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Orlando City

Thoughts on Orlando City’s Maiden Concacaf Champions League Voyage

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City’s first-ever Concacaf Champions League campaign came to an end Wednesday night. The Lions drew Tigres UANL 1-1 at Exploria Stadium, but exited the competition on the away goals rule. Now that I’ve had some time to process OCSC’s inaugural campaign in the continental competition, I wanted to summarize my thoughts on the two games Orlando played, and speculate on what we can learn and predict based on those 180 minutes.

For starters, the club, players, and fans can — and absolutely should — hold their heads high. Tigres was quite possibly the toughest draw the Lions could have been given in the first round. The Mexican outfit has the most expensive roster in the tournament, and they’re frequently among the best teams, if not the best team, Mexico has to offer. Orlando went toe to toe with Los Tigres over 180 minutes, and the overall performance is one that the team can be proud of. You only have to look at Austin FC’s debacle against an inspirational AC Violette side to see that things could have gone much, much worse.

With that being said, I think its fair to say that Tigres is, and was the better team over 180 minutes. I found this to be particularly pronounced from my place in The Wall on Wednesday night. Sometimes it’s difficult to tell on the broadcast, but watching live I was struck by how the Tigres players seemed quicker, more physical, and more technical than their Orlando counterparts. Some of the Lions’ sloppiness can maybe be attributed to nerves and only being a few games into their season, but to my eye the Mexican side simply enjoyed a physical superiority that was always going to make this one an uphill battle.

The Lions having a chance at all in this tie was in large part to Pedro Gallese. He might very well be in the best vein of form that he’s ever had in an Orlando City jersey, and his 15 saves across the two matches made for an absurd performance, with some truly exceptional stops to keep the Lions in the fight.

That’s why it’s such a shame that OCSC wasn’t able to muster more on the offensive end of things. I’m willing to give a bit of a pass to the first leg at El Volcan. Getting a scoreless draw in that environment is a perfectly acceptable result, and it’s something that I think most of us were, and are, happy with. What will inspire regret is the missed chances at Exploria on Wednesday. Ivan Angulo’s shot missed the target by what looked like mere inches, and Ramiro Enrique could only fire right at Nahuel Guzman, while Facundo Torres had a shot deflected straight into the goalkeeper’s arms. Duncan McGuire couldn’t put the last kick of the game on target with Guzman out of his net, and it was somewhat ironic that Ercan Kara was able to convert the most difficult chance of the whole tie.

The missed chances will sting, because while I thought Tigres was better over the 180 minutes of play, Orlando absolutely did enough get past them into the second round. Gallese stood tall, the Lions rode their luck a little bit, and created some of the best chances the team has had through its first five games of the year. But, against teams like Tigres, the margins are razor thin, and Orlando simply wasn’t as clinical as it needed to be.

While it’s still early, I was a little troubled by the performances of Facu, Mauricio Pereyra and Martin Ojeda Wednesday night. Torres seemed to often be taking several touches too many before releasing the ball, and Ojeda found it difficult to get involved. Pereyra left me the most concerned though. His yellow came as a result of simply not being able to keep up with the Tigres midfield, and his dwindling mobility and pace were more pronounced on the night. It shouldn’t be as much of a problem against MLS opposition, but I do wonder how he’ll hold up against teams with energetic and dynamic players in the center of the park. Still, its too early to make lasting judgments.

I will say that things seemed to pick up once Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Ercan Kara entered the fray. Having a big target man to lump the ball forward to as time was winding down undoubtedly helped things, and Kara’s moment of magic was a timely reminder of what he’s capable of. Yes he needs service to be effective, but when he’s getting it, he’s a capable finisher, and he has a knack for getting into the right spots and making something out of nothing. Thorhallsson simply seems to be able to run into next week and then some, and I think we’ll see more and more of him as the year goes on.

People were rather upset about the time-wasting tactics that Tigres employed, and Oscar Pareja even made a point of addressing how little the ball was actually in play during the five minutes of second-half stoppage time. Frankly, I have no problem with the time-wasting antics employed by Tigres. If Orlando had been in position to go through, the Lions would have been doing the exact same thing, and we’d be hailing their savviness if it had worked the way it did for the Mexican giants. With that being said, it’s 100% on the referee to have better control of proceedings, prevent as much time-wasting as he can, and to make sure that the appropriate amount of stoppage time is played…which he didn’t. The time-wasting was annoying, but ultimately, if you want to be mad at someone, be mad at the official for not handling it better.

