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The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly: Orlando City’s Youth Movement, Looking for Goals, and the new U.S. Kits

Orlando City’s youth teams excelling, a lack of first-team goal scoring, and the new U.S. kits.

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2 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

With a week off for Orlando City, I thought it a good time to reflect on the recent past. What I found was that I was inspired, dejected, and agitated at what I found in my own soccer ecosystem. They say that sharing your burdens is good therapy, and so that is what I’m going to do today. Hopefully, if you’re having any of those same feelings we can work through it together.

The Good

Sometimes it’s nice to focus on the good things in life, especially when your senior teams both manage to post losses on the same weekend. This week, the good is Orlando City B and the U-17 and U-15 squads. The youth movement was a bright spot over the weekend with all three squads getting results.

OCB won its home opener and a second straight match, defeating Huntsville City FC, 2-1 at Osceola County Stadium. Alex Freeman scored his first professional goal and then followed it up with another for a brace to give OCB the victory. You can check out The Mane Land PawedCast interview of Freeman here. Goals and results are what ultimately matter and OCB is 2-0-0 with five goals on the season so far.

The academy lads did their part as well, with both the U-17s and U-15s winning their respective groups and going undefeated in group play at the Generation Adidas Cup. The U-17s beat Nashville SC 1-0 to secure the top spot, and the U-15s defeated Minnesota United 2-1 to do the same. The U-15 team then defeated Seattle on Wednesday to reach the quarterfinals, while the U-17 squad unfortunately fell to New York City FC’s U-17s.

The Bad

Orlando City currently sits in seventh place in the Eastern Conference and just above the playoff line. At this point in the season, that hardly matters, as those standings will fluctuate quite a bit before everything is said and done. What is slightly concerning is that the Lions have scored the fewest goals — five — of any team above the playoff line.

I say slightly because there are a bunch of valid reasons for it. Ercan Kara has been injured, there are two newcomers filling in at striker, with Duncan McGuire and Ramiro Enrique sharing the load. There are also so many new players on the offense that it is bound to take time for them to get to know each other and coordinate an attack successfully. These are all valid points.

However, we have recently seen an attack that is seemingly effective right up until it enters the 18-yard box. At that point, it’s as if physics works differently or that Orlando City players need corrective lenses. Or both. Lack of quality finishing has been a problem for several years, and it needs to get fixed. I do think that these players can do so, but someone needs to flick the switch to get them started.

The Ugly

I know there are some people out there who might like the new U.S. kits, but there has been a lot of “ugly” reaction online to Nike’s latest offering (peruse the comments in the Tweet below for examples). Then there are many who are indifferent to the new look. I generally fall into the group that thinks the kits are fine. However, like Roy Kent says in Ted Lasso, “Don’t you dare settle for fine.”

Pictured above: “Fine”

I have my own thoughts on why Nike keeps giving us “fine” but not awesome kits, and I’ll get to that. One potential reason is that the U.S. doesn’t have one iconic kit from its history for fans to point to. Brazil, Argentina, and others are usually instantly recognizable. Not so much for the U.S. at least of late. Yes, there were the “Denim,” “Bomb Pop,” and “Waldo” kits from the past, and many would like to see one of those make a comeback — looking at you, Waldo — but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards.

Another potential reason is that Nike is phoning it in. This is a popular sentiment online, but I’m not entirely buying that line of thinking. Yes, the kits look like they might be better suited as a training kit rather than the match kit, but I don’t think it’s because Nike is being lazy. The U.S. kits have featured some of the latest Nike trends and I think that is because the company wants the U.S. to be the face of those trends. Nike is a U.S.-based country and it makes more sense that Nike wants the U.S. in its most current stuff rather than Nike hates U.S. supporters.

My personal belief is that the kits we keep getting from Nike are actually the epitome of America. A giant corporation keeps churning out “fine” kits every year — or every other year — while not listening to the rabble online begging for the good old days. They are able to do so because the sales are enough for Nike to be fine with continuing the strategy. Nike almost came out and said exactly that at a pre-launch event with FOX prior to the 2022 World Cup.

“People always hate the new jerseys at first,” Aaron Barnett, Nike’s senior director of soccer apparel, told FOX Sports at a prelaunch event last month in New York. “Then your team wins its first game, and it’s the best jersey they’ve ever had.”

I don’t believe that anyone thinks those kits were the “best jersey they’ve ever had,” but there’s no incentive for Nike to change the strategy. Without some maverick designer at Nike sliding in an updated Waldo there’s very little chance we’ll get anything other than “fine.” How everyone reacts to each iteration — whether ugly or not — may determine if things change.

That will do it for today. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 1/21/25

Orlando Pride release preseason camp roster, scouting Costa Rica, women’s soccer transfer grades, and more.

