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Orlando City at CF Montreal: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in a 2-0 loss to CF Montreal while north of the border?

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1 year ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City traveled north of the border to take on CF Montreal in Stade Saputo, but came away with a 2-0 road loss. The Lions were unable to replicate the performance from last week, reverting to the team that wastes shots despite taking the match to the opposition early.  Let’s look at how each individual Lion did in the defeat in Montreal.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 6 —In the early going, Gallese was sharp. He made a diving save in the 21st minute on a shot by Ariel Lassiter. He also made an easy save on a header off a corner in the 32nd minute. Orlando City did concede two goals,but neither was Gallese’s fault. The first came off a deflection off Jansson, and the other from an unmarked Romell Quioto in the box. You simply can’t leave him open like that and expect your keeper to stop the shot from that close. 

D, Kyle Smith, 5.5 — Smith had a decent night for a right back playing left back. Early on he made a good recovery to shut down an attack on his side.Unfortunately, he was the first of many Lions to earn a yellow card in the 23rd minute, when he was a little late and caught the opponent’s foot with his. In the 26th minute he blocked a cross out for a corner which amounted to nothing. He also made it into the attack and managed two crosses, though neither made a difference. He passed at a 77.3% rate on 44 passes, with three tackles, two interceptions, one clearance, and one foul. He came off in the 68th minute for Rafael Santos.

D, Robin Jansson, 4.5 — If not for giving up an own goal, Jansson didn’t have a horrible night. Of course, scoring a goal for the opposition is never good. Jansson was given the captain’s armband for the match, and mostly kept his cool — at least compared to usual. He did the things he normally does like completing three of six long balls, and making runs into the midfield to break lines. He completed 86.8% of his 38 passes, made two interceptions, and had one clearance.

D, Antonio Carlos, 6 — Last match Carlos seemed to be channeling his center back partner Jansson’s penchant for accurate long balls. This week, he completed a solid eight of 14, but none were as impactful. Defensively, he wasn’t culpable on either of the goals conceded, as he was rightly marking Chinonso Offor on Quioto’s goal, and couldn’t do anything on the own goal. That battle with Offor was a constant all match. He completed 86.4% of his 44 passes. Defensively, he made one tackle, two interceptions, and two clearances, committed two fouls,and also suffered two fouls.

D, Michael Halliday, 5.5 — Halliday was on the front foot with the rest of Orlando City in the early going. He didn’t manage as many crosses as he has in other matches — only one in this match and it was off target — but he did complete both of his long balls. In the 13th minute, he earned a foul by taking an elbow to the face, though there was no card given. He did earn a yellow card himself in the 41st minute. Halliday was one of the three defenders surrounding Quioto on his goal, though his assignment was the back post, not the middle. He completed 85% of his 20 passes, made one clearance, and committed two fouls. He attempted one shot but didn’t get it close to on target, but it was an ambitious half-volley effort.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6 — Araujo drew four fouls, made a tackle, had two interceptions, and recorded one clearance. He passed for a team-high 89.1% rate on a team-high 46 passes. I started with his stats because despite all of that, he seemed a little off. His numbers aren’t bad, but I felt he wasn’t as sharp. His frustration boiled over in the 74th minute when he committed an off-the-ball foul that resulted in a yellow card.

MF, Wilder Cartagena, 5.5 — Cartagena started out pretty well, getting good pressure in the midfield alongside Araujo. He then had a couple of giveaways, one of which earned him a foul and the other that led to a breakaway which resulted in a yellow for Halliday. It was a mixed bag for the defensive midfielder on the night. Cartagena made three key passes, four tackles, committed two fouls, and completed 85% of 40 passes. He subbed off for Felipe Martins in the 68th minute.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 6 — Angulo was his normal, pacey, willing-to-take-on-multiple-defenders, self. Once again he made some good runs into the opposition’s box, and in the 25th minute he dumped the ball back to Kara for a golden opportunity to score, but Kara wasn’t able to get the ball out cleanly. All three of his own shots were off target — a problem for most of the club. He completed 69.6% of his 23 passes, including one successful long ball and had one interception. He lost track of Herrera on the second Montreal goal. 