That’s not to suggest that OCSC was robbed by the referee. Outside of the stoppage time debacle, I thought he mostly did a good job, aside from maybe being a little uneven with his distribution of yellow cards to start, although things did even out more towards the end of the second half. The game was maybe called a bit tighter than we usually see in Concacaf play, but once establishing the precedent of not allowing a ton of contact, it was one that Said Martinez largely stuck to.

I want make sure I highlight the absolutely magnificent atmosphere at Exploria Stadium on Wednesday night. Aside from the top section of the south end reserved for Tigres fans, the stadium looked to be mostly sold out, and it sounded like it. The presence of several thousand Tigres fans among the 21,112 in attendance was honestly a welcome addition. In The Wall, the mindset seemed to be one of determination to not allow the away supporters to be heard, and on the occasions that the visiting fans started to grow in voice, it didn’t take long for the supporters section to up its game. It was one of the best atmospheres I’ve been part of at Exploria, and the scenes of unchecked delirium that greeted Ercan Kara’s equalizer were on par with some of the goals during the run to the U.S. Open Cup trophy. If the Lions had managed to grab another one and advance, it’s entirely possible that the building wouldn’t have been standing on Thursday morning. The challenge now is continuing that sort of fervent support as the season really gets going.

Now that the CCL is in the rearview mirror, attention turns fully to the MLS season. The Lions have a fantastic opportunity to bounce back and jump-start the offense this weekend when a 0-3-0 Charlotte team comes to town. The Crown has scored only one goal and given up seven, and it’s a great chance for OCSC to find its shooting boots. Whether we see a fully first choice XI or not, I hope to see the Lions build some more cohesion on the offensive side of things, while maintaining the strong level of defensive play they’ve shown to start the season.


In short, be proud. The Lions acquitted themselves well, and on another night might well have gone through to the next round. There are a few areas that concern me, but I’m going to wait a few more weeks before truly sounding the alarm bells. If the fans can create 80-90% of that atmosphere every week, it’s going to be very difficult for teams to come 

Orlando City

In 2025, OCSC Stands for Orlando City Scorers Club

How Orlando City’s top offensive performers this season compare to the rest of MLS…and the Premier League.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Last week, I wrote about the state of Orlando City at the halfway point of the season, focusing mostly on the team’s accomplishments on offense and defense through 17 games. For this week, let’s look at some of the top performing Lions, because it’s always fun to talk about offensive success. I do not apologize if you take offense to my desire to only focus on offense, because that would be defensive, and there is no place in this article for defense.

Many moons ago, back in January during the preseason, I wrote an article looking at the best offensive seasons in Orlando City’s MLS history. I used a derived metric called game score to rank the seasons, and I’ll quickly explain again how that is calculated:

Goals Scored + Expected Assists + 0.0113 (Progressive Carries + Progressive Passes)

I went into much more detail about why that is the calculation in the original article, but the quick and dirty version is that scoring goals, completing passes to players in dangerous scoring areas, and progressing the ball by dribbling and passing are core components of a strong offensive player. Think of the game score as an offensive value calculation, and think of it simply as a value for which more is better and the most is best.

Opta only tracked the last three contributing statistics (expected assists, progressive carries, and progressive passes) from 2018 onwards, and the chart below shows Orlando City’s 10 best MLS regular seasons since 2018. It also shows the season that currently ranks 11th — Martín Ojeda’s 2025 season, which, as a reminder, is only in game 18 of a 34-game regular season. This means, if you get the extrapolation machine out, Ojeda is on pace for a season-long game score of 26.5, which would rank as the highest full season game score in Orlando City history.

  • * The 2020 season contained only 23 games due to COVID-19
  • ** Ojeda’s stats are through 18 matches; MLS teams have played between 16-19 matches

Ojeda’s 14.1 currently ranks only behind Sam Surridge of Nashville (15.7), Anders Dreyer of San Diego (16.6), and some player from Miami who clearly wants to play for Orlando since he has lion as part of his first name (Messi, 16.8). During Ojeda’s first two seasons, he only accumulated 12.1 and 12.5, respectively, so this is already by far his best season in purple and it is just barely halfway complete.