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18 hours ago

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January 21, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Good morning, everyone! If you had yesterday off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, then I hope you enjoyed some restful time off. If not, then I hope you got your week started off on a good and productive note. There’s a lot going on around here this week as the United States Men’s National Team is in town, and Orlando City will play its first preseason match on Saturday. That means we have plenty to discuss, so let’s dig into today’s links.

Orlando Pride Drop Preseason Roster

Monday might have been a holiday but the Orlando Pride were busy, as they announced the roster for their upcoming preseason camp. Almost all of the usual suspects from the 2024 season are back, as the Pride return 98% of the player-minutes from last season and every single scorer. Mariana Larroquette is on the list although she’s currently on loan in Argentina, and Amanda Allen is likewise included after her loan at Lexington Sporting Club was terminated due to a torn labrum. The biggest intrigue comes from the trio of non-roster invitees: goalkeeper DeAira Jackson, midfielder Aryssa Mahrt, and forward Simone Jackson.

Scouting Costa Rica

The USMNT takes on Costa Rica on Wednesday at Inter&Co Stadium to wrap up the team’s annual January camp. Like the U.S., Costa Rica is bringing a roster devoid of the majority of its important players. Costa Rica also has a new manager at the helm in Miguel Herrera, who will take charge of the team for the very first time on Wednesday. Herrera typically lines his teams up in a 5-3-2 where the wingbacks take on a very important role and the team looks to hit on the counter while staying compact at the back. This will be the last time we see the USMNT in action until the Concacaf Nations League semifinals in early March.

Women’s Soccer January Transfer Grades

January has been a busy time for transfers in the women’s soccer world, so which teams have done the best business? Well, the Orlando Pride received an A grade for signing Marta to a new two-year deal, retaining a player who helped the team win its first ever trophies. Liverpool got an A for signing Julia Bartel on loan from Chelsea. Leicester City made an interesting call by transferring goalkeeper Lize Kop to Tottenham despite just being a point above the relegation zone. The Foxes get a C for the move, while Spurs get a B+ for adding a capable netminder.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans taking part in some very important games over the course of this week. Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Juventus face Club Brugge today in the UEFA Champions League, while Ricardo Pepi, Richy Ledezma, Esmir Bajraktarević, Malik Tillman and PSV Eindhoven take on Crvena Zvezda in the same competition. Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan will play Girona in the UCL on Wednesday, while Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty, and Celtic take on Young Boys. On Friday, John Tolkin could make his Bundesliga debut when his new team, Holstein Kiel, travels to face Wolfsburg.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando Pride players reported for their preseason physicals on Monday.
  • Meanwhile, Orlando City took on the dreaded beep test during Monday’s training session.

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

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Orlando City

Striker Suddenly a Position of Need for Orlando City

Departures and a key injury mean Orlando City needs a striker heading into the 2025 MLS season.

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2 days ago

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January 20, 2025

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Image Courtesy of Orlando City SC

Orlando City reached the Eastern Conference Final for the first time in 2024, a milestone for the club. The core of the team was locked up through the 2025 season, so there was no reason to believe it needed to add much this off-season. Unfortunately, injuries and departures have created a serious problem for the team.

The group of forwards last year consisted of Duncan McGuire, Ramiro Enrique, and Jack Lynn. McGuire scored 15 goals in 2023 and was expected to depart for Blackburn Rovers before a clerical error allowed the Lions to keep their target man. The team’s primary striker scored 11 goals in 37 games — the same number as the previous season — but split time starting with Enrique. The Argentinian improved greatly in 2024, increasing his total goal tally from four to 12. Even Lynn showed tremendous improvement last year, playing a greater role in the team and scoring his first two MLS goals.

The future also seemed bright for the Orlando City forwards because of their ages. Lynn is the oldest of the trio at just 25 years old. Meanwhile, McGuire and Enrique are only 23, so there was no reason to believe this group couldn’t produce this coming season.

The problem at striker began in the postseason when McGuire was pulled down by Charlotte FC midfielder Djibril Diani in the final first round game of the playoffs. McGuire suffered a shoulder injury during the challenge that required surgery on Dec. 13. It’s expected that the striker could take four to five months to return to action, possibly leaving him out until May or June.

Another blow to Orlando’s attack occurred Saturday when Lynn surprisingly announced his retirement from professional soccer. In just over a month, Orlando City went from having three strikers to having just one as preseason training starts.

With McGuire injured and Lynn gone, one option would be to have Designated Player Luis Muriel play up top. However, the Colombian prefers to play a more withdrawn position and proved to be effective in that role last year. Since Head Coach Oscar Pareja prefers to play a 4-2-3-1 formation, the Lions need someone up top to control the ball and involve the midfielders in the attack. That’s not Muriel’s game.

The result of these issues is that nobody is currently behind Enrique when the season begins. If the Argentinian gets tired, hurt, or simply needs rest, Pareja is limited in his options. 

