Lion Links: 4/17/23

Merry Monday morning, Mane Landers. What a roller coaster of a weekend it was. The Pride repeated the disappointment of the week before, and the Lions mounted an exciting comeback victory against former Orlando City gaffer Adrian Heath. 

There were other results as well, but we’ll get to them as we get to the links.

McGuire Makes Good

I’m going to let you know a few things about Duncan McGuire that you might not have known. He has two goals on six shots. Of his six shots, every single one is on target. Additionally, he has scored more goals per minute than any other Lion so far this season, with two in only 195 minutes. McGuire has shown a nose for being in the right place to get the rebound goal, which is something that you want from a number nine. He also has some pace, especially when he comes in late in the game. Is he going to be the starting number nine anytime soon? Maybe not. But he has proven how effective he can be late in matches and that’s nothing to snort at.

Collins’ Patience Pays Off

Kaylie Collins got her first NWSL start in the Pride’s 2-0 loss to Gotham FC, but to be fair, she didn’t know until shortly before the match. Collins did an excellent job for longer than most keepers are expected to do before second-half stoppage time. Yes, there were two goals very, very late, but they weren’t necessarily on Collins. Regardless, she held down the fort during normal time and didn’t concede in the run of play until the 17th minute (!) of stoppage. The experience will help her and the Pride going forward. It will be interesting if we see her back in the starting lineup in the near future.

OCB Suffers First Loss of the Season

Orlando City B started the season in an unprecedented manner with three straight wins to open the 2023 campaign. On Sunday night, the team came crashing back down to reality with a 3-1 road loss to Atlanta United 2. Now, the Young Lions will need to pick themselves back up and focus on the next game. Sometimes things just don’t go your way. That is hopefully what happened for OCB on Sunday, and the squad will get back on track next week.

Central Florida Crusaders Swept on Sunday

It seems to be a weekend of firsts, as the Central Florida Crusaders men’s team suffered its first loss of the season, 9-6 to the Memphis Americans. Fortunately, the Crusaders have already qualified for the playoffs, plus it’s hard to go undefeated, no matter who you are or what league you’re in. The loss came one day after the Crusaders needed an overtime goal to keep its unbeaten record.

Unfortunately, the women followed suit with a 9-1 loss to the Memphis Americans in their own match and lost twice over the weekend. The Crusaders women are still looking to lock up their own playoff spot.

Free Kick

• Former Lion Daryl Dike has sustained another injury. This time it’s a tough Achilles injury that will mean the striker misses the remainder of the season.
• Did you try to watch the Orlando Pride match last night? If so, you may have noticed that coverage didn’t start until about the 40th minute. This is a technical issue that Paramount+ is working on. Let’s hope it’s fixed by next week.
• With forward Paul Arriola and midfielder Cristian Roldan out, Paxton Pomykal has been added to the USMNT roster for the inaugural Allstate Continental Clásico.
• The USWNT’s Julie Ertz has signed with Angel FC. She was away from the game for over a year, but has now returned and needs to get in some club games ahead of the World Cup.
• The Houston Dynamo have claimed defender Chase Gasper off waivers. Gasper was originally drafted by Minnesota United FC with the 15th overall pick in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft but had most recently been with the LA Galaxy.
• Plenty happened over the weekend in the European leagues, and if you missed it, you can catch up here.
• Hertha Berlin has brought back Pál Dárdai for a third stint as manager following the firing of Sandro Schwarz.
• Ciro Immobile was injured following  a collision between a tram and a car. He currently plays for Lazio in Italy’s Serie A.
• El Trafico went LAFC’s way for the first time on the road. Congratulations, I guess.

That’s all I’ve got for you today. Hopefully you can get your week off to a great start today. The USMNT and the Orlando Pride both play on Wednesday, Orlando City hosts D.C. United on Saturday, and OCB and the Pride will both be in action on Sunday.