MF, Martin Ojeda, 6 — One of these days, Ojeda will bury a goal from outside the box on either a free kick, or during the run of play. His shot from outside the box in the 15th minute — his only attempt in the match — went wide right of the goal. Ojeda made three key passes in the match, completing 81.3% of his 32 passes. He completed all three of his long balls, and put in four crosses, with three of them accurate. Despite that, he wasn’t as sharp as he has more recently been. Orlando City’s newest DP is so close to breaking through with a goal, but it wasn’t to be against Montreal.

MF, Facundo Torres, 5.5 — In the early going Torres and the midfield were connecting passes and bothering the Montreal defense. Torres took two shots in the match, neither of which were on target. Whatever sharpness he had left over from the previous match melted away pretty quickly. He managed one key pass on the night, passing at an 86.2% rate on 29 passes. Like Ojeda he was successful on his long balls — completing five of six — but the more clinical quick pass connections in the attack were missing.

F, Ercan Kara, 6.5 (MOTM) — Kara was the only Orlando City player to put the ball on target — two of his four shots. He wasn’t able to get a good angle on the ball in the 14th minute, and sent his header straight into the ground. His free kick in the 38th minute was easily saved. He made a nice pass with his head to Torres in the 54th but Torres’ shot was blocked. His hold-up play when available was decent and he suffered three fouls. He made two key passes on the night, completing 72.7% of his 11 passes. He was only called offside once on the night.

Substitutes

MF, Felipe (68′), 5.5 — Felipe came on for Cartagena and despite only managing 19 touches, he took a shot — a free kick that sailed very high — earned a yellow card, and passed at an 86.7% rate on 15 passes. He certainly made his presence felt, but not in a good enough way for a better grade.

D, Rafael Santos (68′), 5 — Santos managed 13 touches after coming on for Smith. He added one tackle, and one interception defensively. He passed at an 87.5% rate on eight passes and managed one cross.

F, Duncan McGuire (68′), 5 — McGuire only touched the ball four times in 22 minutes and did not have a shot attempt, but did manage to suffer three fouls for his hold-up play effort. He only made one pass, which he completed. He just couldn’t impact the match.

MF, Ramiro Enrique (76′), 4.5 — Enrique was on the pitch for less than a minute after subbing in for Ojeda when he received a yellow card for a late challenge. He only managed four touches, though one of those was a shot that was nowhere near the goal. He attempted no passes. He managed an interception and committed two fouls.

MF, Gaston Gonzalez (79′), N/A — After coming on for Angulo, Gonzalez managed six touches. He didn’t play long enough to properly grade him, but he didn’t commit any needless fouls or make any other kind of mistakes.

That’s how I saw each performance from the Lions in their 2-0 loss at Stade Saputo against CF Montreal. The Lions finally got a home win, and immediately followed that up with a road loss. Who was your Man of the Match? Make sure to vote in our poll and let us know what you think in the comments!

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Lion Links: 10/29/24

MLS playoff results, USWNT prepares for Argentina, Ballon d’Or winners announced, and more.

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21 hours ago

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October 29, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Happy Tuesday, everyone! It was a great weekend, as Orlando City got its playoff campaign off to a strong start. We have a busy week ahead of us with the United States Women’s National Team in action, the Orlando Pride playing their last match of the regular season, and the Lions traveling to North Carolina for Game 2 against Charlotte FC. As usual, there’s plenty to discuss this morning, so let’s jump right in.

Keeping Up With the MLS Playoffs

The playoffs continued on Monday night, which means we have two matches to catch up on. The early fixture saw FC Cincinnati pick up a 1-0 win over New York City FC at TQL Stadium. Cincinnati had the better of things for most of the game with 22 shots (seven on target) to NYCFC’s six (two on target). In the end, Yamil Asad’s goal in the 51st minute was the decider, and NYCFC defender Tayvon Gray’s red card in stoppage time adds an extra layer of intrigue for Game 2 in New York on Saturday. The late match delivered the first scoreless draw of the postseason as the Seattle Sounders battled the Houston Dynamo to a 0-0 result in regulation, with the Sounders advancing 5-4 on penalties. To make matters worse for the Dynamo, Adalberto Carrasquilla was sent off in the 66th minute so they’ll need to find a way to keep their season alive without him as the series now shifts to Houston.

