeons this season with the return leg in Orlando set for Oct. 24.

Here is what you need to know ahead of the match.

History

The Lions are 7-11-8 in 26 meetings with NYCFC in the all-time series in MLS play and 7-11-10 including one playoff match and one U.S. Open Cup meeting (remember, games that go to penalty shootouts in knockout competitions officially count as draws). Orlando is 2-8-2 on the road in regular-season games in the all-time series. Things have trended the Pigeons’ way the last few years, as the Lions are 0-5-2 in the last seven meetings between the teams.

The teams met twice last year and NYCFC swept the season series. In the most recent matchup, Orlando City blew a late 1-0 lead at home on July 16 through Robin Jansson’s goal. But Rodrigo Schlegel smashed a clearance attempt off Kyle Smith and into his own net just a few minutes before the end of normal time, tying the game. Alonso Martinez scored the winner on a counterattack in stoppage time to end the game 2-1 in favor of the visitors.

In Orlando City’s first road game of the 2025 season, the Lions fell 2-1 at Yankee Stadium on March 8. Martinez opened the scoring in the second half, with Luis Muriel equalizing. However, just two minutes after Muriel’s goal, Hannes Wolf scored what turned out to be the game winner.

In Orlando, on July 20, 2024, the two 2015 expansion rivals played to a 1-1 draw. Ramiro Enrique and Wolf traded goals five minutes apart in the second half to account for all the scoring. The Lions and Pigeons met at Yankee Stadium on June 28, 2025, with New York City FC winning 4-2. An early Santiago Rodriguez goal opened the scoring and then things went horribly wrong when an obviously offside Malachi Jones collided hard with Orlando goalkeeper Mason Stajduhar. Both players left the game and both had season-ending surgery to repair broken tibias and fibulas. Javier Otero made his MLS debut in goal off the bench and the Lions allowed two goals in first-half stoppage time to let a close game get out of hand. Orlando pulled two goals back through Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Duncan McGuire, but Mounsef Bakrar sealed the game late for NYCFC.

The teams met at Citi Field — a different baseball stadium than NYCFC’s usual one — on Sept. 20, 2023. The Pigeons were rude hosts, winning 2-0 on goals by Bakrar and Talles Magno. It snapped Orlando’s five-game unbeaten run but the Lions clinched a playoff spot that day anyway due to other results around the league. These teams also met in Orlando on May 17, and with the Lions poised for a 1-0 win, NYCFC eked out a late 1-1 draw with an 89th-minute Gabriel Segal goal out of nowhere. Ercan Kara scored for Orlando City early.

The teams faced off at Red Bull Arena (one of NYCFC’s many homes away from home) on Oct. 2, 2022, with the Pigeons erasing a 1-0 halftime deficit that Facundo Torres provided. The “hosts” got second-half goals from Alex Callens and Magno to complete the comeback and win, 2-1. Earlier in the year at Exploria Stadium, the Lions got a Tesho Akindele goal at the death, stunning NYCFC as Orlando City won 2-1 on Aug. 28, 2022. Junior Urso and Maxi Moralez had scored early in the first and second half, respectively.

Orlando City had a five-game unbeaten streak in the series (1-0-4) absolutely demolished on July 25, 2021 in a 5-0 OCSC loss at Yankee Stadium. The Lions started a makeshift lineup, and it showed, as the Pigeons got goals from Jesus Medina, Ismael Tajouri-Shradi, Moralez, Malte Amundsen, and Valentin Castellanos. Why the makeshift lineup? That match was sandwiched between home games against Philadelphia and Atlanta, with quick turnarounds for each. The strategy was sound, as Orlando won the other two games in that nine-day span.

The teams met in Orlando on May 8, 2021 and drew 1-1. Nani smashed a golazo in the second half to put the Lions on top, but Joao Moutinho fouled Tajouri-Shradi in the box and Castellanos scored from the spot to equalize.

The last meeting of the 2020 season happened in the postseason and things got weird. Orlando City ultimately prevailed in penalties after a 1-1 postseason draw on Nov. 21, 2020. Nani put Orlando ahead from the penalty spot, only to see Maxime Chanot equalize on a set piece. Extra time couldn’t settle it, so to penalties we went, and the Lions advanced thanks to a save by Schlegel — after goalkeeper Pedro Gallese was sent off with a second yellow for coming off his line early. Benji Michel’s blast was the difference in the shootout. (Seriously, just click the above link in this paragraph and relive that madness.)

The Lions and Pigeons wrapped the 2020 season series on Oct. 14 at Exploria Stadium, playing to a 1-1 draw. Chris Mueller opened the scoring but Keaton Parks equalized just before halftime. The first meeting of 2020 also took place in Central Florida in the MLS is Back Tournament on July 14, when Mueller’s brace and a late Akindele insurance goal led Orlando to a 3-1 win. Medina scored for NYCFC. That win snapped Orlando City’s 0-4-3 streak in the previous seven competitive meetings with the Pigeons. The last match in that winless streak against NYCFC was a 1-1 draw, with the Lions then dispatching NYCFC from the U.S. Open Cup in a penalty shootout on July 10, 2019. That night has been immortalized for the running of The Wall and Adam Grinwis’ heroics in goal.

