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

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8 months ago

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It’s never easy with this team, is it? Orlando City SC is back in the MLS Cup playoffs for the third straight year, but had to do it the hard way in a 2-1 win over the Columbus Crew at Exploria Stadium on Decision Day. Junior Urso and Facundo Torres nullified Derrick Etienne’s goal, and the Lions will now face CF Montreal in the first round of the playoffs.

Here’s how I graded Orlando’s players in Sunday’s heart-pounding win.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 8 (MotM) — El Pulpo rebounded from the midweek loss to Miami in style. He made five saves on the day, several of which were seriously impressive. His first-half stonewalling of Cucho Hernandez nearly defied belief, as the Peruvian international got down low to his right to tip the ball onto the post and preserve a draw that wouldn’t last. It didn’t stop there though, as he made two late, great saves on Lucas Zelarayan to preserve Orlando’s slim lead and help put the Lions through to the playoffs. Gallese was successful on four of his seven long balls and completed 83.3% of his 18 passes. He takes the plaudits in this one.

D, Kyle Smith, 6 — Orlando Head Coach Oscar Pareja pulled a fast one in this game. It was expected that Smith would partner with Rodrigo Schlegel in central defense, only for him to be deployed at left back while Joao Moutinho was slotted inside. Despite the surprise, Smith had a solid game, notching two tackles, a clearance, a cross, and two accurate long balls while passing at a 77.8% clip. He also played roughly the last 20 minutes on a yellow card and was smart to avoid picking up another.

D, Joao Moutinho, 6 — I was originally quite fearful when I saw Moutinho at center back, as I had doubts about his ability to deal with some of the more physical aspects the position demands. As it turns out, I had no cause for concern, as he put in a steady performance in an unfamiliar role. His passing rate of 93.8% was excellent, and he also completed two long balls. Moutinho didn’t have any defensive stats, but he did have a shot that was off target. It will be nice to have Antonio Carlos back next week, but Joao did what he needed to do when it counted.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 7 — Schlegel put in a great showing against Columbus. He racked up three tackles, two interceptions, three clearances, a shot, a key pass, and drew a foul all while passing with 87.8% accuracy. His header back across the box late led to the Benji Michel shot that drew a penalty. The main black mark on his day was his positioning on Etienne’s goal, as he got sucked out too far from where he should have been by Lucas Zelarayan — leaving room behind him for Derrick Etienne to run into. Other than that, he was an immense figure in the back line in the most important league game of the season.

D, Ruan, 5.5— Ruan had a decent defensive showing in this one. He made three tackles and a clearance, and also won three fouls while passing at an 83.3% accuracy. He should have been quicker to tuck in and protect the space Schlegel vacated on Columbus’ goal, failing to track Etienne’s run. He also left Etienne too much space on the flank early for a cross that nearly gave Hernandez an early headed goal. Ruan couldn’t quite get going on the offensive side of things, and he’ll need to be more involved on that end if Orlando is going to advance past Montreal in the first round of the playoffs.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6.5 — Araujo was his usual industrious self in the win. He did a ton of running in the Lions’ midfield and provided cover for when Mauricio Pereyra and Joao Moutinho ventured further forward. He chipped in with a tackle, an interception, two clearances, a block, a key pass, and a long ball. He also passed with 86.4% accuracy and did well to play over half an hour on a yellow card.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 7.5 — Like most of Orlando’s offensive players on the day, it took Pereyra time to get involved in the game. Once he did though, he was effective and finished with two key passes, an assist on Junior Urso’s goal, a cross, a long ball, a tackle, a clearance, and three fouls drawn. His passing accuracy of 83% on the day wasn’t his best, but he did well to bring the ball back out to find Urso with a good pass to his outside foot in order to give the Bear the chance to turn his man and get off a shot.

MF, Facundo Torres, 7 — Once Torres found his way into the game, he left his mark. He didn’t have a ton of shooting opportunities but helped affect the game with his passing, which he did with 93.3% accuracy while connecting on a cross and a key pass. He also had two shots, was fouled once, and most importantly, converted the penalty kick which sent Orlando City to the postseason for the third straight year. There was never really any doubt about the result when he set the ball down, and while goalkeepers seem to have figured out that he likes shooting to his right, when he puts the ball as far in the corner with as much power as he does, it’s tough to stop.

