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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. D.C. United: Final Score 1-1 as Lions Open Road Schedule with a Draw

The Lions finally got a goal in open play through Duncan McGuire but couldn’t hold the lead, settling for a draw at D.C. United.

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2 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

The good news is that Orlando City finally scored a goal from open play. The bad news is that the Lions finally conceded a goal on the season as they left Audi Field with a 1-1 draw against D.C. United. Rookie Duncan McGuire put Orlando City (1-0-2, 5 points) on the board in the second half, but an inch-perfect shot by Chris Durkin enabled United (1-1-1, 4 points) to claim a point.

“In the first half today, we didn’t look like us,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “I don’t blame the players. I just think that they did great trying to adjust. The intensity was good. We would like to play much better, obviously, but they’re always good (in terms of intensity and discipline).”

Pareja rotated his squad from Tuesday night’s match in Mexico. Pedro Gallese again started in goal but his defense was a three/five depending on whether Orlando had the ball or not. Rookie Abdi Salim, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Kyle Smith got the start, with Rafael Santos getting his first start at left wingback and Ivan Angulo playing wide right, with Wilder Cartagena and Mauricio Pereyra in central midfield. The attacking line featured Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Facundo Torres on the wings underneath McGuire, who got his first start up top.

As has been the case throughout this young season, the Lions provided little to no danger in the attack in the opening half, while Gallese bailed the team out multiple times to keep the game scoreless through the first 45 minutes.

The hosts started to cause trouble early when former Orlando fullback Ruan sent in a good cross (I know!) in the sixth minute. Gallese came off his line to get a hand to it. The ball fell to Theodore Ku-Dipietro, who had his shot blocked in front.

Orlando City’s first shot attempt came from Wilder Cartagena in the 17th minute. He was way outside the box and obviously not in as much space as he thought because he got his shot blocked and it didn’t even make it inside the penalty area.

Gallese made a couple of tame stops early but in the 28th minute, the ball ended up with Christian Benteke all alone in front of goal when Salim missed getting his head to a cross. Benteke’s shot was good but Gallese’s save was better.

In the 34th minute, Gallese robbed Ku-Dipietro with a big stop and then Benteke nodded off target on the recyle attempt.

The Lions nearly got their first quality look of the game in the 41st when Pereyra sent a ball in for Torres. The younger Uruguayan’s first touch was a bit heavy though, and Tyler Miller scrambled off his line to smother it. It was practically Miller’s only activity in the opening 45.

Gallese had no trouble collecting Pedro Santos’ shot from distance in the 42nd minute, taking it on the first hop. Benteke fired wide of goal off Miller’s long free kick deep in first-half stoppage time as D.C. continued to present threats to the Orlando City goal.

The Lions had maybe their best attacking movement of the half deep in stoppage time when Torres sent a headed pass in behind down the left. McGuire ran onto it but could only win a corner kick.

D.C. held wide margins in possession (57.2%-42.8%), passing accuracy (85.2%-77.1%), shots (8-3), and shots on target (4-0). Orlando City had the first half’s only corner kick attempt deep in stoppage time but provided no threat from it.

If not for Gallese, the score could have been much different at the break.

Pareja changed shape and personnel at the break, sending Robin Jansson on for Salim and Martin Ojeda on for Torres. The Lions went to a four-man back line with Smith on the right, pushing Angulo up to the wing.

The move opened the game up a bit and the Lions were able to get on the ball more but also allowed D.C. to advance more easily as well, at times.

“We did expect the game in the second half we could have more volume and more actions up front,” Pareja said. “We knew the defensive five in the first half would probably reduce our possibilties because we were playing with one more defender and one less attacker. But we wanted to have solidness and try to see if we can create some more sequences around, in the flanks, and I think we did but not with so much consistency. Second half when we made the change of the model and the change of the personnel, we knew that this was going to surprise D.C. at some point and that we would add one more forward, and that happened.”

Thorhallsson finally gave the Lions a shot on goal in the 48th minute, sending his attempt from distance directly in at Miller, who had no trouble catching it. In the 52nd minute, Ojeda sent a ball straight to Miller that may have been a weak shot or an attempted through ball for McGuire that didn’t work out.

But a minute later, the Lions found their breakthrough.

Smith got the ball on the right side from Angulo and sent a cross to the back post. Thorhallsson was there and nodded it back across the front of goal. McGuire arrived to bundle the ball in despite a challenge from Steve Birnbaum and the ball finally found the inside of the net for Orlando. A check for offside confirmed the goal — McGuire’s first as a professional and on Thorhallsson’s first MLS assist.

The rookie celebrated his goal with a celebratory flip.

