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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Inter Miami CF: Final Score 4-1 as Lions in Free Fall with Another Loss

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3 years ago

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Orlando City sank beneath the weight of bad bounces and defensive transition mistakes in an inconceivable 4-1 beatdown loss to Inter Miami CF at DRV PNK Stadium. The loss dropped the Lions below the playoff line with one match day remaining.

Starting in the game’s very first minute, awful mistakes cost the team and luck played a little bit of a role as well, as the Lions (13-14-6, 45 points) fell back below .500, fell below .500 on the road (5-6-6), and lost their fourth game in the last five since winning the U.S. Open Cup. Meanwhile, Miami (14-13-6, 48 points) climbed above .500 and clinched a postseason berth for the first time.

Leonardo Campana, Gonzalo Higuain (twice), and Ariel Lassiter did the damage on the scoreboard, but the Lions were honestly their own worst enemies in the first Tropic Thunder match that was decided by more than one goal. Ercan Kara pulled a goal back in the second half but by then the game was effectively over.

“I know what these kinds of games mean for our fans and I’m very disappointed not to perform the way we should,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “In that part, I take responsibility.”

“I want to say sorry to our fans, because they come from Orlando to Miami to to push us and today was not so good for us,” Junior Urso said.

Pareja rotated his lineup somewhat, playing Pedro Gallese in goal behind a back line of Joao Moutinho, Rodrigo Schlegel, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. Cesar Araujo played his customary stopper role next to a deep-lying Mauricio Pereyra, with an attacking midfield line of Benji Michel, Junior Urso, and Facundo Torres, with Tesho Akindele up top.

It took less than a minute for that lineup to break down. Smith somehow knocked a pass attempt off an opponent and the ball squirted in behind the Orlando center backs. Neither Carlos nor Schlegel went to get the ball so Campana ran onto it and chipped Gallese, who was off his line but not nearly far enough out to get to the ball before the Miami forward. Just over 30 seconds into the match, Orlando City trailed. (Warning: sound off is better, so you can avoid Ray Hudson’s overblown, maniacal commentary.)

The Lions didn’t respond well to going behind, despite getting a ton of possession. Orlando looked unsettled, consistently did nothing with set piece opportunities, and broke down in transition when there were chances to get numbers forward. Wayward passes from Torres, Akindele, and Urso and a couple of poor touches from Michel prevented some quality chances from materializing. The Lions did set up some half chances but did nothing with them.

“It’s normal when you start the game in the first minute just conceding the goal and then obviously, the other team with energy and with this momentum that they have, they take advantage of that situation,” Pareja said. “And then from there, our energy was doubtful and we were not precise in the movements, and then we started losing confidence.”

Akindele tried to flick a pass from Smith on target but he didn’t quite pull it off, slowing the ball too much and sending it off target. Smith sent a blistering pass through the six in the 18th minute, but there was no way Akindele could get to it in time and Michel didn’t anticipate the pass quickly enough to get to the back post for the tap-in.

Higuain nearly got in behind in the 21st minute but Carlos did just enough to force him wide and Gallese chased him into the corner and knocked it out of play. Two minutes later, Campana got in for a first-time shot but just missed wide.

Moutinho smashed a shot well wide from the top of the area when a long throw fell to him. A failure to put shots on target was a problem Sunday at New York City FC and it definitely continued into tonight.

The hosts doubled the lead in the 38th minute on a weird transition as Akindele tried to force a pass into traffic. Miami came the other way and Schlegel got caught pressing high, giving the Herons a 2-on-1 break. Ariel Lassiter crossed in early to Higuain and his first touch was a shot past Gallese to make it 2-0.

Akindele ‘s headed flick went just over the bar in the 43rd minute off a corner kick cross, which was the closest the Lions came in the opening half. In the final minute of the half, a good cross found Urso but he swung and missed at it and kicked DeAndre Yedlin instead.

Orlando City held more possession in the half (61.9%-38.1%), had more shots (7-4) and corners (2-1), and passed more accurately (87.3%-78.3%) but Miami got more shots on target (2-0) and both of those went in. It was the second consecutive first half in which Orlando failed to get a single shot on frame and the Lions had only one on target in its last three halves.

The Lions brought on offensive-minded reinforcements to start the second half as Pareja withdrew Akindele, Michel, and Smith, sending Kara, Ivan Angulo, and Ruan onto the pitch. The changes made Orlando seem more dangerous immediately. Angulo got in the box, made a good move to bypass two defenders and took a shot. The Lions screamed for a handball but Victor Rivas did not give it and a check by the video assistant referee maintained the call on the field. The only replay shown on the broadcast was inconclusive.

