Lion Links: 5/8/23

Welcome to Monday, Mane Landers. It’s the start of the work week and a rare Monday post from myself. The Pride grabbed a win this weekend, but both the men’s teams failed to grab a point. Perhaps they will kick their work week off on the right foot in preparation for a Tuesday night U.S. Open Cup match. For those of you who missed the matches, be sure to check out all the recaps on our website. Now let’s see what is happening around the soccer world in today’s links!

Orlando City to Debut Documentary

With the Lions soon to join in on the 2023 U.S. Open Cup festivities, the club will debut a documentary titled For Our City. It follows the journey of Orlando City’s first-ever MLS era trophy from last season with never-before-seen content and interviews with many of the key figures along the six-game streak.

“2022 was a historic season for our club, our fans, and our community, and we’re so excited to kick off the defense of our championship with the debut of this incredible documentary,” Orlando City SC President of Business Operations Jarrod Dillon said. “A lot of hard work went into winning the Open Cup trophy on the field, and a lot of hard work went into putting this film together off the field. Thank you to everyone who had a hand in this production, especially to Luiz, Oscar, and the soccer operations group for trusting us with access and opportunity to bring this project to life.”

Orlando City Shifts Focus to Charlotte FC

Reigning U.S. Open Cup champions Orlando City played all of its tournament matches at home last year. The Lions enter the Round of 32 Tuesday night. It is a quick turnaround from a league defeat against CF Montreal, but the Lions are quickly shifting focus to their cup match against Charlotte FC. Orlando City left back Kyle Smith hopes to take the positives from the first half of the Montreal match and put the rest behind as soon as possible to turn the page for Charlotte.

“Yeah, we have to put this game behind us and take the positives from this game, which is the first half because we played very well. We were dangerous and good. I don’t think they had many chances at all in the first half, so you have to take the positives and have a short memory so we can get a result on Tuesday.” 

Anna Moorhouse Earns First Clean Sheet of Season

The Orlando Pride won a second consecutive match by defeating Racing Louisville. on Saturday night. For Orlando Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse, the 1-0 victory also served as her first clean sheet of the season. Orlando Pride defender Megan Montefusco is elated with the milestone and back line chemistry.

“It felt amazing to finally get a clean sheet. We’ve been working toward that for a long time, so it felt right to finally get that tonight. We’re building our relationships too. I feel really good next to Emily [Madril]. Obviously, me and Haley [McCutcheon] go way back, I think we’re just solid and then Anna [Moorhouse] came up huge as she does. Just a great team performance and our back line is just really coming together. It’s exciting for us.”

MLS Matchday 11 Roundup

There were quite a few storylines to follow this weekend around MLS. One of the most hyped would be that of Josef Martínez taking on Atlanta United for the first time. While the striker had yet to find the net this season, that streak came to an end in the 59th and 75th minutes, as he grabbed a brace for Inter Miami. Martínez is now the fastest player in MLS history to 100 regular-season goals.

Elsewhere, Nashville SC’s Hany Mukhtar scored a hat trick against the Chicago Fire. No player has more goal contributions in MLS than Mukhtar since the start of the 2022 season. New England Revolution Head Coach Bruce Arena bested a fellow former USMNT coach in Bob Bradley, as Toronto FC fell, 2-0. The Revs were able to get the win without the services of Giacomo Vrioni or Dylan Borrero in the starting lineup, with Jozy Altidore making his BMO Field return. Another club missing stars was Austin FC. The Verde and Black snatched a late 2-2 draw at the Portland Timbers even without their star, Sebastián Driussi, who picked up a midweek groin strain.

Free Kicks

• San Diego could be in the running for an MLS expansion team.
• LA Galaxy captain Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez held nothing back when asked about the club’s early-season poor form.
• Philadelphia Union Head Coach Jim Curtin called his team’s victory “one of the ugliest games I’ve seen of the season.”
• Burnley manager Vincent Kompany has signed a new contract that will keep him at Turf Moor until at least 2028.
• Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag said he has “no concerns” about David de Gea despite the goalkeeper’s error against West Ham United.
• Arsenal is still in the Premier League title race with a 2-0 victory at Newcastle United.
• Here is everything you need to know about how and which Premier League clubs will be qualifying for European tournaments.
• Real Madrid president Florentino Perez intends for Carlo Ancelotti to remain the head coach after winning the Copa del Rey title.
• Celtic clinched a second consecutive Scottish Premiership with a 2-0 victory away to Hearts.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you enjoy your week and are off to a great start. And, don’t forget about the midweek Orlando City action. Vamos Orlando!