“It was a great team buildup. Great cross,” McGuire said. “I thought I could get my head onto (the initial cross from Smith). I turned, and Dagur played a great ball across the face of goal — made the goalie out of the play — and then it was a simple tap-in. Dagur could not have made it easier for me.”

“It’s a dream for him,” Pareja said of his rookie’s goal. “I’m very pleased because he’s a young kid and very committed with the group, and an American player that came from the college system, which is fantastic. And he’s proven already in his first game that he belongs. We’re very happy for him.”

The game had hardly restarted when it seemed D.C. would equalize. A shot that was blocked riccocheted off the arm of Wilder Cartagena and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. But Cartagena’s arm was not only tucked in, but his entire forearm was behind his back. That, added to the close proximity and sudden change of direction made the decision a harsh one, and the video assistant referee, Jorge Gonzalez, suggested that referee Jon Freemon have another look. Freemon went to the monitor and quickly overturned his initial call.

Pereyra turned down an opportunity to shoot from the top of the box in the 61st minute, and instead tried to thread a ball through the defense to Ojeda, who appeared to be offside anyway. Ojeda re-established himself and Pereyra played it to his left. Ojeda tried to turn and shoot in a single motion but couldn’t get squared all the way around and left his shot wide.

Seconds later, at the other end, Smith did well to erase a good cross from his former teammate, Ruan.

The Lions dealt with a series of corner kicks shortly after that but D.C. couldn’t pay them off. The best look for the hosts was a shot through traffic by fullback Mohanad Jeahze, but it was well wide of the goal in the 73rd minute.

Ojeda put a shot on target in the 79th but it was from distance and right at Miller.

A minute later, Durkin equalized. Smith and Schlegel were unable to gain control in the corner and the ball was sent to Durkin at the top of the area. He faked a shot on his right and pulled the ball back onto his left as second-half sub Cesar Araujo went for the block. Durkin then fired an unstoppable shot just inside the far post that Gallese somehow almost got to.

It was Durkin’s third career MLS goal and his second against Orlando City. Both cost the Lions points at Audi Field.

Ruan fired a shot well up into the crowd in the 86th after an initial clearance of a D.C. corner kick.

The final seconds of stoppage time produced a set piece for the Lions near the left corner, won by substitute Gaston Gonzalez. Ojeda played the ball to the penalty spot for Jansson, who had peeled away from goal. The Beefy Swede was open for the shot but mishit it badly and it went nowhere near the goal frame.

Orlando survived a quick D.C. push up the pitch and the final whistle brought the proceedings to an end.

D.C.’s advantage in possession dipped a little in the second half, but the hosts still finished with a comfortable advantage in that stat (56.7%-43.3%). United also led in passing accuracy (81.1%-75.5%), shots (16-9), shots on target (5-4), and corners (5-2).

“I thought we looked much, much better,” Pareja said of the second half. “I think we had a couple actions. I think we had a goal. And we accomplished that objective.”

Orlando City has made it through three of the five matches in 15 days and will return home to face Tigres in the second leg of Concacaf Champions league play in the Round of 16 Wednesday night at Exploria Stadium. The next league game for the Lions is set for next Saturday night at home against Charlotte.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 10/15/24

MLS Decision Day scenarios, Orlando Pride announce playoff campaign, USMNT plays Mexico tonight, and more.

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49 mins ago

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October 15, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

How’s it going, Mane Landers? Things aren’t exactly back to normal for me here in Tampa after the hurricane, but they’re getting there. On this day in 2017, Kaká played his final official game for Orlando City. Plenty has changed since then and I’m glad he’s been able to see the Lions transform into a true contender in recent years. Let’s get to the links!

Getting Ready for MLS Decision Day

MLS Decision Day is Saturday and Orlando City’s home game against Atlanta United is a crucial part of the Eastern Conference drama. A win by the Lions would guarantee them fourth in the standings and crucial home-field advantage in the first round. A loss or draw would open the door for New York City FC to possibly leapfrog Orlando if the Pigeons beat a CF Montreal team desperate to hold onto the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Atlanta needs a win to qualify for the playoffs and the same goes for the Philadelphia Union, which faces FC Cincinnati. Orlando clinching home-field advantage and denying Atlanta a spot in the postseason in the process would be a nice way to close out the regular season.

Orlando Pride Launch Playoff Campaign

With the 2024 NWSL playoffs only a few weeks away, the Orlando Pride have announced their campaign to get the community ready for the postseason and celebrate a historic season. The motto “Do You See Us Now?” highlights how the Pride have been impossible to ignore this year by winning the NWSL Shield for the first time and setting records left and right. There will be plenty of local events leading up to the playoffs, including player appearances, watch parties, and ways to get merch to represent the Pride in November. There’s also a promotion in which you would get a ticket to the semifinal if you buy a quarterfinal ticket and the Pride advance.