But Rivas wasn’t opposed to giving Miami a penalty moments later when the Lions were bit again by a bad bounce. A ball in for Lassiter skipped up off the Miami forward’s foot and hit Ruan’s arm at close range. The fullback’s arm wasn’t extended unnaturally, nor was the play intentional, but the call was upheld again and Higuain scored on the ensuing penalty to make it 3-0 in the 53rd minute.

Three minutes later, Lassiter added to Orlando’s misery with a shot just inside the right post, making it 4-0. Don’t ask me why Carlos was trailing on the play, my stream froze a few seconds earlier and started back up right where this video begins.

Things got worse for Orlando City moments after the fourth goal when Carlos was booked, meaning he’ll miss Sunday’s regular-season finale against Columbus with a suspension for yellow card accumulation.

“It’s a little bit soon to answer it but we always have to think about what’s next,” Pareja said when asked if he had formulated a plan for the back line on Sunday yet with Carlos suspended and Robin Jansson injured. “(The booking) was probably the thing that frustrated me the most. It’s the lack of common sense from the referee. It’s unbelievable. Their responsibility is to protect the game and they need to have the context of the players. And it was a very, very, very unnecessary yellow card, and that’s what disappoints me. Not a good call for me, and it affects us not having Antonio, but we have to find a different answer and see how we can set out that back four. Somebody needs to do the job.”

Kara spoiled Miami’s shutout bid in the 71st minute, taking a pass from Torres at the top of the box, then turning and firing a well-placed shot just inside the left post. It was the big Austrian’s 11th goal of the season.

Ruan had a chance to set up Kara for another moments later. With Kara running free to his left, Ruan tried to chip a pass across to him over Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender. Unfortunately, he didn’t quite get the pass high enough and Callender caught it to prevent the easy header at the back post.

Orlando squandered a late series of corner kicks and Ruan got deep into the box but sent a pass behind both of his teammates crashing the net and that was basically the end.

As a product of chasing the game for all but a few seconds of the match, Orlando finished with more possession (60%-40%), shots (16-6), corners (8-1), and passing accuracy (89.1%-83.4%), but Miami got more shots on target (4-1). Every shot on target in the match ended up in the net. The Lions now have one shot on target in each of the last two matches, which is just two on 29 attempts.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Urso said of the lack of precision. “We had good passing, we had good combinations, but like Oscar told us we have to get more confidence in front of the target and to shoot well. I think we have to be more calm in front of the goal, but no excuses for us.”

“We’re going to leave it there, we’re going to make our corrections,” Pareja said. “We’ve got to move on. This is a quick turnaround. We have a possibility at home that nobody gave us. We fought for that one during the season and this opportunity belongs to us. We’ll see. If we don’t beat Columbus then maybe we didn’t deserve to be in the playoffs, but certainly we have a great opportunity at home to get our qualification.”

The Lions have a knockout game in the final match of the regular season on Sunday, when the Columbus Crew visit Exploria Stadium. A draw won’t be good enough unless Cincinnati somehow loses at D.C. United.

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Orlando City

Orlando City, Head Coach Oscar Pareja Mutually Agree to Part Ways

Just three matches into the 2026 season, the club is going to try to find someone else to lead a team with a makeshift back line.

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16 hours ago

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March 11, 2026

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Image of Oscar Pareja saluting the fans
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

The Oscar Pareja era in Orlando City — the club’s most successful period since joining Major League Soccer — is over. The club announced today that it has “mutually agreed” to part ways with the veteran coach who has compiled by far the most wins of anyone in team history. While the Lions are off to their worst start in club history, the 2026 MLS season is only three weeks old and Pareja has had to field a team with one of the worst back lines in the league while down a Designated Player — not exactly a recipe for success.

Assistant Coach and former OCB manager Martin Perelman will lead the team in the interim.

“I want to thank Oscar for the dedication, leadership and professionalism he brought to our club,” Orlando City General Manager and Sporting Director Ricardo Moreira said in a club press release. “He delivered one of the most significant moments in Orlando City’s history with the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and helped establish the competitive foundation that has propelled us forward, highlighted by our active club-record run of six straight playoffs appearances, which is currently the longest streak in MLS. At the same time, we believe this is the right moment to take the club in a new direction as we look to the next phase of our growth and ambitions. We are grateful for everything Oscar has contributed and wish him nothing but success in the next chapter of his career.”

The club hired Pareja as its fourth full-time MLS head coach on Dec. 4, 2019, succeeding James O’Connor. Pareja compiled a record of 103-69-65 in 237 games at the helm across all competitions, and if our numbers look different from other places, we are not counting shootout losses as losses from Leagues Cup league phase games (because that’s dumb) or the matches for which Pareja was suspended, like the 2025 home match against the Chicago Fire in which Diego Torres — who leaves Orlando City along with Pareja — led the team. Pareja led the team to the 2022 U.S. Open Cup championship, the club’s first major trophy, and had led the Lions to the postseason in every year he’s been in charge. He also led Orlando to the MLS is Back Tournament final as well as the final four of the 2025 Leagues Cup.