Previewing the USWNT Friendly Against Argentina

The United States Women’s National Team is having a good international window so far, starting things off with a pair of 3-1 victories over Iceland. The final game of the window will take place tomorrow when the U.S. faces Argentina in Louisville. It will be just the sixth meeting between the two teams, with the USWNT winning all five previous games, including the most recent one during the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup. Argentina is managed by German Portanova, who lines the team up in either a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3. Accordingly, the idea is to stay compact and be difficult to play through, although things have a tendency to devolve after giving up a goal, which was the case during the USWNT’s 4-0 triumph in the last match between the two sides. It’s a game the Yanks should win, and win comfortably.

Ballon d’Or Winners Announced

The Ballon d’Or ceremony took place on Monday evening in Paris, and there weren’t too many surprises in how the awards were doled out. Manchester City midfielder Rodri took home the award on the men’s side, following a year in which his club team won the Premier League and his Spanish side won the 2024 European Championship. Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati won the women’s award for the second straight year after helping her side win its second consecutive Champions League title. Orlando Pride forward Barbra finished 12th in the voting for the award.

Lamine Yamal won the Kopa Trophy for the best player under the age of 21, while Emiliano Martinez was named the best goalkeeper in the world for the second year running.

Manchester United Sacks Erik ten Hag

Manchester United announced on Monday morning that the club has fired Erik ten Hag, with Ruud van Nistelrooy named interim manager. The Red Devils were in the midst of a poor run of results to start the season, with just four wins from 13 matches played. A 2-1 defeat to West Ham on Sunday seems to have been the final straw, with the result leaving United 14th in the Premier League on 11 points after nine matches. While van Nistelrooy has taken over on an interim basis, reports have emerged that Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim is the leading candidate to get the permanent gig, with United having also reportedly asked about the availability of Brentford manager Thomas Frank.

Free Kicks

  • Emma Hayes was named 2024 Women’s Coach of the Year.

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

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Orlando City

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

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 2-0 win over Charlotte FC?

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2 days ago

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October 28, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City got its 2024 playoff campaign off to a good start with a 2-0 win over Charlotte FC. The Lions can advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second consecutive year with one more win in the series. It was a solid overall team performance, though some stood out more than others.

Let’s take a look at the individual performances in this critical victory for the boys in purple.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 6.5 — Gallese didn’t have much to do in this game because Charlotte only managed to put two of its shots on target and the Lions’ number one stopped both. He touched the ball 30 times in 90 minutes while completing 78.3% of his 23 passes, including five of his 10 long balls. There’s not much bad to say about his performance and he recorded another clean sheet.

D, Rafael Santos, 6.5 — Santos was excellent in this game, recording a team-high 83 touches. The left back completed 86.7% of his 60 passes, including two key passes, two of his five long balls, and four of his nine crosses. His cross in the 32rd minute was headed out, but only to Torres, who put it in to give the Lions a 1-0 lead. He also took one shot that was off target. Defensively, Santos recorded two tackles, an interception, and four clearances.

D, Robin Jansson, 6 — Jansson had a solid performance, recording 61 touches on the night. He had an interception, a blocked shot, and four clearances but was fortunate in the 70th minute when he was out-muscled by Patrick Agyemang, allowing the substitute to get a free header that forced Gallese into a good save. Going forward, the center back completed 98% of his 51 passes, including both long balls. While he played well, I lowered his grade a little for nearly conceding a goal, although some (including Jansson) might say he was fouled on the play.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 6.5 — Schlegel has had an up-and-down season, but the center back was excellent in this game. He recorded 67 touches, a block, and a team-high eight clearances. Offensively, the center back completed 94.3% of his 53 passes, including a key pass and seven of his eight long balls. He hit a volley well in the 64th minute that forced Kristijan Kahlina into a save and had a second shot that went off target.

D, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, 6 — Thorhallsson caused headaches for Charlotte on the right side in this game, recording 44 touches and completing 90.3% of his 31 passes, including two key passes and his lone cross. He also took a shot, but it was off target. Defensively, he added a tackle, an interception, and a clearance before coming off for Kyle Smith in the 78th minute in a defensive change.