MF, Junior Urso, 7 — Urso had a rocky start to life in the first half. Several bad touches and misplaced passes meant there were concerns about the Bear having a bad game when Orlando could least afford it, but he came up big when he was needed most in the second half. He did ever so well to shield and turn his defender, shape his body and pick out the far side-netting to give Orlando a foothold in the game, and things kicked off from there. He finished with two tackles, two shots, two long balls, and 48 passes at a 95.8% passing accuracy.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 6 — Angulo started on the left wing, but had one of his quieter games in purple against the Crew. He wasn’t bad, as he recorded two key passes and 31 passes at an 84% accuracy with two key passes, while also notching two tackles and an interception. But he wasn’t quite as involved in the attack as Orlando City needed for large parts of the game, although the same can be said about many of his fellow attacking players. Not a bad performance, but not his best either. He also picked up a weird yellow card when the refereeing crew botched his substitution off the field.

F, Ercan Kara, 5.5 — Kara was also quiet during this one, and struggled to get involved with play. Part of that can be attributed to Columbus being content to sit back when it didn’t have the ball, making it difficult for Orlando to get the ball up to the big Austrian. Part of it can also be attributed to his teammates not providing service. Still, one clearance, one block, two fouls drawn, and a 62.5% success rate on eight passes is likely less than what Orlando was hoping from him on the day. His 14 touches weren’t many, but his replacements combined for just four over the last 20 minutes, so regardless of who played up top, there weren’t many connections being made.

Substitutes

F/MF, Benji Michel (74’), 6 — Benji didn’t do a ton to light up the stat sheet, as he finished the game with a yellow card, three touches, one shot, and one completed pass for 100% accuracy. With that being said, the shot he did take hit Milos Degenek’s outstretched hand, giving OCSC the penalty kick that sent the team to the postseason. Right place, right time, and it was a shot that would have been on target had it not hit Degenek on the way through.

F, Tesho Akindele (89’), N/A — Akindele was brought on as a late sub with time running down. His only stats recorded were being caught offside once and misfiring on the lone pass he attempted, but he ran hard and pressed the Columbus back line while the Crew chased an equalizer.

MF, Andres Perea (89’), N/A — Another late substitution, Perea didn’t record any stats during his time on the field, but helped provide energy and fresh legs to get the game over the line.

MF, Wilder Cartagena (89’), N/A — There was a mess of miscommunication on the officiating crew’s part that occurred while Orlando tried to get Cartagena on the field. Once he was there, he connected on his lone pass and also picked up a yellow card while helping see out the game.

D. Mikey Halliday (95’), N/A — Halliday came on as the final time-killing substitute from Pareja and stayed mistake free as Orlando booked its third-straight postseason berth.

That’s how I saw the performances in yet another game with late heroics from the Cardiac Cats. It wasn’t perfect, and the first half was almost universally ugly and devoid of the necessary urgency, but the Lions managed to find the required gear and get themselves into the postseason yet again. Be sure to have your say on everyone’s performances and vote for your Man of the Match below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Pedro Gallese26
Rodrigo Schlegel4
Junior Urso10
Mauricio Pereyra1
Facundo Torres8
Other (Tell us who in the comments)3

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Atlanta United: Final Score 1-1 as Lions Concede Late Equalizer Again

The Lions are unbeaten in four games but for the second time in a row they allow a late equalizer at home.

Published

5 hours ago

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May 27, 2023

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City scored first but allowed a late tying goal for the second straight home match in a 1-1 draw against Atlanta United in front of an announced crowd of 20,127 at Exploria Stadium. Kyle Smith gave the lead to Orlando City (5-4-5, 20 points) in the first half, but a late recycled set piece allowed Tyler Wolff to tie the match in the final minutes, although the equalizer for Atlanta (6-4-5, 23 points) did not come quite as late as New york City FC’s did last week.

The late goal conceded prevented Orlando from catching the Five Stripes in the standings. Orlando is now 3-8-7 in the all-time series against Atlanta in league play and 2-5-3 at home.

“I have to say that we played well today,” a visibly frustrated Oscar Pareja said after the match. “And I want to congratulate that group of players that pushed that match and that energy. That’s the team that we want to see. The other part is the frustration on giving up another goal at the end and not walking (away) with three points at the end. But we want to see that team more often and we want to see that energy more often. We want to see that Orlando City.”

Pareja’s lineup included Pedro Gallese in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena played central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres, with Ercan Kara up top.