City extended Pareja’s contract through 2028 just 11 months ago, and although the club faded down the stretch in 2025, the insane amount of travel for the Leagues Cup knockout stages and heavy legs from the club’s thinner roster areas a year ago forced a lot of extra miles onto some of the team’s most important legs — Marco Pasalic, Martin Ojeda, Jansson, Eduard Atuesta, and others. Pareja, for his part, never looked for excuses or threw his players under the bus in the same way that former OCSC coach Jason Kreis did during his tenure. He accepted the blame for every on-field mistake, whether he could control it or not, including his club’s performance after Maxime Crepeau’s ridiculous red card on Saturday at New York City FC.

“I want to express my sincere gratitude to the club’s players, staff, and supporters for the trust they’ve given me over these last several years,” Pareja said in the club’s release. “Together, we shared moments that will stay with me forever. While it is the right time for both me and the club to move in new directions, I leave proud of the work we did and with deep appreciation for the people who made it possible. Orlando will always have a special place in my heart, and I wish the team nothing but success in the future.”

“Oscar’s impact on our club and community will always be remembered,” said Mark Wilf, Orlando City SC Owner & Chairman. “He helped elevate Orlando City on and off the field, guided us through milestones that reshaped our trajectory and represented our crest with integrity. We are grateful for all he has given to the organization.”

Perelman coached OCB in 2022 and 2023 before joining the MLS side’s staff as an assistant coach in 2024. OCB is also losing its coach at this time, as Perelman’s replacement with the reserve squad, Manuel Goldberg, will become an interim assistant with the MLS side. Goldberg served as Perelman’s assistant with OCB for two seasons before replacing him. Julian Vergara will be OCB’s interim manager.

What It Means for Orlando City

Reading Moreira’s statement, it’s hard to imagine what direction the club is choosing to go from here. Without significant upgrades to the roster, this does not look like a playoff team in a highly competitive MLS Eastern Conference. The back line, made up of an underachieving David Brekalo, rookie Nolan Miller (splitting time with teenaged new arrival Iago), the unconvincing Adrian Marin, and the recently arrived Griffin Dorsey, has been abysmal to start the year in the absence of injured captain Robin Jansson. While time may help that group gel to some extent, it is not a defensive group that opposing teams will lose sleep over.

The roster has suffered heavy losses along the back line, losing starters Rodrigo Schlegel and Alex Freeman as well as key backups Kyle Smith and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Additionally, the club moved on from starting goalkeeper Pedro Gallese. While upgrades were needed across the board, it’s hard to argue that any of those positions have even maintained their previous quality, let alone improved. Marin at least has a chance to provide an improvement at left back, as he’s finally been through a full camp and had time to integrate. It hasn’t helped that he picked up a knock early in this season.

Orlando City appears content with simply trying a new voice, and there’s nothing wrong with that (Pareja was the second-longest tenured coach in MLS behind Seattle’s Brian Schmetzer), but any new voice will need a back line, a goalkeeper who doesn’t get unnecessarily ejected, and a third Designated Player. That voice will also need the MLS U22 Initiative kids to grow up quickly, because they represent the depth of a team that sorely needs some. It’s clear that the club believes the roster is good enough for the moment, but three games have shown that it is not, unless Pareja was making things more complicated than the players could handle.

Pareja has been a good soldier for the club his entire tenure. He has routinely put every failure on his own shoulders and has given all credit for successes to his players and the organization. The Colombian has stoically led Orlando City to its highest highs. It is hard to imagine a way forward this season regardless of who takes over unless some changes come to the roster.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/11/26

Maxime Crepeau fined, NWSL season approaches, USMNT news and notes, and more.

Published

23 hours ago

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March 11, 2026

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Image of Robin Jansson accepting a pass in a match against Nashville SC.
Image courtesy of Orlando City / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. The Orlando Pride are finally back in action this weekend, and we’ll get to watch it — unlike the preseason. It’s a good thing too, since Orlando City has been hard to watch. Speaking of the Pride, you won’t want to miss this week’s episode of SkoPurp Soccer: An Orlando Pride Podcast and our special guest. Until then, let’s get to the links.

Trio of Missing Lions

Crepeau, Jansson & Gerbet sounds like a law firm specializing in personal injury cases. That is definitely the case when it comes to Robin Jansson and Joran Gerbet, as the two work back from their respective injuries. Fortunately, there’s some progress on that. Both are training off to the side. Hopefully, their recoveries go well and they can return to help Orlando City.

Some #OrlandoCity developments over on the injury front — Robin Jansson (fractured foot) and Joran Gerbet (ACL) seen getting some more involvement on the ball. Told they’re still in recovery.

