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Orlando City vs. Minnesota United FC: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions grade out in a come from behind road victory?

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4 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After a two-week hiatus, Orlando City traveled north for what could be considered a frigid clash on the pitch against Minnesota Untied. What started as an uneventful match ended in a flurry of goals during the last half hour and ultimately led to Orlando City returning to the City Beautiful with three much-needed points from a 2-1 road win. Here is how we saw OCSC’s performances in Saturday’s road victory at Minnesota.

GK, Pedro Gallese, 7 – El Pulpo did well for a significant portion of the match to keep the game level. Gallese faced 17 shots, with four of them on target. He recorded three saves in the game and the lone goal that Minnesota scored was so clinical and well placed that he had no shot at getting a body part on the ball. His best save of the game came in the 85th minute of the match, when he used his core to block a shot attempt from point blank range from Fanco Fragapane. With an expected goals against of 2.34, holding Minnesota to one is an accomplishment, although some of that was a lack of ruthlessness by the hosts. Gallese completed 70% of his passes and five of 11 long balls.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 6 – The new father joined forces with fellow center backs Jansson and Carlos on the back line for Orlando City during the away match, logging a full 90 minutes. Out of the back, Schlegel passed at an 81.1% clip including one accurate long ball on four attempts. He committed two fouls on the night and recorded four successful tackles and five clearances. He was partly responsible on Minnesota’s goal, watching Robin Lod, while Hassani Dotson cut in behind him to take the pass and pull Orlando’s defense out of shape. Dotson took Lod’s pass and was able to send in the dangerous pass across the box for the Loons’ goal.

D, Robin Jansson, 6 – Jansson went the full 90 minutes and completed 86.8% of his passes on the night, including two successful long ball passes, albeit on eight attempts. Jansson recorded one interception and no successful duels, with four clearances and one blocked shot. His error while marking Mender Garcia on a long ball early in the match gave Minnesota a golden opportunity to open the scoring, but Bongokuhle Hlongwane muffed his chance. He was also unable to prevent the cross that led to the Loons’ easy goal in the second half as he tried to cover for Schlegel.

D, Antonio Carlos, 6.5 – A welcome sign for Orlando City fans everywhere, not only was AC back in the starting lineup for the first time this season, but he also went the full 90 minutes. Carlos completed 85.2% of his passes on the night and logged an impressive seven successful long balls in the match on nine attempts. AC also logged two interceptions, two clearances, two blocked shots, and two aerials won. He attempted one shot at the other end. Perhaps his biggest contribution was an excellent switch of play to Gaston Gonzalez that started the sequence on the equalizing goal.

MF, Gaston Gonzalez, 6 – Gonzalez drew the start on the left side for this match. His long crossing pass to Ivan Angulo was responsible for Orlando City’s equalizer, but he struggled at times to free himself up for clean crosses and sent several into the shins of Minnesota fullback DJ Taylor. Gonzalez completed 77.4% of his passes but was dispossessed twice and led the team with four unstable touches. He only completed one successful dribble but won two corners for Orlando City. If Gonzalez is going to be in the starting XI, City will need the winger to be more technical and decisive on the field in the attacking half, but he at least acquitted himself well overall on the defensive end with two tackles, an interception, three clearances, and one blocked shot.