MF, Wilder Cartagena, 6.5 — Cartagena recorded 81 touches in this game while completing 89.2% of his team-high 65 passes, including a key pass and three of his seven long balls. He also took one off-target shot. Defensively, the defensive midfielder recorded three tackles, one interception, and two clearances.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6.5 — Similar to Cartagena, you can’t say much negative about Araujo’s performance. He touched the ball 70 times and completed 91.4% of his 58 passes, including five of his seven long balls. Both of his shots were off target, but his excellent long ball in the 76th minute helped Ivan Angulo set up the second goal. He nearly had an assist with a beautiful ball for Ramiro Enrique in the 20th minute, but the striker missed wide and was ruled offside.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 6.5 — Angulo made the most of his 49 touches in this game, completing 94.4% of his 36 passes, including a key pass and his lone long ball. However, both of his cross attempts were incomplete. His biggest impact on the game came in the 76th minute when he used his speed to win a ball down the wing and played Martin Ojeda into the box for the second goal. Defensively, Angulo recorded a tackle, an interception, and a clearance before being replaced by Nico Lodeiro in the 88th minute.

MF, Martin Ojeda, 6.5 — Ojeda only touched the ball 36 times this game, the fewest of the attacking midfielders. He completed 82.6% of his 23 passes, including a key pass, two of his five crosses, and two of his three long balls. His biggest moment came in the 76th minute when he received a pass from Angulo in the box and drilled his second touch past Kahlina to put the game away. His key pass set up a golden opportunity for Facundo Torres in the 54th minute. The attacker was taken out right after the goal, making way for Luis Muriel in the 78th minute.

MF, Facundo Torres, 7 (MotM) — It was a record-tying and breaking night for Torres, who finished the game with 69 touches. He completed 91.5% of his 47 passes, including three key passes, two of his six crosses, and all five of his long balls. Three of his four shots were on target, and he did well to bring down a cleared cross before volleying it in to give the Lions a 1-0 lead. The goal tied Dom Dwyer for the most goals in club history (46) when considering both USL and MLS eras, and he set a new MLS-era record for most goals in a single season (19) across all competitions. Torres came off to a standing ovation in the 88th minute for David Brekalo.

F, Ramiro Enrqiue, 5.5 — It was a tough night for Enrique, who should have had at least one goal. He touched the ball 21 times and completed five of his 10 passes, including a key pass. He only put one of his four shots on target, missing a golden chance in the 20th minute — even though he was ruled offside — and missed the target when free on goal in the 50th minute. It was a forgettable night for the striker, who was replaced by Duncan McGuire in the 61st minute.

Substitutes

F, Duncan McGuire (61’), 5.5 — Similar to Enrique, McGuire couldn’t really find his feet in his 29 minutes of action. He touched the ball 17 times and completed eight of his 10 passes, including a key pass. He had a great chance to get behind the back line in stoppage time but couldn’t control the ball.

F, Luis Muriel (78’), 5 — Muriel came on for Ojeda right after the midfielder made it 2-0 and never really got involved in the game. He only touched the ball nine times in 12 minutes, completing 62.5% of his eight passes. He didn’t help to create any shots, nor did he take any of his own.

D, Kyle Smith (78’), 5.5 — Smith came on in the 78th minute for Thorhallsson for defensive help. The right back touched the ball nine times and completed 66.7% of his six passes. He also didn’t record any defensive statistics in the 12 minutes on the field, but he did help see out the final minutes of the match with some strong play to maintain possession.

MF, Nico Lodeiro (88’), N/A — Lodeiro was one of the more effective substitutes, though he was only on for the final minutes and didn’t play long enough to warrant a grade. Replacing Angulo, the midfielder touched the ball seven times and completed 85.7% of his seven passes.

D, David Brekalo (88’), N/A — Brekalo came on in the 88th minute for Torres as the Lions went to three center backs to see out the game. He only touched the ball five times and completed two of his three passes while recording a clearance, which was his purpose for entering.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in tonight’s win for the Lions. Let us know how you saw the game in the comments and don’t forget to vote for your Man of the Match.

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Five Takeaways

Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 2-0 home playoff victory over Charlotte FC.