USMNT Takes On Mexico Tonight

After a 2-0 win over Panama in Mauricio Pochettino’s coaching debut, the United States Men’s National Team is on the road tonight for a friendly against Mexico in Guadalajara. It will be Pochettino’s first taste of the rivalry and a fairly tough test for him, as the U.S. has only beaten Mexico once in Mexico. However, the Yanks also haven’t lost in their past four trips to Mexico to face El Tri. The U.S. will be without five players who returned to their clubs after the win over Panama, including Christian Pulisic and Ricardo Pepi.

Angel City FC Releases Statement on Sanctions

In response to the sanctions imposed by the NWSL that included a three-point deduction and a $200,000 fine after an investigation into a salary cap rule violation, Angel City FC has released a statement.

The club stated that it did not exceed the salary cap, noting that it was the club’s understanding that child care did not count against the salary cap. Angel City was found in violation of going over the salary cap by $50,000 for four weeks this season. That three-point deduction has Angel City in 11th and five points out of a playoff spot with just two games to go.

Free Kicks

  • The Pride remained at the top of ESPN‘s NWSL power rankings, while the Portland Thorns jumped up five spots to sixth for handing them their first loss of the season.
  • Orlando City B’s Wilfredo Rivera had quite the birthday, drawing the penalty kick that resulted in the winning goal in Puerto Rico’s 2-1 win over Sint Maarten in the Concacaf Nations League.
  • Boston’s NWSL team set to join the league in 2026 will reportedly be named BOS Nation FC, which is almost impressively bad. We’ll see if the reports are true when the name and logo are officially revealed today.
  • Nigeria boycotted its Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Libya after being stranded at an airport 130 miles from the team’s intended destination. Libyan authorities deny it was sabotage, but the CAF will investigate what happened.
  • Australia’s match against Japan highlights an intriguing slate of matches in AFC World Cup qualifying that also includes South Korea facing off against Iraq.
  • Amandine Henry, who captained France at the 2019 Women’s World Cup, has announced she is retiring from international soccer. The 35-year-old midfielder won seven Women’s Champions League titles while with Lyon and currently plays for Toluca in Mexico.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a great Tuesday and rest of your week!

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Orlando City

Orlando City Experiencing Its Golden Age of Offense

Facundo Torres and Duncan McGuire are leading Orlando City to its best offensive seasons.

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21 hours ago

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October 14, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

For most of Orlando City’s MLS history, finding multiple reliable goal scorers has been a struggle. As a result, the team has often been further down the league in goals scored, decreasing its goal difference. However, the duo of Facundo Torres and Duncan McGuire has changed that trend and provided the Lions with their best offensive seasons.

Orlando City drafted Cyle Larin with the first pick of the 2015 MLS SuperDraft and he quickly became a reliable source of goals. The Canadian international scored a team-record 18 goals across all competitions in his rookie year, and then scored 14 in the following season.

Larin’s production dipped slightly in 2017, scoring 12 goals, and the striker departed following that season. Orlando City has struggled to find someone that can provide the same scoring threat since. Over the next five years, only Nani and Chris Mueller scored double-digit goals in multiple seasons, each doing so twice. Prior to 2023, four other players scored double-digit goals in one season, as Dom Dwyer did it in 2018, Tesho Akindele in 2019, Daryl Dike in 2021, and Ercan Kara in 2022.

The lack of consistent goal production changed in 2022 when the club signed Facundo Torres from Uruguayan side Penarol. The young Designated Player made an immediate impact for his new team, scoring 13 goals in all competitions, including a brace in the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final to lift the Lions to their first major trophy.

Torres and Kara combined for an impressive 25 goals that season. Unfortunately, the pair didn’t have much support and the Lions only scored 44 goals in 2022. However, that changed the following year when Orlando City drafted former Creighton striker and Hermann Trophy winner Duncan McGuire.

Torres increased his goal tally to 14 in his second season in Orlando and McGuire netted a team-high 15 in his rookie campaign. The 29 goals scored by the pair were the most by two Orlando City players in an MLS season, topping the 28 goals scored by Larin and Kaká in 2015.

The goal tally has increased in 2024, with Torres scoring a career-high 18 goals, McGuire adding 11, and Ramiro Enrique chipping in with 11 of his own across all competitions. It’s the first time an Orlando City team — including the USL Pro era — has had three players score double-digit goals in one year. It’s also the first time in club history Orlando has had multiple double-digit goal scorers in three consecutive years.

The production by multiple players has seen a significant increase in goals scored by the Lions over the past two seasons. After netting only 44 league goals in 2022, Orlando City scored 55 times in 2023, tying the team’s MLS record previously set in 2016. The Lions surpassed that number this year by scoring 58 goals with one game remaining in the regular season.