MF, Maurico Pererya, 6.5 – The captain saw the field for the first 87 minutes of the match before eventually being subbed off for Dagur Dan Thorhallsson right before Orlando City scored the go-ahead goal. He completed 83.6% of his passes, was credited with one shot — which was blocked — and committed one foul while drawing two. Pereyra was also credited with an assist, his third of the year, as he had the secondary pass on Angulo’s goal. He had no key passes but two dribbles on the night. Defensively he recorded three tackles, an interception, a clearance, and one aerial won.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6.5 – Araujo put in the type of blue collar effort that Orlando City fans have come to know and expect from the defensive midfielder. A steady force in the midfield is important for a team that tends to build out of the back, and Araujo passed at an 87.7% clip on the night and completed four of his six long balls. Additionally, Araujo drew six fouls while only committing one. He logged two successful tackles and an interception. He has shown time and again that his motor never stops and while the end product is not always sexy or flashy, it is exactly the steadying force that Orlando needs.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 7 (MotM) — Angulo’s growth and development on the year so far was put on display from the opening whistle of the match. When acquired last year, fans came to know Angulo for his speed and desire to take multiple players off the dribble. Playing as a wingback, Angulo had a mixed defensive performance, snuffing out multiple attacks but also getting bested by Hlongwane multiple times down his side of the pitch. One of those nearly resulted in a Lod goal but the Finnish winger got under his shot. After being beaten by Hlongwane on a back-post run in the 58th minute, Angulo switched into a different gear and in the 66th minute slotted home a beautiful shot on a cross from Gonzalez to draw the club level. In the 88th minute, from almost the exact same location, he took a cross from Facundo Torres and found himself 1-v-1 with Minnesota goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair. This time, instead of smashing a rocket blast, Angulo tried to chip the keeper for what looked to be his second goal of the night. The ball instead clanked off the crossbar, but fell to the head of Duncan McGuire for the go-ahead goal. Angulo passed at 72.7% rate with one key pass and one successful cross on two attempts. He attempted two shots, getting one on target. Defensively, Angulo recorded two tackles and two clearances.

MF, Facundo Torres, 5.5 — Orlando City needs Torres to find his way on the field, as he was invisible throughout most of the match. Going the full 90 for OCSC, Torres passed at 78.4% accuracy, went 0-for-2 on crossing accuracy, 2-for-2 on long-ball accuracy, and created one chance with a key pass. The Uruguayan Young Designated Player recorded only one shot which was well off target. He chipped in defensively with four tackles and a clearance, committing one foul without drawing any, and he was dispossessed once and had two unstable touches. Defenders are ready for Torres’ favorite move, his cut back to the middle of the field, and are taking that motion away from him outside of the box. As the Lions head into the dog days of summer, they desperately need Torres to find his goal-creating form. He helped set one up Saturday in Minnesota, but only because his cross for McGuire was a bit too high.

MF, Martin Ojeda, 6.5 — Ojeda logged two shots on the night, one which was blocked and the other off target. He completed a solid 81.5% of his passes and was part of the buildup on the equalizing goal, dropping a layoff for Pereyra to send Gonzalez down the left flank. Ojeda led the Lions with four key passes, and was accurate on three of five cross attempts and one of his two long balls. He was dispossessed once and had three unstable touches. Defensively, he recorded one tackle, one interception, and two clearances on the night. Once Orlando City equalized, Ojeda was subbed off for Felipe in a more defensive-minded move aimed at coming home with at least a point.

F, Ramiro Enrique, 6 — Enrique was given the start up top once again and tried to use his speed and positioning to track down balls and hold up play. He took a team-high three shots but none were on target, having one of them blocked. He scompleted 78.3% of his 23 passes while drawing one foul and committing one as well. He also logged three tackles and a clearance on the defensive end and won four aerials. Enrique was subbed off in the 75th minute for McGuire.

Substitutes

MF, Felipe (70′), 6.5 — Felipe came on for Ojeda in the 70th minute to provide an additional defensive presence in the midfield. In his 20 minutes of game time, Felipe completed 91.7% of his passes, including a ridiculous through ball that the attack should have done more with. Defensively, he contributed a clearance in the game’s late stages.

F, Duncan McGuire (75′), 7 — Orlando runs on Duncan. The MLS Super Draft pick subbed on in the 75th minute for Enrique and once again made his presence known with his smart positioning and his late go-ahead header. One of his more mature moments came in stoppage time, when he found himself 1-v-1 in the penalty area with defender Michael Boxall. Rather than trying to ice the match and potentially giving up possession, the rookie calmly took the ball to the corner and burned up a few more valuable seconds.

D, Luca Petrasso (86′), N/A — Petrasso came on in the 86th minute as an additional defensive substitute to spell Gonzalez and ensure that Orlando would not concede a second goal on the road. He did better than that, working a nifty play up the left sideline with Thorhallsson that broke Minnesota’s pressure and eventually led to the game-winning goal. He completed three of his four passing attempts and only touched the ball those four times.

MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson (87′), N/A — Thorhallsson was a late sub replacing the captain in the 87th minute. He completed 63% of his six passes on eight touches and successfully completed one dribble. He and Petrasso worked their play along the sideline to perfection and unleashed Torres down the left flank on the game-winning play.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in the come from behind road victory over Minnesota United FC. Let me know how you saw things in the comments, and be sure to vote in the Man of the Match poll below.

