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Orlando City vs. Columbus Crew: Final Score 2-2 as Cardiac Cats Fight Back for Road Point

Lions fall behind by two before the break but rally back to earn a hard-fought road point in Columbus.

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2 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

It looked like Orlando City was about to absorb another loss on its three-game road trip, but the Lions rallied for two second-half goals, erasing a 2-0 deficit and earning a 2-2 draw against the Columbus Crew at Lower.com Field in Columbus, OH. Ercan Kara and Duncan McGuire brought Orlando City (4-4-3, 15 points) back after first-half goals by Darlington Nagbe and Jacen Russell-Rowe had given Columbus (4-4-3, 15 points) a two-goal advantage in the opening period.

The draw snapped Orlando’s two-game losing streak in all competitions but extended the Lions’ winless streak to three matches.

“A really hard game today against this rival with a lot of dynamic,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “I think they showed that potential in the first half and confused us and went up the sides of the field and overloades us there. We couldn’t control it right away. We had moments that first half when we probably could have scored a goal and take that pressure off, but it was hard and even harder when they scored the first goal.

“I really liked the reaction of our players. I think they showed our braveness and character one more time.”

Pareja returned to the three-man back line, with goalkeeper Pedro Gallese behind a defensive line of Rodrigo Schlegel, Robin Jansson, and Antonio Carlos. Gaston Gonzalez and Ivan Angulo deployed as wingbacks outside of central midfielders Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena. Facundo Torres and Martin Ojeda played beneath striker Kara.

Orlando City controlled much of the game’s first eight minutes but the remainder of the first half was all Columbus.

Before the Crew took control of the match, Orlando did a better job of keeping the ball when they had it, but still couldn’t hit the target with anything. Cartagena and Ojeda both tried to chip Crew goalkeeper Patrick Schulte but both found out that doesn’t work when you can’t hit the goal frame. Kara also had a couple of shot attempts that went over the bar. That was it for Orlando’s offense in the opening 45 minutes.

After Ojeda made a bad back pass to ignite the break the other way, the Crew took over the match. Cucho Hernandez just barely missed the net on a few opportunities and those warning shots went unheeded by the Orlando defense, which gave everyone far too much room.

Columbus broke the scoreless deadlock by taking advantage of Orlando’s inability to execute a throw-in. The Lions threw the ball in, quickly turned it over, and then it was a cavalcade of being late to the next pass recipient before the ball ended up on the right side with Alexandru Matan. Once the ball was on the right, every available defender followed Hernandez’s diagonal run through the box, so once Matan’s pass trickled across the top of the six, it was just a matter of which Crew player would tap it in. Nagbe took charge of that in the 39th minute.

Just before the half, things got worse. Mohamed Farsi got the ball on the right and sent a simple cross into the box that no one was in position to cut out. It found Russell-Rowe in front and the 20-year-old completely dominated Orlando’s best center back, overpowering Carlos to double the lead in the second minute of first-half injury time.

Orlando was fortunate not to concede a third as the Crew quickly got back into the attacking third in the closing minutes of the half.

The Crew dominated the stat sheet, holding a commanding 65.5%-34.5% lead in possession and also finishing the half with more shots (9-4), shots on target (2-0), corners (3-1), and passing accuracy (85.4%-70.4%).

Pareja made no changes at halftime and his team responded quickly. The Lions pulled one back through Kara’s strike just four minutes after the restart. Torres played the Austrian in with a beautiful through ball that Kara played deftly with his feet to place the ball out in front for himself. He was 1-v-1 with Schulte and calmly slotted past the goalkeeper to make it 2-1 with his second goal of the regular season and third in all competitions.

The goal came on Orlando’s first shot on target in more than a game and a half.

“It was a little bit behind me,” Kara said of the Torres through ball. “But the first touch was okay and the finish was one on one against the goalkeeper. He decided to move a little bit earlier, before I shoot, and he (went) in the wrong direction.”

The Crew nearly pulled that goal back immediately. Hernandez fired a shot that missed the post by inches, skipping harmlessly wide in the 51st minute. Moments later, after Orlando won a corner, the Lions played it short but made such a mess of it that Hernandez broke the other way. Fortunately for Orlando City, several Lions were in good position to cut off the Crew striker.

Gallese made a save on Russell-Rowe in the 55th minute and he may not have seen the initial shot, which hit him in the chest and bounced away.

The Lions broke the other way and had a good chance to score but Kara’s back-post shot didn’t have enough curl on it and stayed wide. The Austrian had an open Ojeda on the other side of the box but may not have seen him before attempting the shot, as he was trailing the play.