The club’s record-setting scoring output comes at a time when Orlando City is playing some of its best defense in its MLS history. The 2023 squad only conceded 39 goals, the fewest in a 34-game season. While it has conceded nine more this year, it’s the second-fewest goals conceded in a season, tying the 2021 team.

The past two seasons have seen Orlando City set new club records in the MLS era for highest goal difference in a 34-game season. The only two years in which the Lions had a positive goal difference prior to 2023 was in a shortened 2020 season, when they were +15 and in 2021 when they were +2. They set a new record in 2023 by finishing +16 and are +10 this year.

The increase in goals and goal difference has resulted in better performances throughout the season. The team set a new club record with 63 points last season, placing second in the Supporters’ Shield standings. Orlando has amassed 52 points so far this season, the club’s second-highest point total since joining MLS.

While the play of the back line has contributed to the team’s recent success, goal production has been the catalyst. For the first time in its history, Orlando City has two reliable goal scorers who have produced in back-to-back seasons. The result is the best back-to-back seasons in the club’s MLS history.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 10/14/24

Getting to know Martin Ojeda, Orlando Pride unbeaten run ends, USMNT beats Panama, and more.

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1 day ago

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October 14, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you over the holiday weekend. I’ve been busy working at Under Armour and finishing up stream monitoring for an NISA Playoff semifinal match in California. Let’s also wish a happy birthday to Orlando City B forward Wilfredo Rivera. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links. 

Getting to Know Martin Ojeda

Orlando City midfielder Martin Ojeda was featured as part of the club’s video series to learn more about the players. In the video, Ojeda gave insight into his beginnings playing soccer when he was three years old and playing for his neighborhood club in South America. He also discussed his style of play, focusing on the attack, creating opportunities, and stating that there is always room to improve. You can check out the rest of the video below.

Pride Unbeaten Run Ends in Loss to Thorns

The Orlando Pride suffered their first loss of the NWSL season on Friday, falling 2-0 to the Portland Thorns. Morgan Weaver and Christine Sinclair scored for the Thorns to seal the win and end Orlando’s 24-match unbeaten streak dating back to Oct. 6 of last season. Despite the loss, the Pride remain in first place in the NWSL table with 57 points after winning the NWSL Shield a week ago. The next match for the Pride will be on Sunday on the road against NJ/NY Gotham FC.

Keys to Success in Orlando Pride Turnaround

The Athletic ($) took a deep dive into the process that led to the Orlando Pride turnaround this season. The article begins with the Pride joining the NWSL in 2016, their up-and-down seasons, and how recent changes in the last couple of years have set the foundation for the club’s success in 2024. It also shared some unique insights from interviews with staff and players and how the club was eager to make changes after finishing in the bottom half of the table for the last five seasons. The most interesting takeaway for me from reading the article was Head Coach Seb Hines speaking on the process of changing the culture of the club, building that underdog mindset, and how he keeps his players motivated. Although the 24-match unbeaten streak is over, the Pride are breaking records this season and won their first trophy. There’s been plenty to be excited about for the Pride this season, and hopefully they will carry this momentum into the playoffs and make a deep run.

USMNT Defeats Panama in Mauricio Pochettino’s Coaching Debut

The U.S. Men’s National Team defeated Panama 2-0 on Saturday at Q2 Stadium, securing the first win in Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino’s debut in a friendly. Yunus Musah and Ricardo Pepi scored the USMNT’s goals in the second half to secure the victory. Matt Turner started in goal, and Christian Pulisic added an assist to set up Musah’s goal. The USMNT will face Mexico in Guadalajara on Tuesday. Pulisic, Pepi, and Weston McKennie will miss the match to return to their respective European clubs. Marlon Fossey and Zack Steffen will also return to their clubs.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City goalkeeper Pedro Gallese earned a clean sheet on international duty as his Peru side defeated Uruguay 1-0 in a CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying match on Friday. Wilder Cartagena and Facundo Torres did not play in the match.
  • Orlando Pride midfielder Angelina and forward Adriana were called up to the Brazil Women’s National Team for friendlies against Colombia on Oct. 26 and Oct. 29.
  • Sports Illustrated listed five MLS players that could move abroad this off-season, mentioning Orlando City’s Facundo Torres and Duncan McGuire as potential targets.
  • Angel City FC forward Christen Press scored her first goal in 28 months over the weekend in a 1-1 draw against the North Carolina Courage. Press had been sidelined due to an ACL injury requiring four surgeries before returning to action.
  • Kansas City Current forward Temwa Chawinga broke an NWSL record after scoring her 19th goal of the season in a 1-0 win over Bay FC over the weekend.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday and I’ll see you next time.

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