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Lion Links: 10/29/26

Orlando City draws Chicago Fire, MLS results amid playoff push, U.S. faces Spain in U-17 Women’s World Cup today, and more.

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38 minutes ago

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October 29, 2026

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Image of the starters for Orlando City at Chicago.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

The pressure cooker on Orlando City’s playoff hopes was turned up another notch or two after Wednesday night’s result, but things could definitely be worse. Maybe that’s just the optimism speaking. It’s nothing brutalizing a stress ball and shouting into the void on the commute to work can’t fix. Let’s dive right into that frustrating game and more in today’s links!

Orlando City Blows Another Lead in Draw

The Lions had to settle for a 2-2 draw on the road against the Chicago Fire in another tough result to swallow. Orlando came out swinging and had two goals before halftime, but the team conceded twice in the second half and failed to find a winner. It was another strong showing from Antoine Griezmann and a draw on the road against a good team isn’t awful in a vacuum, but more dropped points leave the Lions holding on for dear life in the playoff race. They’ll be back in action on Saturday for a Halloween showdown with Charlotte FC.

Eastern Conference Playoff Picture Takes Shape

As the MLS season winds down, more teams are securing their spots in the playoffs or learning they won’t be taking part in the postseason. Charlotte clinched after a 4-0 win over CF Montreal that included a hat trick by Liel Abada, while the Philadelphia Union qualified after a scoreless draw with Nashville SC. The New York Red Bulls losing 3-2 to the New England Revolution was helpful for Orlando City, but Toronto FC and the Columbus Crew both closed the gap by beating D.C. United and FC Dallas, respectively. FC Cincinnati’s 2-2 draw with Inter Miami has Cincy level on points with Orlando as well, with Orlando holding a narrow tiebreaker. New York City FC stayed alive by winning 2-1 against Atlanta United, eliminating the Five Stripes in the process.

U.S. Takes On Spain in U-17 Women’s World Cup

The United States U-17 Women’s National Team will play Spain today in the round of 16 of the U-17 Women’s World Cup. The U.S. finished second in its group following a 3-2 loss to China PR and will now go up against a Spain team that has won every game so far. It should be a tough match, but the U.S. has scored a whopping 25 goals across three games. Maddie DiMaria leads the team with 11 goals, and hopefully she can lead the offense to a win.

Keeping Up With Americans Abroad

Christian Pulisic has reportedly agreed to a contract extension with AC Milan that will last through June of 2031. He scored his second goal of the season on Sunday, so hopefully he can keep the momentum rolling. Elsewhere in Italy, Juventus is reportedly interested in adding American forward Folarin Balogun to its offense this winter, meaning we could see him link up with midfielder Weston McKennie at the club level. Borussia Monchengladbach defender Joe Scally had an assist in the team’s 2-0 win over Karlsruher in the German Cup as well. You should also make sure to check out Lily Yohannes’ incredible goal from OL Lyonnes’s 6-0 win over Inter in the UEFA Women’s Champions League. She makes it look so easy.

Free Kicks

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

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Orlando City vs. Chicago Fire: Final Score 2-2 as Lions Blow Two-Goal Lead in Chicago

Orlando City jumped out to a 2-0 lead but blew its third lead in the last four matches to spill more valuable points.

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8 hours ago

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October 28, 2026

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Image of Antoine Griezmann playing against Chicago.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After dropping two points at the death Saturday against New York City FC, Orlando City entered Wednesday night’s game against the Chicago Fire at Soldier Field needing a win and a Dallas win over Columbus to clinch a seventh consecutive playoff berth. For a while, it seemed that the Lions would take care of their part of that scenario, but despite jumping out to a 2-0 lead against the run of play, Orlando City (12-13-7, 43 points) conceded twice in the second half to finish in a 2-2 draw on the road against the Chicago Fire (15-10-7, 52 points).

Ivan Angulo and Antoine Griezmann provided a couple of moments of magic to lead the Lions to a 2-0 halftime advantage. But Jonathan Bamba and Maren Haile-Selasse struck back for a Chicago team that had plenty of opportunities to take even more from the game than a single point.