The first 20 minutes were like a heavyweight prize fight with the teams sparring but not landing anything. The Lions were controlling the midfield by having Smith move up the field as Ruan used to do, only instead of staying wide, he often tucked inside and left space for Torres to be the wide man on the right. It helped Orlando keep the ball and overload the midfield throughout the first half.

In the early going, Orlando swung a few crosses through the area but nothing came of them.

The first Atlanta foray into Orlando’s end concluded with Smith knocking the ball out for a corner at the 20-minute mark. Four minutes later, Torres cut inside and fizzed a shot just over Brad Guzan’s crossbar.

Carlos conceded a free kick on the next Atlanta attack in the 27th minute and was booked, even though earlier Angulo was pulled back with no attempt to play the ball as he was breaking in behind and no card was given. Juan Jose Purata headed wide on the free kick. A minute later, Atlanta got a fortunate bounce off a deflection and broke in transition. Jansson cut out the final ball with a well-timed clearance.

The Lions broke through in the 30th minute. A great hustle play by Angulo got him down the left and at the edge of the box he cut the ball back to Pereyra at the top of the area. The captain sent the ball in for Kara, who slid it to Torres. El Cuervo’s stab at the ball was blocked out to the right side, where Smith swooped in and finished to make it 1-0 with his first goal of the season.

“Ivan did really well to shed his defender on the left side,” Smith said of the lead-up to his goal. “He went down the line, I believe he got a cross off. The ball was bouncing around. It bounced out perfectly for me and I just tried to keep the ball low and it went through his legs, I believe.”

“Kyle is a very smart soccer player,” Pareja said. “In the movements that we tried today, we tried to overload them in the middle with someone who is not hesitating to ask for that ball. That way we could open Facu too.”

Purata headed off frame again on a 35th-minute set piece for Atlanta. The Lions then won a few corners but nothing came of them except a blocked Wilder Cartagena shot at the top of the box.

The Lions wanted a penalty in the 40th minute as Torres played a ball in behind for Araujo. The Uruguayan raced toward the ball and would have been behind the defense on the right side but Andrew Gutman, who was marking Torres, suddenly decided to take two steps backward and block Araujo’s path, leading to a big collision in the box. Allen Chapman saw no foul there.

Kara had a chance on a long throw-in but Guzan made a good point-blank save to keep the lead at one goal in the 45th minute.

Carlos cleared a late Atlanta corner and that was it for the half.

Orlando City held slightly more possession in the opening period (51.7%-48.3%), was the more accurate passing team (86.4%-85.2%), and had more shots (6-3) and shots on target (3-0). Both teams won three corners.

The second half settled into a bit more of a choppy affair. Both teams took turns possessing but not fashioning much danger until a chance by Orlando in the 51st minute. Smith took a layoff from Torres on the right and blasted a shot that was blocked in front. The ball deflected to Pereyra, who flicked it toward goal but it was right at Guzan.

Most of the rest of the half was played between the boxes and some hopeful attacks mostly broke down without any danger. Torres was nearly played in behind by Kara in the 63rd minute but the pass was slightly behind him and ended up getting knocked away.

The Lions got an injection of life from Martin Ojeda coming into the game and he smashed a shot on goal in the 78th. That shot was headed just inside the left post but Guzan robbed him with a diving save, the way he usually does against Orlando.

The Lions were nearly in two minutes later but Ojeda’s cross was deflected by a defender and trickled just wide for a corner. Araujo’s blast from distance in the 84th was just inches over the bar.

Atlanta then struck for the equalizer off a set piece in the 86th minute. A corner kick was cleared out of the area but fired back in on goal from distance by Matheus Rossetto. Gallese made a diving save on it, but the rebound ended up with Wolff, who roofed the ball in off Smith, giving Gallese no chance to save it and making it 1-1.

“We cleared the ball and then their player got a touch and a shot off,” Smith said. “Pedro made a save and it went right to their player, and then he shot it and deflected it off me into the goal.”

Atlanta had the better of the play in the final minutes and injury time. Machop Chol had an open look from the top of the area but missed the net badly and nothing came of a late Atlanta corner. That was it and the visitors had again stolen late points in Exploria Stadium.

Despite the draw feeling like a loss because of when the last goal was scored, the Lions played well against their nemeses from the Peach State, shutting down high-scoring forwards Thiago Almada and Georgios Giakoumakis. The two combined for just one shot attempt and it wasn’t on target.