Pareja sent on fullbacks Kyle Smith and Michael Halliday for Ojeda and Schlegel. It seemed like a shape change was on but the team played the same way with Halliday pushing high and Smith staying deep in what continued to be more or less a three-man back line.

Despite the change, the Crew nearly restored their two-goal lead in the 64th minute. Russell-Rowe sent Hernandez in behind and the Columbus Designated Player beat Gallese. However, Hernandez was just a tad offside and after a short video review by referee Drew Fischer, the goal was waved off.

Araujo found the ball at his feet in the box in the 67th minute off a corner kick, but the Uruguayan scuffed his shot badly.

Three minutes later, Gallese made a comfortable save on Yaw Yeboah, who fired right at the Orlando keeper. Moments after that, Jansson unwisely played a ball to Cartagena with Nagbe lurking. Nagbe won the ball and Cartagena had to concede a dangerous free kick and absorb a yellow card. Hernandez smashed the ensuing free kick into the wall and then sent the rebound well off target in the 75th minute.

The dead ball situation before the goal kick allowed Pareja to send on McGuire and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson into the match for Angulo and Cartagena in an attempt to get more attacking players on the pitch.

It didn’t work right away. Aidan Morris fired a shot right at Gallese moments later and then Jansson made a fantastic play in the open field to dispossess Hernandez to prevent a transition opportunity.

McGuire sent Halliday into the box in the 81st minute and the fullback had time and space. Trying to pick out the far post, the Homegrown Player wastefully skipped his shot wide.

Yeboah smashed a shot off Gallese in the 83rd minute but it took a fortunate bounce and went off to the goalkeeper’s left, where there were no attacking players. It then appeared the Lions’ comeback bid would fall short as the Crew won some corner kicks and kept Orlando pinned in its own end for a few minutes.

The Lions eventually broke out, clearing a corner and getting forward in the attack.

Orlando’s equalizer came a set piece — an area that hasn’t been kind to the club in 2023 so far. Off a cleared Crew corner kick, the ball ended up with Torres, who won a foul just outside the top of the Columbus penalty area. He and Thorhallsson stood over the dead ball before Torres knocked it to the right and two Crew players collided trying to clear it. The ball fell into the path of McGuire, who smashed it off of Schulte and into the net for the equalizer in the 92nd minute. It was his team-leading fourth goal of the season.

Orlando saw out the remaining four minutes of stoppage time but it wasn’t without some scary moments. In the 94th minute, Gallese made the save of the match. A cross came into the box to substitute Isaiah Parente, who sent his first touch toward goal. The ball hit Smith and bounced toward goal but Gallese made a great reaction save to keep the game tied.

A minute later, Yeboah smashed a shot just wide after Araujo turned the ball over trying to send a breakout pass up the pitch.

Eventually, though, the Lions got over the finish line and earned a road point.

The Lions closed the gap in possession but the Crew still had more of it (59.5%-40.5%), along with more shots (22-10), shots on target (7-3), corners (6-5), and passing accuracy (84.7%-72.8%).

“The second half was great,” Pareja said. “The players took the game by the horns and I saw our team playing much more football and having that volume going forward and we tied it up. A deserved game for us and again credit for these players that showed character. Our willingness is intact.”

The Lions will enjoy this draw, as they won a point from a losing position in the second half on the road.

“It feels not like a draw, it feels like a win, because we came back from 2-0,” Kara said. “That gives us energy, motivation for Wednesday that we are able to play better. Now we need to put one step more on it, be all together, go out on Wednesday, and win the game.”

Orlando City’s road trip is over as the Lions head home for a midweek matchup Wednesday night against New York City FC.

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Orlando City

How Orlando City’s Offense Stacks Up Against What Atlanta Does Defensively

How Orlando City has performed against teams playing with three or four defenders, and how that may influence the playoff game against Atlanta United.

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2 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

The most famous quote about real estate is that “there are three things that matter in property: location, location, location.” Soccer coaches also like to think in threes, especially when it comes to points, but for a soccer coach, the three things that matter might be the rhyming triplet “formation, formation, formation,” as that is where they will have the biggest influence on every game that their team plays.

Throughout his tenure as head coach, Óscar Pareja has preferred to use a 4-2-3-1 as his formation (fbref.com’s lineup data shows that the Lions primarily played a 4-2-3-1 in 65% of their MLS matches this season, and 79% of their MLS matches during the last three seasons). The Lions have lined up in a 4-2-3-1 during each of their last 14 games, and my confidence level is strong to quite strong (can you believe Meet the Parents came out 24 years ago?) that they will do so once again on Sunday when they host Atlanta United.