The teams drew both regular-season meetings in 2019, 1-1 on April 27 at Yankee Stadium, and 2-2 on opening day at Exploria Stadium. NYCFC took all three meetings in a dismal 2018 season series. The Lions went 2-1-0 against New York City FC in 2017, including a win to christen the stadium now known as Exploria with Cyle Larin scoring the only goal in a 1-0 OCSC win. Orlando was 3-1-2 in 2015 and 2016 in the first six meetings with NYCFC.

Overview

Orlando City opened the season with two consecutive losses for the first time in club history. The Lions have played one good half and one bad one in each match but have yet to put a full 90 minutes together. Perhaps getting away from home would be a recipe to change the energy, but in this case, the club travels to one of its least-successful away venues. Orlando has been a decent road team since Oscar Pareja took over, but Yankee Stadium is still a difficult place for the Lions to pull points out of.

New York City FC, meanwhile, has opened the season unbeaten through two games with a win and a draw, and the Pigeons will be at home for the first time. This start is despite Martinez being out of the lineup due to injury. NYCFC opened the season with a road draw against the LA Galaxy and followed with a 2-1 win at Philadelphia. Like Orlando, the Pigeons have had three different goal scorers through two matches.

The Lions must try to keep Wolf at bay, as he’s hurt Orlando before and has one of his team’s goals already this season. Nicolas Fernández Mercau is another attacking player to watch. Moralez is always a dangerous provider and he too has hurt the Lions in the past. Defensive midfielder Keaton Parks has returned after blood clot issues a year ago and has picked up where he left off. In the back, Matt Freese is one of the league’s top goalkeepers, and Orlando will need to be clinical to beat him.

“First, we know in terms of results that we can bounce back. I think our team, in the last game, already gave us signs of improvement, cohesiveness, and doing what we need much more efficiently in order to win,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the game. “Now we need to keep doing that but win games. And there’s no doubt that we are urgent to get results, and on a field this weekend that is a challenge, but I think we have a good mentality and that the boys are ready.”

Orlando City will be without Colin Guske (suspension), Joran Gerbet (knee), Wilder Cartagena (thigh), and Jansson (foot), while Adrian Marin (thigh) remains questionable. The good news is that center back Nolan Miller, who left last weekend’s game with a knock, is not on the availability report. NYCFC will be without Martinez (leg), Malachi Jones (leg), and former Lion Andres Perea (leg).

Match Content

Projected Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Tahir Reid-Brown, Nolan Miller, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Eduard Atuesta, Marco Pasalic.

Forwards: Martin Ojeda, Duncan McGuire.

New York City FC (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Matt Freese.

Defenders: Kevin O’Toole, Raul Gustavo, Thiago Martins, Tayvon Gray.

Defensive Midfielders: Aiden O’Neill, Keaton Parks.

Attacking Midfielders: Agustin Ojeda, Maxi Moralez, Hannes Wolf.

Forward: Nicolas Fernández Mercau.

Referees:

REF: Guido Gonzales Jr.
AR1: Gerard-Kader Lebuis.
AR2: Ben Pilgrim.
4TH: Ricardo Montero Araya.
VAR: Geoff Gamble.
AVAR: Tom Supple.

How to Watch

Match Time: 2:30 p.m.

Venue: Yankee Stadium — The Bronx, NY.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social: 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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Orlando City

Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. New York City FC

Get up to speed on this year’s NYCFC team, courtesy of someone who knows them best.

Published

23 hours ago

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March 6, 2026

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Another weekend brings another opportunity for Orlando City to pick up its first points of the still-young 2026 Major League Soccer season. To do that, OCSC will need to beat a team that is unbeaten through its first two games, as the Lions are heading to Yankee Stadium to take on New York City FC on Saturday.

A trip to the baseball diamond means I took the time to catch up with Matthew Mangam, who is one of the senior writers over at the independent and always excellent Hudson River Blue. He was kind enough to help us refamiliarize ourselves with the Pigeons, and I also answered some of his questions about Orlando City, which you can find over at their place.

Talk me through NYCFC’s off-season transfer business. Who went out the door, and who arrived to replace them?

Matthew Mangam: NYCFC’s biggest loss this off-season was Justin Haak, who joined the LA Galaxy as a free agent. Defensive midfielder and center back Kai Trewin joined the club from Melbourne City, serving as the unofficial replacement for Haak. Alonso Martínez, who tore his ACL, and Andrés Perea, who fractured his lower right leg, aren’t official departures but will spend most of the season recovering from their respective injuries. NYCFC also loaned out Julián Fernández and Mitja Ilenič. 

Of those new arrivals, who has been the most impressive through the first two games of the season?

MM: I’m going to cheat a little bit here and say Keaton Parks — he missed most of last season after undergoing surgery to address blood flow issues in his right leg. Since appearing in the season opener and starting the last game against Philadelphia, Parks looks like he hasn’t missed a beat. He’s contributed on both sides of the ball, bringing great energy and consistency. 