“It was a first half where the guys performed and did a complete job,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the game. “In the second half, we are facing a really good team. I think we did fine. We couldn’t do as well as we want. We competed – it’s a point and we’re not happy.”

This has been a common statement the last couple of weeks as Orlando has given up the lead three times in four games, conceding the tying goal at Toronto in the 90th minute on Oct. 14, in the 10th minute of stoppage time Saturday vs. New York City FC, and tonight in the 69th minute, as the Lions have dropped six points from a winning position in the last four matches.

Perelman made three changes for this game from the team that started on Saturday at home. Maxime Crepeau continued his hot second half of the season in goal behind a back line of Vinicius Nogueira, David Brekalo, Iago, and Zakaria Taifi. Luis Otavio and Braian Ojeda started in the central midfield (with Eduard Atuesta out with a suspension for yellow card accumulation) with Angulo and Justin Ellis filling the outside channels as the wingers. Martin Ojeda and Griezmann started up top.

The game started with a ton of pressure from Chicago. Three opportunities in the first 60 seconds was a worrying way to start, and Orlando never really got anything put together on the offensive end until Griezmann turned Angulo loose down the left side in the sixth minute. Angulo pushed his way into the box, held off Leonardo Barroso, and slotted the opening goal inside the far post.

Chicago continued the onslaught of possession for the next five minutes until Griezmann took the ball into the box but couldn’t get anything on his first-time shot after trying to gather in a pass that was a bit behind him. That provided no relief to Orlando, and at the 15-minute mark, Anton Saletros, given too much space outside the area, ripped a shot on goal that a fully outstretched Crepeau was able to parry away with a big diving save. It was the Fire’s first real threat, even with all their pressure.

Robert Lewandowski volleyed a cross off the far post in the 18th minute as the Lions could find no way to maintain possession and get themselves some rest. Brekalo lunged in for a tackle on Lewandowski in the 20th minute and gave away a free kick from 25 yards away but Philip Zinckernagel fired it over the crossbar.

The only threat Orlando showed was on counters and, in the 24th minute, Otavio broke down the left side and tried to cross it in to Martin Ojeda, but it was deflected out for a corner. Five minutes later, Sergio Oregel Jr. hacked down Griezmann outside the box and picked up a yellow card. Martin Ojeda fired the ensuing free kick through the wall but right at goalkeeper Chris Brady and he didn’t allow a rebound.

In the 33rd minute, Barroso crossed it to Saletros in the center of the box but his header went over the crossbar. On the ensuing possession by the Lions, Griezmann waited for the back line to drop and put him back onside, took a Nogueira pass at the 35-minute mark, touched the ball left to use the defender as a screen, and fired a 25-yarder to the top left corner that Brady had no shot to get to. Orlando could not possess the ball all game but seemed to find gaps on counters, and Griezmann scored in his fifth straight game to go with his earlier assist.

Things almost went sideways for Orlando as the first half wrapped to a close. Jack Elliott fouled Justin Ellis hard at the 45-minute mark, and picked up a yellow card for it, but Ellis responded with a kick out at Elliott. It was soft, but the video assistant referee called referee Marcos de Oliveira over to the monitor to review it, and he chose to issue Ellis a yellow card. Issuing a red card would’ve been harsh but justified.

Chicago owned the first half stats, leading in possession (58%-42%), shots (12-6), passing accuracy (91%-87%), and corners (2-1). Orlando led in shots on target (4-3) and obviously the most important stat, holding a 2-0 lead.

At the half, Bamba came on for Oregel. Chicago continued its bad behavior of not sharing the ball to start the second half. When the Lions finally got the ball, Martin Ojeda was turned loose down the middle by Angulo in the 51st minute, but he couldn’t gather the ball at a good angle and ended up taking a tight-angled shot that missed the target. Bamba fired one over the crossbar on a pass from Anzor Mekvabishvili on the ensuing possession.

All Orlando could do over the next few minutes was clear the ball out of the defensive areas, either for corners or throw-ins. Finally, the wall broke under the pressure, and in the 57th minute Barroso chased down a wide clearance and crossed it to Bamba, who headed it past Crepeau.