“I think the team as a whole did a lot of great work today,” Cartagena said. “I think we were stretched a bit. They tried to stretch us out, and we were able to really collect ourselves and play as a unit and defend well. We ran a lot, we pressed a lot, we were able to recover a lot of balls forward into the field, and I think we did great, and like I said, we’ve got great sensations by the way that we played the game today.”

Orlando City held slightly more possession (50.3%-49.7%), and had more corners (8-6), shots (14-11) and shots on target (6-3). Guzan’s four saves were the difference, and particularly two of them — the one on Kara on the long throw and the denial of Ojeda’s blast.

“To our fans, that support deserved much more, and we wanted to walk off not with frustration but with joy,” Pareja said. “But I’m proud of this group, seriously. I think they played well.”

“We need to take the positives away. We played well tonight,” Smith said. “We need to just keep being consistent in our performances so we can get results home and away from home.”

The Lions travel to the New York metropolitan area next to take on the New York Red Bulls next Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Atlanta United: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions face a second straight rivalry match with Atlanta United coming to town for another Southeast showdown.

Published

17 hours ago

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May 27, 2023

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Welcome to your match thread for a Saturday evening matchup between Orlando City (5-4-4, 19 points) and Atlanta United (6-4-4, 22 points) at Exploria Stadium (7:30 p.m., MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+). It’s the first of two scheduled meetings between the two MLS Eastern Conference rivals this season and the only one in Orlando. The Lions will make the return trip to Mercedez-Benz Stadium on July 15.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of tonight’s match.

History

The Lions are 3-8-6 in the all-time series against Atlanta in league play and 2-5-2 at home (2-6-2 in all competitions).

The most recent match in the series came last Sept. 14 at Exploria Stadium, with the Five Stripes winning 1-0 on a Thiago Almada goal despite the Lions out-shooting Atlanta, 20-10. The sides played to a 1-1 draw in their first meeting of last year on July 22 in Atlanta. Mauricio Pereyra staked the Lions to an early 1-0 lead on a beautiful free kick. Juan Jose Purata equalized in the 71st minute, but Atlanta bombarded Orlando the majority of the game and completely controlled the midfield, out-shooting the Lions 18-3 in the match.

Orlando had a six-match unbeaten streak in the series (3-0-3) snapped on Sept. 10, 2021, as the Five Stripes won 3-0 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. George Campbell and Ezequiel Barco scored for Atlanta, sandwiched around a Daryl Dike own goal to hand Gonzalo Pineda his first win as manager for United.

The second of three 2021 meetings took place July 30 at Exploria Stadium, with the Five Stripes taking the lead twice on goals by Josef Martinez and Marcelino Moreno, but the Lions not only fought back twice on strikes by Kyle Smith and Silvester van der Water, but Nani scored a late game winner by heading in VDW’s cross in Orlando City’s 3-2 win. The first meeting of that season between the two rivals came on opening day — April 17 — and they played to a 0-0 draw. It was an evenly matched game, with each team firing 11 shots and getting three on frame.

The final meeting of 2020 came on Oct. 28, when Orlando City ran away with a 4-1 win over Atlanta at Exploria Stadium. Dike, Chris Mueller, Tesho Akindele, and Matheus Aias — his first in MLS — scored the goals for the Lions, with Cubo Torres preventing a shutout with a late goal for the visitors. Prior to that, the teams met in Atlanta on Oct. 7, 2020 and played to a 0-0 draw. Robinho and Nani each hit the woodwork and Brad Guzan stood on his head to prevent Orlando from taking a deserved three points in that one, while Brian Rowe held down the fort at the other end to earn a shutout in Pedro Gallese’s absence.

Back on Sept. 5, 2020, a late, unforced turnover by Kamal Miller led to Adam Jahn’s 92nd-minute tying goal that offset a Benji Michel goal in a 1-1 draw at Exploria Stadium. Orlando City finally got on the board in the series against Atlanta United with a 3-1 win on the road on Aug. 29, 2020. Junior Urso, Mueller, and Nani supplied the offense to more than counter a Brooks Lennon headed goal. That three-goal explosion snapped a three-match scoreless streak against the Five Stripes for Orlando.