— Mike Gramajo (@mikegramajo.bsky.social) 2026-03-10T14:04:35.223Z

Maxime Crepeau will be absent from Orlando City’s next match thanks to the red card he earned against New York City FC Saturday afternoon. He was also fined by the MLS Disciplinary Committee for not leaving the field in a timely manner. I’d like to say he had a good argument against the sending off, but I can’t, and I’m not the only one.

NWSL Season Approaches

We are days away from the Orlando Pride season opener — and the rest of the NWSL will kick off over the weekend as well. That means it’s time for speculation about the various clubs and how ambitious each was based on its off-season moves. The Pride were not very ambitious, but perhaps the club did not need to be. Despite the supposed lack of ambition, the Pride are still a team to watch, even if others don’t consider the club “must watch” tv.

U.S. National Team Player News & Notes

The fact that there are USMNT players competing in the Champions League is great news in a World Cup year. Johnny Cardoso’s Atletico Madrid beat Tottenham Hotspur 5-2 with some help from a guy name Antoine Griezmann. Mauricio Pochettino said he also respects MLS players like Sebastian Berhalter. Speaking of Berhalters, former USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter said the USMNT is poised for success in the World Cup. We know the team won’t be wearing the denim kit despite Adidas bringing it back.

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That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for the Orlando City and Orlando Pride matches this weekend. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/10/26

MLS hands out two lifetime bans for gambling, Americans in midweek action, Sergino Dest injury update, and more.

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2 days ago

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March 10, 2026

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Image of Duncan McGuire reacting to his goal against Toronto FC.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Good morning, everyone. It was a mixed bag for Orlando’s soccer teams over the weekend, as Orlando City took a brutal beating on the baseball diamond at Yankee Stadium, while Orlando City B knocked off Chicago Fire II at home to pick up its first win of the young season. We’ve got a busy week ahead of us, as the Young Lions take on Carolina Core on Saturday afternoon, OCSC is at home against CF Montreal later that night, and the Orlando Pride kick off the season against the Seattle Reign on Sunday. We’ve got a lot to discuss this morning, so let’s get into the links.

MLS Bans Two Players for Life

Major League Soccer has given lifetime bans to Derrick Jones and Yaw Yeboah for violating the league’s gambling policy. The pair “engaged in extensive gambling on soccer,” with the kicker being that they placed bets on games in which their own teams were involved. The bets took place during the 2024 and 2025 seasons, with a particular instance highlighted in the Columbus Crew’s 3-2 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Oct. 19, 2024, in which both players bet on Jones to be given a yellow card, which he received in the 35th minute. Neither player is currently under contract with an MLS team.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans who will be playing matches during the working week, and the knockout rounds of continental competitions are once again in the spotlight. Things get going this afternoon when Yunus Musah and Atalanta host Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League, while Johnny Cardoso and Atletico Madrid play Tottenham Hotspur in the same competition. Wednesday has Malik Tillman and Bayer Leverkusen playing Arsenal in the UCL, while former Lion Daryl Dike and West Brom take on Southampton in the Championship. Thursday sees Tanner Tessman and Lyon travel to play Celta Vigo in the Europa League, while Chris Richards and Crystal Palace take on AEK Larnaca in the Conference League. Things conclude on Friday when Alex Freeman will hope to break a streak of four games as an unused substitute when Villarreal travels to Deportivo Alaves in La Liga.

Sergino Dest Injury Update

Sergino Dest went down in the 55th minute of PSV Eindhoven’s league win over AZ Alkmaar on Saturday and had to be helped off the field while putting minimal weight on his left leg. PSV coach Peter Bosz confirmed that it was a hamstring injury, and while the club has made no official statement about how much time he might miss, the fullback said in a statement that he is confident he’ll be fit again near the end of the season. His injury means that the right back situation for the USMNT is suddenly a more interesting one, as Freeman hasn’t been playing much with Villarreal, and guys like Joe Scally will be keen on seizing any potential opportunities.

Iranian Soccer Players Granted Asylum

Five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team have been granted humanitarian visas to remain in Australia after they escaped from the people assigned to keep an eye on them following the team’s final match in the Women’s Asian Cup. The group, which includes team captain Zahra Ghanbari, had been in contact with Australian officials for a number of days, who made it clear that the remaining members of the team would also be welcomed by the country if they chose to stay. The five players that chose to leave are now protected by the Australian Federal Police and consented to have their names and faces published. It is not currently known when the remainder of the team is set to depart from Australia.

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  • Marco Pasalic has been called up to represent Croatia.

Getting ready for the World Cup 🇭🇷Marco has been called up by Croatia for World Cup preparation matches against Colombia and Brazil in Orlando on March 27 and 31 👏

— Orlando City SC (@orlandocitysc.com) 2026-03-09T18:57:23.294Z

That’s all I’ve got for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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