Ojeda is not the only Orlando City player who is on pace to jump into the club’s all-time top 10 by the end of the season, as teammates Luis Muriel (10.76, on pace for 20.3) and Marco Pašalić (10.46, on pace for 19.8) are both in the top 30 in MLS this season. Muriel is 24th, and Pašalić is 27th. Orlando City is the only team in the league with three players in the top 30, or really the top 27 (shout out to my son, for whom 27 is his favorite number).

One last point on Ojeda: if we were to extrapolate his performance through 18 games to 38 games, his season game score would bump up to 29.6. Why did I choose 38? Well, 38 happens to be the number of games played in the world’s most popular league, England’s Premier League. I am well aware that the Premier League is a different level of competition than MLS, but just for fun I ran the numbers on the 2024-2025 Premier League season, and a season-long game score of 29.6 would coincidentally also rank Ojeda fourth in England, right behind Cole Palmer (29.7) and in front of Alexander Isak (29.2). I do not think Ojeda would actually finish fourth if he was in the Premier League, but my point is more that the frequency of Ojeda’s contributions for Orlando City thus far this season have been similar to that of Palmer for Chelsea and Isak for Newcastle, which is pretty heady company.

Speaking of heady, we also need to talk about the player who is leading Orlando City in aerial duel wins, Alex Freeman. Heady, aerial duels…you got the segue, right? Don’t answer that.

Freeman has been on a rocket ship in the last year, going from Orlando City B starter to Orlando City starter to U.S. Men’s National Team starter, and he likely will also be the MLS All-Star Game starter, too. My mention of his leading the team in aerial duel wins, while noteworthy, was really just a convenient way to cut over to talking about him and his season-long game score of 8.1.

According to Opta’s positional tracking, only two MLS defenders have accumulated game scores of more than six thus far this season — Philadelphia’s Kai Wagner at 6.88 and Freeman’s 8.1. The extrapolation machine says 8.1 through 18 games puts Freeman on pace for a final score of 15.2, which would be the second best performance by an MLS defender since tracking began in 2018. Freeman is going to miss at least a few more games due to being with the U.S. team during the Gold Cup, so that 15.2 will likely not happen, but wow, what a great first half of a season for Orlando City’s right back.

Going back to the Premier League for comparative context…actually, please sit down and buckle up first. Are you good? Ok.

Going back to the Premier League for comparative context, there is none. Freeman’s performance blows away every defender’s from that league. It will likely surprise few that the defender with the best season game score in the Premier League this season was Trent Alexander-Arnold, who accumulated a score of 13.5 during Liverpool’s championship run. That 13.5 was 15% better than the defender who finished in second place, and yet, if we extrapolate Freeman to 38 games, he would be on pace for 17.0, which is 26% better than Alexander-Arnold. Mind the gap.

Once again, I do not mean to say that Freeman is as skilled or would contribute like Alexander-Arnold did in the Premier League. It is instead that Freeman’s contributions to Orlando City’s offense are unlike that from any defenders in the Premier League. Freeman’s performance thus far this season places him 43rd in the overall MLS rankings, first among defenders, and ahead of strikers such as Christian Benteke, Emmanuel Latte Lath, and Brandon Vazquez. He ranks fourth on Orlando City, and the Lions are not only the only club with three players in the top 30, but also the only club with four players in the top 45.

Two teams had four players in the top 45 during the 2024 MLS season, and one of them was the LA Galaxy, the eventual MLS Cup champions. I am not saying that Orlando City having four players in the top 45 this season means they will win MLS Cup, but I am not not saying it either. I am saying I would like it to happen though, and saying that loudly and clearly.

The game score metric is not the be-all, end-all of measuring offensive prowess, but I think it does a good job of creating a ranking system where the eye test matches the math. Most fans would point to Ojeda as the player who has driven Orlando City’s offense more than any other this season, and being that the team is on pace to have one of the best, if not the best, goal-scoring seasons in the club’s MLS history, it should track that Ojeda is also on pace to have one of the best, if not the best, individual offensive seasons in the club’s MLS history as well.

There are 16 more MLS games to go, and the great thing about sports is that in any game anything can happen, and that is why we love to watch. It is awesome that all three Designated Players and Freeman are off to great starts, but nothing is guaranteed for the back half of the season. That’s why they play the games, as the saying goes. For all we know, Ramiro Enrique could come on like gangbusters in the final games and rip off double-digit goals to end as the team’s leading scorer.

Ramiro, this is a bold strategy, and I am on board for it. The more goals the merrier. Feel free to bring us fans some goals for Christmas in July.