Orlando City created an incredible 17 scoring chances on Aug. 23, 2019, yet finished none of them in a 1-0 home loss. Martinez scored the game’s only goal in the second half. Only 17 days earlier at Exploria Stadium, Orlando also failed to score and lost 2-0 to Atlanta, getting bounced from the U.S. Open Cup semifinals. On Mother’s Day of 2019, Atlanta United claimed a 1-0 win at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Pity Martinez scored the goal.

Atlanta won at the building then known as Orlando City Stadium on Aug. 24, 2018 by a 2-1 final score. Leandro Gonzalez Pirez bundled home a rebound off Joe Bendik, who misplayed Barco’s free kick to open the scoring just 21 minutes in. Scott Sutter tied the game just before the half, but Josef Martinez broke the deadlock in the second half, with only 16 minutes remaining in normal time.

Atlanta easily claimed the June 30, 2018 meeting at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, 4-0. Josef Martinez and Barco each scored a goal and Miguel Almiron added a brace. Orlando lost the first matchup of 2018, 2-1, on May 13. An early penalty on a Cristian Higuita foul gave the visitors a leg up on a Josef Martinez goal from the spot and Barco doubled the lead before halftime. Justin Meram scored his first goal as a Lion to pull one back, but Orlando could get no closer. The unfortunate ending included a shower of debris coming out of the stands due to dissatisfaction with referee Alan Kelly’s decisions that night.

Hector Villalba’s two late goals in the first two meetings turned what could have been an Orlando draw and a win into a loss and a draw. The two teams kicked off their series with Orlando suffering a late 1-0 loss at home on July 21, 2017. Villalba found the net late. Villalba then scored a stoppage-time tally to rescue a 1-1 draw for Atlanta in the second meeting on July 29, 2017. Kaká scored one of his best goals as a Lion in that match to provide Orlando’s lone score.

Orlando City became the first visiting team to take any points out of Mercedes-Benz Stadium with a 3-3 draw in Atlanta that September. Dom Dwyer scored his first brace as a Lion (in MLS, anyway) and also assisted on Cyle Larin’s goal. Josef Martinez’s hat trick spoiled Orlando’s bid to take all three points.

Overview

Orlando is coming off a complete 3-1 road win at Inter Miami last Saturday and the Lions are on a modest, three-game unbeaten streak (1-0-2). That Miami match represented the first time the Lions have scored more than twice in a game this season. Martin Ojeda and Ercan Kara each posted a goal and an assist in the game. Orlando City, which is just 2-3-2 at home in 2023, has managed a draw and a win in its last two matches at Exploria Stadium. An 89th-minute equalizer prevented the Lions from carrying two straight home wins into this game.

Atlanta United is 1-3-3 on the road this season, including a 3-3 draw last week. The Five Stripes are 0-3-3 in their last six away from Mercedes-Benz Stadium. They appeared to be headed for a win last weekend before an 89th-minute strike by Georgios Koutsias allowed Chicago to level the score as both teams played with 10 men.

The names may change but Atlanta doesn’t stop playing aggressively with the ball. The Georgia club leads MLS in goals (28) this season but it’s a high-risk, high-reward style, as the Five Stripes have also conceded 24 goals, which is one fewer allowed than league-worst Charlotte’s 25. United’s tendency to overrun Orlando’s midfield has been problematic in the all-time series, so the Lions are going to need a big game from the central midfield and wingers and other attacking players will need to track back and to win balls back quickly to keep Atlanta from having counterattacking opportunities.

Greek forward Giorgos Giakoumakis has hit the ground running as Atlanta’s latest DP striker, scoring eight times already to lead the team. Almada is just behind with six goals and has eight assists to go along with them. Lennon is a talented attacker as well and has provided six assists this season. Purata gives the team a threat on set pieces.

“Atlanta is a team as well that is looking for their best form like many other teams in the league, including us,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said. “They have guys up front that are crafty and some others with speed that we need to control. Similar to other Atlanta teams [in the past], they like to create sequences. We have contributed all of those things already to our game plan and we’ll be ready.”

Orlando City will be without Gaston Gonzalez (thigh), Luca Petrasso (thigh), and Michael Halliday (international duty), with Abdi Salim (knee) listed as questionable. Atlanta will be without Ozzie Alonso (ACL), Erik Lopez (ankle), Amar Sejdic (calf), Caleb Wiley (international duty), Luiz Araújo (red card suspension), and Franco Ibarra (yellow card accumulation). Brad Guzan (MCL) and Santiago Sosa (ankle) are listed as questionable.

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.

Defenders: Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, Kyle Smith.