Published

2 days ago

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October 28, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City kicked off its run in the 2024 Major League Soccer playoffs with a first-round opening victory at home in front of a fiery crowd by a score of 2-0 over Charlotte FC. Much had been made about the contrasting styles of play between the two sides heading into the match, with Orlando sporting one of the best attacks in all of MLS since league play resumed after the Leagues Cup break and Charlotte boasting the second-best defense by goals allowed throughout the regular season.

The Lions ultimately imposed their will on the match and what follows are our five takeaways from a game that Orlando essentially controlled from the opening kick.

Wasteful Opportunities Early

For the first 15 to 20 minutes of the game, Orlando missed multiple golden chances that could have come back to bite the Lions in the behind. Multiple Lions had decent looks on goal and shot wide, high, or directly at Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina. Ramiro Enrique’s final touch seemed just a tad off in the early portion of the match, and Orlando failed to find the end of a few strong crosses across the box from Martin Ojeda and Rafael Santos. Luckily, none of the early miscues mattered much at the end of the game, but if the Lions are lucky enough to advance to the next round and a single-elimination game, lacking sharpness could lead to an unfortunate exit from the playoffs.

Torres Breaks Through

It was always going to be Designated Player Facundo Torres who found the net first for Orlando City, because of course, it had to be. Torres grew into the game over the first 30 minutes of the match, and for a few moments I thought he might find the first assist of the game from a series of short corner set pieces. Instead, Torres found paydirt in the 32nd minute as he was the first player to arrive at poor attempt at a clearance from the Charlotte back line following a dangerous cross sent in by Santos. El Cuervo quickly pulled the trigger, blasting the ball off the bottom of the crossbar and in for the first goal of the game.

Torres has been chasing records all year long, and with that goal, he became the all-time single-season goal scorer in Orlando City history with 19 across all competitions. It was also his third goal against Charlotte in 2024, as he scored in each of the three meetings between the teams this season. Continuing that trend was an important step toward getting the series started on the right foot.

Ojeda Extends the Lead

The strong play of Designated Player Martin Ojeda has been one of the main reasons that the OCSC attack has been so potent over the last two months. In the first playoff match against Charlotte, Ojeda continued his strong run of form and would/should have recorded at least one assist in the first half if the team could have been a tad more clinical. Nonetheless, Ojeda left his mark on the match in the 76th minute. Running on fumes, Ojeda had a ball played past him by Cesar Araujo on the sideline and wisely made no attempt on the ball as he was in an offside position. His non-action allowed Ivan Angulo to streak down the sideline at breakneck speed to reach the ball, and once he did, Ojeda had recycled into an onside position. He then took a crafty pass from Angulo and ripped a shot inside the near post past Kahlina.

The goal gave Orlando a bit of breathing room as the game entered its final moments and also marked the first time in club history that the team had scored more than one goal in a playoff match.

Defensive Cohesiveness

Much will be made over the coming week about the Orlando City attack, and rightly so, but an understated piece of what made the Lions so successful in their first game of the 2024 playoffs was the cohesiveness demonstrated across the back line and defensive midfield. Having Wilder Cartagena back in the lineup surely did not hurt things from a defensive standpoint, but I felt that the entire back line communicated effectively and covered one another quite well throughout the match. Orlando did well in the possession department during the first half, and not many questions were asked of the defense, but in the first 20 minutes of the second half, the defense stepped up multiple times to snuff out any remote possibilities that could have generated hope for the visitors. They say that defense wins championships, and Orlando showed just how steadfast its defense could be.

Playoff Clean Sheet

Orlando goalkeeper Pedro Gallese has now recorded three clean sheets across three first-round playoff matches going back to the implementation of the new best-of-three format that started last year. Charlotte was only able to put two of its nine attempts on target, but regardless of the volume, Gallese did well to position himself at the right place and at the right time. I thought Gallese did a particularly good job of being decisive on the night and chose his moments wisely to come off his line to collect the ball, or at a minimum, get a glove on it to disrupt Charlotte’s attacking pieces. A playoff clean sheet should always be celebrated, and for me, it was the cherry on top of a very satisfying sundae.

That is what stood out to me most from a complete performance by Orlando City in the first matchup against Charlotte FC in this best-of-three series. Was there anything else in particular that caught your eye throughout the match? Let us know in the comments below and as always, vamos Orlando!

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