Brekalo failed to run out a wayward pass by Iago in the 62nd minute, which luckily turned into nothing but was emblematic of Orlando’s inability to secure and retain the ball. Martin Ojeda ran offside on a through ball on the possession after that, and that was Orlando’s only real threat in the first 15 minutes of the second half. Lewandowski was slipped in by Saletros in the 66th minute, but he fired it wide right as his scoreless streak continued.

The ongoing field tilt eventually broke again in the 69th minute as Haile-Selassie fired one past Crepeau once Bamba laid it off for him at the back post.

That second Chicago goal was the 74th conceded by Orlando in 2026, tying the club’s single-season record for most goals conceded set back in 2018. There are two matches remaining and both against teams in the top five of the Eastern Conference.

Chicago continued to own the ball and Brekalo, who had been flirting with a card all night, picked one up in the 76th minute for shouldering Lewandowski in the chest to the ground to prevent a dangerous counter. Orlando City then subbed in Daryl Dike for Ellis as the first sub of the game — well after the state of the game had changed, and quite late for a team that had played just three days earlier.

At the 80-minute mark, Haile-Selassie shook off emergency defending from Dike on the wing and centered the ball to Philip Zinckernagel. He fired a shot at the back post but didn’t get enough bend on it and it went wide.

Perelman finally brought on more fresh legs in the 82nd minute by subbing in Adrian Marin for Nogueira and Marco Pasalic for Martin Ojeda. Chicago also swapped two out, putting Jonathan Dean in for Barroso and Noah Allen in for Andrew Gutman.

Dike’s presence as a true target forward allowed Orlando to hold up play once or twice and relieve pressure. It didn’t change the overall tenor, but it did provide minimal relief as it provided an outlet the team hadn’t had.

Bamba continued to try to take over the game and rifled one from outside the box in the 89th minute but it was blocked. The block led to a counter by Orlando City but Pasalic’s shot was wasted high and right.

As the teams were lining up for a corner in the third minute of added time, Perelman broke convention and subbed in Wilder Cartagena for Braian Ojeda to bring in height. In the recycling action after the corner, Puso Dithejane beat Marin down the right side and crossed a ball to Bamba at the spot. Bamba scuffed it softly right to Crepeau as the last threatening action of the game.

The stats told the same story at the end of the game that they did at halftime. Chicago led in possession (59%-41%), shots (21-9), passing accuracy (90%-84%), and corners (8-3), while shots on target were tied (6-6).

“We started strong but unfortunately had a bad second half and conceded two goals because we dropped our level,” Otavio said.

“I think this group of players has been fighting a lot. Now we’re at the end, fighting to secure that (playoff) spot,” Perelman said. “I think it’s important to remind (everyone) where we come from, how did we start the season, and where we are now. The entire club gave effort during the season to earn every point we have and we’ll do the same thing to finish the season.”

With the draw, Orlando remains in seventh, tied with Cincinnati in eighth on points, but holding a slight edge in the wins tiebreaker.

The Lions complete their two-game road trip in Charlotte on Saturday afternoon.

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Orlando City

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

The Lions visit Soldier Field looking for an elusive road victory against one of the best teams in the East.

Published

21 hours ago

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October 28, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match thread and preview for a midweek matchup between Orlando City (12-13-6, 42 points) and the Chicago Fire (15-10-6, 51 points) at Soldier Field (8:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the second of the two meetings this season between the two Eastern Conference clubs.

Here’s what you need to know about the match.

History

The Lions are 8-7-8 in 23 MLS regular-season meetings with the Fire and 8-9-8 in all competitions. Orlando City is 3-3-5 against the Fire on the road in the regular season and 3-5-5 away vs. Chicago in all competitions. The Lions are 0-3-1 in the last four meetings in all competitions.

The teams last met on Aug. 19 with the Fire winning 2-1 in Orlando. Severe weather delayed the start for about 90 minutes, and when things got going, Puso Dithejane put the visitors on top inside the first five minutes. A David Bekalo goal tied things up early in the second half, but Robin Jansson’s silly challenge in the box gave Robert Lewandowski the chance Chicago needed to put his team ahead from the spot, which he did.

These teams met in the wild card matchup to start the 2025 Eastern Conference playoffs last season. The Fire ended Orlando’s season with a 3-1 win, blowing open a game that was scoreless at the break. Brian Gutierrez struck early in the second half and Hugo Cuypers added a brace. Tyrese Spicer spoiled the playoff shutout.