Who is an NYCFC player with the potential to be an X factor in this game, and why?

MM: Hannes Wolf. He scored the opening goal against Philadelphia in true Hannes Wolf fashion: opportunistically pouncing on a deflection in the box and burying it in the back of the net. The only issue is that Wolf struggles with consistency, but in his two seasons at NYCFC, he started each year in good form. I would say Nico Fernández Mercau could also be an X-factor, but he’s playing as the No. 9 — not his natural position — which has clearly affected him a bit.

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

MM: Besides Martínez and Perea being out with long-term injuries, NYCFC is healthy. Talles Magno is coming off a calf injury, which happened in preseason, but he will likely play at least 10 minutes off the bench. Jonny Shore is also working back to full fitness, so it’s unclear if he’ll get any time as a substitute on Saturday.

I expect NYCFC to keep its lineup the same from the win over Philadelphia:

Matt Freese; Kevin O’Toole, Raul Gustavo, Thiago Martins, Tayvon Gray; Aiden O’Neill, Keaton Parks; Agustin Ojeda, Maxi Moralez, Hannes Wolf; Nicolas Fernández Mercau.

I think NYCFC wins 2-0, with Wolf and Parks getting on the score sheet.

Thank you to Matthew for the excellent info on NYCFC. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/6/26

Leagues Cup schedule unveiled, Orlando Pride sign Reagan Raabe, USWNT prepares for Colombia, and more.

Published

1 day ago

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March 6, 2026

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Happy Friday! It’s been a bit of a hectic week but I’m looking forward to spending the weekend enjoying some soccer and visiting my family for a birthday. Hopefully Orlando City can get a win on the road on Saturday and bring points back to the City Beautiful. Before we get started, we want to give a shout out to “Flip,” the latest subscriber at the TAM Player level in our Buy Me a Coffee membership program. Thanks for your support and welcome to The Mane Land family! Now, let’s jump right into today’s links!

Orlando City’s Leagues Cup Schedule Revealed

The schedule for this summer’s Leagues Cup is out and we now know which Liga MX teams Orlando City will play against. All three of Orlando’s games in the first phase of the tournament will be at Inter&Co Stadium, starting with a match against Monterrey on Aug. 5. The Lions will then take on Club Leon on Aug. 8 before playing San Luis on Aug. 12. Of the 18 MLS clubs taking part in the Leagues Cup, only the top four will advance to the knockout stage. Last year, the Lions went unbeaten across their four matches against Mexican teams before falling in the semifinals and the third-place match.

Orlando Pride Sign Reagan Raabe 

The Orlando Pride signed forward Reagan Raabe to a short-term contract that will last through June of this year. The 24-year-old has been with the club throughout its preseason as a non-roster invitee. Raabe joins the Pride following a collegiate career with the University of Nebraska, recording four goals and six assists in her final season after missing a couple of years due to injury. Hopefully she can continue to impress the coaching staff and make an impact this year.

Analyzing Colombia Ahead of USWNT Match

The United States Women’s National Team will play Colombia on Saturday in the final game of this year’s SheBelieves Cup. Colombia lost 4-1 to Canada in its first match but bounced back with a 1-0 win over Argentina. One of the top nations in South America, Colombia finished second in last year’s Copa America and boasts a versatile attack that does well with possession or in transition. The U.S. will need to limit Real Madrid forward Linda Caicedo as much as possible. The 21-year-old has scored in both of Colombia’s games this tournament and has the talent to create opportunities out of seemingly nothing.

WAFCON Postponed Until July

The Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, which was set to begin on March 17, has been postponed until July 25 and is set to last through Aug. 16. This decision comes amid reports that Morocco wished to withdraw as the tournament’s host and it’s unclear at this time if Morocco will still host it later this year. Many NWSL players are impacted by this change, including Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda, whose Zambian side will face Nigeria, Malawi, and Egypt in the group stage. The tournament doubles as qualifying for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, with the quarterfinalists directly securing a spot in Brazil next summer.

Free Kicks

  • We have some rumored numbers to put to how much Orlando City was offering to pay Atletico Madrid attacker Antoine Griezmann. Even if the move doesn’t come to pass, I can appreciate the club taking a big swing.
  • Nothing is official yet, but the United States Men’s National Team’s jersey for the upcoming World Cup may have been spotted in the wild. It looks like the Waldo kit with a twist, literally.
  • Toronto FC officially added center back Benjamin Kuscevic on loan from Fortaleza in Brazil’s second division.
  • Walid Regragui stepped down as Morocco’s head coach with only a few months to go before the World Cup. Mohamed Ouahbi will take over for Regragui and it will be his first time coaching a senior team.
  • Relegation is growing into a real possibility for Tottenham, which lost its fifth-straight match after a 3-1 defeat to Crystal Palace.
  • Cristo Fernandez, who plays Dani Rojas on Ted Lasso, made a splash with a pair of goals in an exhibition match while training with Chicago Fire II.

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

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