Orlando City does not have a game this weekend, with next match coming June 25 on the road in St. Louis. Winning that game would give the Lions their third winning streak of the season and would be something I would very much like, since I will be doling out the grades for that game. And since I have been writing about the offense this week, how about three goals and three points?

Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 6/19/25

Alex Freeman details his soccer journey, Orlando Pride players called up, Orlando City’s U-19 team advances to semifinals, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City B

Happy Juneteenth, Mane Landers! I hope everyone has a nice holiday as we commemorate the anniversary of the end of slavery in the U.S. There’s plenty of soccer going on, and I’ve enjoyed seeing the Club World Cup and Gold Cup here and there when not working. Let’s go ahead and dive right into today’s links from around the soccer world!

Alex Freeman Details His Path to Pro Soccer

Orlando City right back Alex Freeman has been getting plenty of buzz during this breakout year, but an interview with Goal gave some great insight into how he reached this point. He made the bold decision to head to Orlando at 16 years old to chase his dream, and he detailed some of the difficulties of that move that may get overlooked as his career blooms.

“I remember my 16th birthday, it was the first birthday I ever spent without my family,” Freeman says. “It was the day after I moved to Orlando. I’ve never really talked about this, but, at first, it really took a toll on me. At 16, you really just want your family around for those important moments, and I felt like I was balancing so much without my family being there with me. I did so much of this in Orlando without my family. It’s hard for people to comprehend that.”

Freeman also talked about the pace of his development within Orlando’s organization, along with what it was like to play against Juventus winger Kenan Yildiz in his recent international debut. There are also some great quotes from Oscar Pareja and United States Men’s National Team Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino worth checking out.

Orlando Pride Players Called Up by USWNT

Orlando Pride defenders Emily Sams and Kerry Abello were both called up for the United States Women’s National Team’s training camp roster ahead of friendlies against Ireland and Canada later this June. Both players were on the USWNT roster for recent friendlies, with Abello making her international debut on June 3 against Jamaica. The only player outside the NWSL who was called up for this roster is Naomi Girma. Rose Lavelle was called up for the first time this year, and 2024 NWSL Rookie of the Year Croix Bethune is also back in the fold. Jordyn Bugg, Lilly Reale, Izzy Rodriguez, and Sam Meza were all called up for the first time, as Head Coach Emma Hayes continues to grow the player pool.

Orlando City Makes MLS NEXT Cup Semifinals

Orlando City’s U-19 team continues to impress this year and advanced to the semifinals of this year’s MLS NEXT Cup. Forward Justin Ellis was named Player of the Day for scoring twice in a 3-3 draw against Toronto FC, with Orlando coming out on top in the ensuing penalty shootout.

The U-19 team is the last Orlando academy team still playing across the tournament’s age groups. It will take on Cedar Stars Academy in the semifinals on Friday with a spot in Sunday’s final on the line. Enjoy watching the youngsters celebrate clinching a spot in the next round.

Upcoming NWSL Action Before League Break

We have another weekend of NWSL soccer to look forward to before the league pauses until August due to various international tournaments. The Pride will look to make it four straight wins when they face Racing Louisville FC on the road Friday night. Louisville has allowed 22 goals this season, so hopefully Barbra Banda and the rest of Orlando’s offense can get things going after close wins in the past two games.

Elsewhere in the league, I think Saturday’s match between NJ/NY Gotham FC and Bay FC will be an interesting showdown. Gotham forward Esther González leads the league with nine goals this season, but it’s ultimately a close Golden Boot race at this point. Sunday’s match between the San Diego Wave and Washington Spirit pits two of the league’s top four teams against each other, making it a great way to close out the weekend before the break.

USMNT Takes On Saudi Arabia Tonight

The Yanks are back in action tonight for a Concacaf Gold Cup group game against Saudi Arabia, the guest nation of this year’s tournament. After a 5-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago, the U.S. can claim the top spot in the group and all but guarantee a place in the next round with a win over Saudi Arabia. There are still some question marks regarding who will rise to the occasion in the midfield and at forward, but the USMNT has the talent to get the job done tonight at Q2 Stadium in Austin. The U.S. will then close out group play on Sunday against Haiti in Arlington, TX.