The last regular-season meeting of 2025 took place in Orlando on May 31, with Chicago winning 3-1 at Inter&Co Stadium. Orlando did not cover itself in glory, with Pedro Gallese allowing Philip Zinckernagel’s shot to slip right between his hands and in for the first goal. Cuypers scored a brace with the two goals coming just a minute apart as Chicago built a 3-0 lead in the first half. Alex Freeman scored a consolation goal for the Lions. Assistant Coach Diego Torres skippered the Lions that night in place of the suspended Oscar Pareja.

The first meeting of last season took place May 3. Despite Fire goalkeeper Chris Brady getting sent off before halftime for fouling Duncan McGuire and denying him a goal-scoring opportunity, the teams played to a 0-0 draw, as Orlando City simply couldn’t find any precision in front of goal.

These two teams met in Orlando on June 22, 2024, with the Lions capturing a 4-2 home victory. Facundo Torres scored a brace, with Luis Muriel (from the penalty spot) and Ivan Angulo adding goals to offset a penalty by Maren Haile-Selassie (after a Rodrigo Schlegel handball in the box) and a goal by Cuypers.

The two sides clashed at Soldier Field on May 29, playing to a 1-1 draw. Torres opened the scoring early, and the Lions should have had a penalty late in the first half when Angulo was clipped while in alone on a goal after rounding the goalkeeper, but the video assistant referee did not overturn the no-call on the field, and referee Malik Badawi did not look at the play himself. The Fire tied the match in the final 20 minutes on a Cuypers goal.

The Lions swept the two-game season series in 2023 by identical 3-1 scorelines. On Aug. 21, Orlando City got goals from Wilder Cartagena, Angulo, and Torres (from the penalty spot) to overcome a 1-0 deficit supplied by Mauricio Pineda, winning on the road.

When the teams met in Orlando, the Lions rode a Torres brace to a 3-1 win on July 1. Xherdan Shaqiri pulled a goal back from the penalty spot after a Kyle Smith foul in the box against Gutierrez, but Ramiro Enrique added an insurance goal.

Orlando City claimed a 1-0 victory at Exploria Stadium on April 9, 2022 on Ercan Kara’s first MLS goal. The two sides met at Soldier Field just over a month prior to that match and played, officially, to a 0-0 draw on March 5. The game is another Orlando City match that will live in infamy due to the Professional Referee Organization’s statement after the game that Junior Urso’s goal should not have been overturned upon video review by Ismir Pekmic due to Kara not having clearly and obviously handled the ball in the buildup in any of the available replay angles. Alas…

The teams met in Orlando on Aug. 21, 2021, with a second-half Benji Michel strike lifting the Lions to a 1-0 victory. Tesho Akindele set up the play by forcing a turnover. In that year’s meeting at Soldier Field, the Fire got the better of the Lions to the tune of 3-1 on July 7. Andres Perea scored his first career MLS goal to open the scoring, but a defensive lapse in first-half stoppage allowed Boris Sekulic to equalize. Chicago rode that momentum, adding goals by Robert Beric and Chinonso Offor.

The Lions were 0-4-4 in the eight meetings before smashing the Fire 4-1 in Orlando on Sept. 19, 2020. Orlando City withstood two Chicago penalties and saw two Fire goals overturned by video review in that rain-soaked match. (Weird things usually happen when Chicago and Orlando meet, in case it wasn’t clear from the preceding paragraphs.) The Lions got goals from Chris Mueller, Nani, Urso, and Michel, while Chicago had only a Beric penalty to show for an otherwise good offensive performance.

In the last meeting of 2019, the Fire won on the road. It was a debacle for the Lions, who lost Jansson to a back/neck injury early and shipped a handful of goals in a 5-2 home loss in the regular-season finale. Orlando got goals from Akindele and Michel but largely played like a team that couldn’t wait to end its season. Chicago got an own goal from Orlando’s Smith and strikes from CJ Sapong, Aleksandar Katai, and Przemyslaw Frankowski (twice) in the rout.

Orlando City was seconds away from a road win on March 9, 2019 before Sapong’s free header in the 95th minute leveled things in a 1-1 draw in Chicago. Dom Dwyer scored Orlando’s goal.