Defensive Midfielders: Cesar Araujo, Wilder Cartagena.

Attacking Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, Facundo Torres.

Forward: Ercan Kara.

Bench: Mason Stajduhar, Thomas Williams, Rodrigo Schlegel, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, Felipe, Martin Ojeda, Shak Mohammed, Ramiro Enrique, Duncan McGuire.

Atlanta United (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Brad Guzan.

Defenders: Andrew Gutman, Miles Robinson, Juan Jose Purata, Ronald Hernandez.

Defensive Midfielders: Santiago Sosa, Matheus Rossetto.

Attacking Midfielders: Derrick Etienne, Thiago Almada, Brooks Lennon.

Forward: Giorgos Giakoumakis.

Bench: Quentin Westberg, Luis Abram, Aiden McFadden, Noah Cobb, Ajani Fortune, Tyler Wolff, Machop Chol, Miguel Berry.

Referees

REF: Allen Chapman.
AR1: Brian Dunn.
AR2: Tom Felice.
4TH: Justin Howard.
VAR: Pierre-Luc Lauziere.
AVAR: Robert Schaap.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Exploria Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Live Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+.

Radio:  Real Radio 104.1 FM (English), Accion 97.9 and 810 AM (Spanish).

Twitter: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow along at @TheManeLand, as well as Orlando City’s official Twitter feed (@OrlandoCitySC).

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Lion Links: 5/27/23

U-20 USMNT victorious, trouble continues for Toronto FC, Ivan Toney’s suspension reduced, and more.

Published

21 hours ago

on

May 27, 2023

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Happy weekend, everyone! Today is a very busy day, as Orlando City hosts Atlanta United at 7:30 p.m. at Exploria Stadium, while the Orlando Pride will travel to face the Chicago Red Stars at 8 p.m. There’s a lot to talk about today, so let’s jump into it.

U-20 USMNT Beats Slovakia

The U-20 USMNT was victorious in its final game of the Under-20 World Cup group stage. Orlando City’s Michael Halliday got his second start of the tournament, as the baby Yanks took out Slovakia, 2-0, to finish the group stage undefeated and finish top of Group B courtesy of a perfect three wins from three. Cade Cowell scored the opening goal and Niko Tsakiris got the second late in stoppage time to hand the Americans a third straight victory. They will advance to the Round of 16 and play a third place team from Group A, C, or D, with the exact opponent being determined once the other groups have concluded play.

Toronto FC Discord

Following comments from Frederico Bernardeschi and later Bob Bradley earlier this week, the drama with Toronto FC has continued with Bradley leaving Bernardeschi out of the squad for this weekend’s match. The Italian was also absent from training on Friday, and Bradley emphasized that the decision was not a disciplinary one. According to a report from The Athletic, tensions at the club have been increasing for some time, with Bernardeschi, Lorenzo Insigne, Bradley and son Michael Bradley at the heart of things (paywall). Things haven’t been good on the field for Toronto either, as the club has just three wins in 15 matches and hasn’t scored in more than 400 minutes.

Ivan Toney’s Suspension Reduced

The English Football Association has reduced Ivan Toney’s ban from playing from 15 months to eight, following him being diagnosed as a gambling addict. The FA took into account both his plea of guilt and his diagnosis as an addict when making the decision. It has also emerged that Toney placed 13 bets on teams he was playing on to lose during a period of roughly a year and a half, although he did not play in any of the 13 matches.

Swansea Reportedly Interested in Gregg Berhalter

Welsh club Swansea City is reportedly interested in hiring Gregg Berhalter to fill the team’s upcoming managerial vacancy. Current boss Russell Martin is close to joining Southampton, and the Championship club’s American ownership is reportedly interested in Berhalter, along with several other names. Former Swansea manager Chris Davies and current Plymouth manager Steven Schumacher are also reportedly under consideration for the role. It would be very interesting if Swansea did decide to go that route, especially as the United States Men’s National Team has not yet named a new head coach, and recent reports suggested that Berhalter had not yet been eliminated from contention.

Free Kicks

  • Spend some time getting to know Ally Watt a little better before this weekend’s Orlando Pride match.
  • Former Lion Chris Mueller has had season-ending hip surgery.
  • Alexandre Pato has signed with Sao Paulo in his native Brazil, reuniting him with another former Lion in Sebas Mendez.

That’s everything I have for you today. Vamos Orlando!

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