Free Kicks

  • Sams, Banda, Anna Moorhouse, and Cori Dyke were all named to CBS Sports‘ NWSL Team of the Week after the Pride’s 1-0 win over Bay FC.
  • Joao Klauss won MLS Goal of the Matchday for his lethal strike on the volley from a tight angle. The goal equalized things in stoppage time against the LA Galaxy and completed Klauss’ hat trick in the 3-3 draw.
  • USWNT and Portland Thorns defender Meghan Klingenberg has officially retired from professional soccer. She won two NWSL Shields, two NWSL Championships, and the 2015 Women’s World Cup, while also making an impact off the field speaking up for equality.
  • The San Jose Earthquakes have begun the process of selling a controlling interest in the club.
  • Xabi Alonso’s tenure as Real Madrid’s new manager began with a 1-1 draw against Al Hilal at the Club World Cup. Federico Valverde had a chance to win it in stoppage time from the penalty stop, but Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou came up with the critical save.
  • Chris Wilder and Sheffield United have parted ways less than a month after the club fell 2-1 to Sunderland in the playoff final for promotion to the English Premier League. Ruben Selles, who was dismissed as Hull City’s manager last month, was named as Wilder’s replacement.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a wonderful Juneteenth and rest of your week!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 6/18/25

Scouting Saudi Arabia, Club World Cup summary, MLS midseason superlatives, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

Happy Wednesday, everyone. I’m pretty worn out after doing some traveling for most of the last two weeks, and I’m happy to be back home in Tampa for a bit before heading out on the road again. The soccer world has not paused during my time out on the road, and if anything its only picked up in intensity. That means we have a lot to talk about, but before we get into today’s links, let’s wish Orlando Pride defender Rafaelle a happy birthday.

Scouting Saudi Arabia

The United States Men’s National Team will continue its 2025 Gold Cup campaign on Thursday when it takes on Saudi Arabia in Austin, TX. That means this is a good time to familiarize ourselves with Arabian Falcons. They’re coached by Herve Renard, who deployed the team in a 4-2-3-1 in a 1-0 victory over Haiti in the team’s first game of the tournament. He isn’t married to that formation though, and will use a variety of tactical setups depending on the situation. Across all of them, Saudi Arabia plays with an emphasis on pressing in specific areas and quickly breaking in transition once winning the ball. Like the USMNT, the Saudis are missing a few first-choice players, and the midfield battle should be a particularly interesting area to keep an eye on.

Club World Cup Roundup

The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup continued on Wednesday, so let’s take a look at the action. Fluminense and Borussia Dortmund got things started as they battled to a scoreless draw at MetLife Stadium. The Brazilian team had the better of the game overall, but Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel made five saves to preserve a point for his team. The second game of the day was much livelier, as River Plate dispatched Urawa Red Diamonds 3-1 in Seattle. The Argentinians scored after just 12 minutes and never looked back despite Urawa making it a 2-1 game with a 58th-minute penalty. The third match took place at Inter&Co Stadium, and saw Mamelodi Sundowns beat Ulsan HD 1-0. While the scoreline didn’t reflect it, the South African team mostly dominated proceedings and finished with 68% possession and 718 passes to 325 for the South Korean side. However, it was a free-flowing game that offered both sides to take more from the match. Our Michael Citro was there to recap it for you at the link above.

Midseason MLS Superlatives

As much as it seems like the 2025 Major League Soccer season just started, we’re actually just past the halfway point of the campaign, and that means it’s a good time to look at some league superlatives. In a category that will be music to the ears of Orlando City fans, Bradley Wright-Phillips named fullback the most overlooked position and specifically took some time to praise Alex Freeman. BWP previously coached against Freeman with New York Red Bulls II when Alex was still with Orlando City B, so it’s interesting to hear his input from that additional aspect. It’s no surprise that the Vancouver Whitecaps got a lot of love, as they were named biggest surprise, and Jesper Sorensen was named best coach.

Transfer Rumor Roundup

Transfer season is in full swing, so here are some of the big rumors currently flying around. Manchester United is reportedly interesting in signing Callum Hudson-Odoi from Nottingham Forest, but the Red Devils face competition from Roma and Napoli. Arsenal might hit a snag in searching for a striker, as the Gunners are balking at paying the asking prices for either Benjamin Sesko or Viktor Gyokeres, because they consider those numbers to be too high. Three different teams from the Saudi Pro League have reportedly shown interest in signing Son Heung-Min from Tottenham Hotspur, as he only has 12 months left on his current contract.

Free Kicks

  • Get a peek at the Orlando Pride putting in work on the training ground.

And that’s it for me today. Have a great rest of your week. Vamos, Orlando!

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