Whether there was a lack of strikers or a lack of goals from the position previously, that problem was resolved by the club’s all-time leading goal scorer. Facundo Torres scored 20 goals in 2024, becoming the first player in Orlando City’s MLS history and the second player in club history to do so. He went on to set a new club record for total goals of 47.

However, Orlando City sold its best player to Brazilian side Palmeiras on Dec. 20. It was a gut punch to fans as Torres had signed a new contract on Jan. 10, 2024 that ran through the 2026 season. There had been talk for the last couple of years that the attacker would look for a move to Europe and rumors of a move to South America arose this off-season. Still, it created a huge gap the club has to fill.

There are players on the roster that can make up for the injury and departures. Martin Ojeda had a strong season in 2024, finishing with seven goals and 13 assists. His seven goals ranked fourth on the team and his 13 assists topped the squad alongside Nico Lodeiro. Muriel came on strong later in the season, finishing with five goals and eight assists. But those numbers are a long way from the 20 goals that Torres tallied last year.

Even if you consider all goal contributions, Ojeda and Muriel fall well short of Torres. Ojeda had a total of 20 goal contributions in 2024 while Muriel had 13. In addition to Torres’s 20 goals, he added nine assists for a team-leading 29 goal contributions.

All of this information leads to one undeniable fact — Orlando City needs to sign a striker prior to the season. And there’s not much time for Luiz Muzzi to act. The European transfer window closes on Feb. 3 and many MLS teams have already been filling similar needs. With the season starting in just over a month, the options will be limited if the Lions don’t do something soon.

After the best postseason finish in Orlando City’s MLS history, things were looking good heading into 2025. While the back line and most of the midfield is returning, McGuire’s injury and the departure of Torres and Lynn have left the Lions in a tough spot offensively. If they don’t do something in the next couple of weeks, it could be a long 2025.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 1/20/25

Orlando City signs Nicolas Rodriguez, Jack Lynn announces retirement, USMNT defeats Venezuela in friendly, and more.

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2 days ago

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January 20, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope you’re all having a good holiday weekend as we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Over the past week, I’ve been working and covering high school ice hockey. It will be a busy week in Orlando, with the United States Men’s National Team’s match against Costa Rica on Wednesday and Orlando City’s first preseason match against Atletico Mineiro on Saturday. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Signs Nicolas Rodriguez

Orlando City announced on Friday that the club has signed forward Nicolas Rodriguez from Fortaleza CEIF in Colombia’s top flight. The deal is through the 2027 season, with a club option for 2028, and Rodriguez will occupy a MLS U22 Initiative slot. Rodriguez made 19 appearances for Fortaleza, recording 1,607 minutes, five goals, and three assists during the 2024 Primera A Clausura season. The Lions add a young attacking player the club can develop and Rodriguez can play on the right wing, the right side of a three-man midfield, or in the No. 10 spot.

Jack Lynn Announces Retirement

Orlando City forward Jack Lynn announced his retirement from professional soccer on Saturday. Lynn was drafted by Orlando in the first round of the 2022 MLS SuperDraft. He became a regular starter for Orlando City B, scoring a team-record 38 goals in over three seasons with the MLS NEXT Pro side. Lynn also won the Golden Boot with 19 goals during the 2023 season and became the first OCB player to be named MLS NEXT Pro MVP. He played sparingly with the first team, but he scored twice last season as his role increased. The Lions will likely look to add another striker for more depth up top.

Orlando Pride Acquire Allocation Money in Trade

On Friday, the Orlando Pride announced that the club has acquired $50,000 in Allocation Money from the Washington Spirit. In exchange, the Pride sent the Spirit a 2025 international roster spot. The Pride will face the Spirit in the NWSL Challenge Cup final on March 7 at Inter&Co Stadium.

USMNT Defeats Venezuela in Friendly

The USMNT defeated Venezuela 3-1 at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday in a friendly. Jack McGlynn and Patrick Agyemang scored in the first half to give the USMNT a 2-0 lead just before halftime. Matko Milijevic scored the third goal for the Americans in the second half, with Venezuela pulling one back thanks to a goal from Jorge Yriarte. Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino has led the USMNT to winning four out of its first five matches since he took charge last September. The USMNT’s next match will be against Costa Rica on Wednesday at Inter&Co Stadium.

Alyssa Naeher Named U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year

On Saturday, goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher was voted 2024 U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year. Naeher won 40% of the vote, while defender Naomi Girma finished in second with 32%. In her final year with the USWNT, Naeher ended 2024 with 18 starts, playing 1,170 minutes and only conceding 11 goals. She played a crucial role with clutch saves to help the USWNT win the 2024 SheBelieves Cup, 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup, and gold at the Olympics in Paris. Naeher is the second goalkeeper to win the award since Hope Solo won it in 2009.

Free Kicks

  • Manchester City forward Erling Haaland has reached an agreement with the club on a record-breaking contract that extends his deal through 2034.

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

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