In 2018, the Fire swept the season series. Orlando fell 2-1 at home on May 26, 2018, with Alan Gordon’s wondergoal breaking a 1-1 deadlock. The return leg in Chicago that September was an abysmal performance by Orlando in a 4-0 Fire victory.

Chicago went 1-0-1 in 2017, with the teams playing to a 0-0 draw on June 4, 2017, with the Lions reduced to nine men. The previous 2017 meeting was the Fire’s 4-0 beatdown of Orlando on June 24 of that year. David Accam figured in all four goals, with a hat trick and an assist on Nemanja Nikolić’s goal.

The teams split the points in 2016, drawing both meetings, 1-1 in Orlando and 2-2 in Chicago.

The teams met once in Orlando in 2015, with the Lions and Fire battling to a 1-1 draw. You may recall that five-hour, weather-delayed affair with Eric Gehrig’s own-goal canceling out an Accam strike. The other three meetings came in Chicago, with City winning 3-2 and 1-0 in MLS matches and falling 3-1 in U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal action.

Overview

The Lions are coming off a disappointing 2-2 home draw against New York City FC on Saturday. Orlando City was seconds from an important win when Jonathan Shore’s shot through traffic from the top of the area found its way through all the legs and just inside the left post. The Lions have gone 2-0-2 in their last four, however, even though they haven’t won a road match since Sept. 9 at Atlanta. The Lions are 3-9-3 away from home this season. On the bright side, Antoine Griezmann has scored in four consecutive games and Martin Ojeda has found the net in each of the last three. Defense continues to be an issue, and the team’s biggest problem on the road, as Orlando City has conceded 21 goals in its last seven away matches against MLS competition (six MLS games and a U.S. Open Cup semifinal at Philadelphia). That’s three goals per game on average in that span, and that’s bad.

The Chicago Fire are one of the top four teams in the Eastern Conference and have clinched a playoff spot already. They can still improve or move down in the standings, so there will be no letup from tonight’s hosts, who are 9-5-1 at home this season. Chicago is coming off a 3-2 win Saturday at Atlanta United. That win snapped a two-game skid as the Fire had dropped tight games to New England and Philadelphia.

Beating Chicago means trying to contain a dynamic offense led by Lewandowski, Zinckernagel, Maren Haile-Selassie, Dithejane, Jonathan Bamba, and others. But this isni’t strictly an attacking team, as the Fire have also conceded the fourth-fewest goals in the conference.

To get a result tonight, Orlando City will have to continue finding the net and get at least a semi-competent defensive effort in front of goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau, who has almost singlehandedly kept his team in contention for points with vital saves since the restart after the World Cup break.

The Lions will be without Eduard Atuesta (suspension), Jansson (foot), Griffin Dorsey (back), and Spicer (foot). Chicago will be without André Franco (lower body), Mbekezeli Mbokazi (suspension), Dje D’Avila (suspension), Robin Lod (lower body), and Sam Rogers (lower body).

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Vinicius Nogueira, Iago, David Brekalo, Zakaria Taifi.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Luis Otavio, Braian Ojeda, Justin Ellis.

Forwards: Martin Ojeda, Antoine Griezmann.

Bench: Javier Otero, Bernardo Rhein, Adrian Marin, Nolan Miller, Wilder Cartagena, Joran Gerbet, Marco Pasalic, Tiago, Daryl Dike.

Chicago Fire (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Chris Brady.

Defenders: Andrew Gutman, Jack Elliott, Andreas Hanche-Olsen, Leonardo Barroso.

Midfielders: Anton Saletros, Anzor Mekvabishvili, Sergio Oregel.

Forwards: Maren Haile-Selassie, Robert Lewandowski, Philip Zinckernagel.

Bench: Josh Cohen, Jonathan Dean, Noah Allen, Mauricio Pineda, David Poreba, Jonathan Bamba, Andre Franco, Puso Dithejane, Johan Gomez.

Referees

Ref: Marcos DeOliveira.
AR1: Nick Uranga.
AR2: Jose Da Silva.
4th: Lukasz Szpala.
VAR: Timothy Ford.
AVAR: Craig Lowry.

How to Watch

Match Time: 8:30 p.m.

Venue: Soldier Field — Chicago.

TV/Streaming: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the game. Go City!

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