Atlanta United also prefers to deploy a 4-2-3-1, but was less consistent than Orlando City this season during MLS play, as evidenced by the chart below that shows how Atlanta lined up this season:

The purpose of this image is a table to show how Atlanta United lined up in 2024 (mostly in a 4-2-3-1 but also in one of six other formations).

I am relying on the coders at Opta for their evaluation of the formation, as I do not watch a lot of Atlanta United matches (sounds terrible), but though Atlanta primarily played with four defenders in more than two-thirds of its matches, during the last two matches it played a 3-5-2, the only two matches all season in which interim coach Rob Valentino rolled out that formation. I suspect that the formation change was related partially to playing Inter Miami and trying to defend the Herons’ dynamic offense and partially due to an injury suffered by defender Brooks Lennon in the first game of that series. So, while Atlanta primarily played four in the back for most of the season, there is a good chance it will roll with what worked against Florida’s second-best MLS team when it plays Florida’s best MLS team this weekend.

Now, if you want to read more about Atlanta, then you can read our match preview, which will drop Sunday morning, but I want to look at how Orlando did against teams that play similar styles. Looking only at MLS games, the table below shows how Orlando City performed against different back line structures this season (the left side is how the Lions’ opponents lined up, the right side is how Orlando City performed against opponents in those formations):

Table embedded as an image showing Orlando City doing best in goal differential in 12 games against three-man back lines, second best against four-man back lines, and having played once against a five-man back line (a 1-1 draw).

Orlando City earned slightly more points per game — the stat that matters most — against teams that played four in the back, but the Lions had a better average goal differential when teams played three in the back. Atlanta will likely deploy one of those two formations. In both games against Orlando City this season, Sunday’s visitors went with a 4-2-3-1, but as mentioned earlier, they used three in the back in each of their last two matches, so it really could be either.

Soccer is not like baseball, where players primarily stay in the same spot throughout the game, so some of these stats have to be taken with a grain of salt, as players are not always rigidly in the same position throughout a match. A team may also primarily play with four in the back but switch to three when chasing a game, or five when trying to protect against a late goal.

That said, using the data around Orlando City’s opponents’ general formations, here are the attacking groups who played the most frequently against four defenders during the 24 MLS games where Opta coded the opponents as using a defensive group of four:

Table embedded as an image showing the most frequently used lineups against teams who deploy four defenders. The most frequently used attacking group has a plus eight goal differential for the season.

It is a little ominous that the main starting group, shown in row one, has played 666 MLS minutes against back lines of four this season, but do I like that green goal differential of +8 in those minutes, which is a strong +1.08 per 90 minutes. I like that goal differential more than I like all the things that Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin like on their song that is creatively named “I Like It.” Coincidentally, when people ask me what I think about that song, I say, “I like it.” I am very creative.

If we look at the lineups that Orlando City has used against back lines of three defenders then there are some pretty major differences in personnel groupings, but it must be noted that more than half of the games against teams playing three in the back came early in the season, when Ramiro Enrique was unavailable to play. Enrique, my presumed starter at striker, has played fewer than three games’ worth of minutes (265 total) against back lines of three this season, and only 28 minutes with the main starting group, which ranks 13th among all the attacking lineups for minutes played against three defenders. That group scored one goal in their 28 minutes together though, for a robust 3.21 goals-scored-per-90-minutes average.

While the team as a whole has been successful against three-man back lines, I do not expect any of the lineups shown in the table below to play more than a few minutes together this weekend, though the first row and the last row are strong groups and had a lot of success.

Table embedded as an image showing the most frequently used lineups against teams who deploy three defenders. The most frequently used attacking group has a plus three goal differential for the season.

I am sure that all week long the Orlando City coaching staff has been going back and forth on whether it is more likely that Atlanta reverts to its most commonly used four in the back, or if the Five Stripes try for three wins in a row with three in the back. I would prefer that Atlanta plays with zero defenders and goalkeeper Brad Guzan wears a blindfold, but I think that is unlikely to be the case.

Even though Atlanta defeated Orlando City both times while in a 4-2-3-1, based on available personnel and recent results, I believe that the team will come out in a 3-5-2 in Inter&Co Stadium in the conference semifinal. Good things come in threes, and Orlando City’s best offensive production this season has been against three defenders, so I am going to be hoping that this continues, and in the third game against Atlanta the Lions grab the three points. Three’s company!

Well, it is a playoff game, so there are no actual points at stake, but you know what I meant.

Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City vs. Atlanta United: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Lions need to do to get a victory to advance to the Eastern Conference final?

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4 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City continues its playoff journey against Atlanta United Sunday at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions are coming off an emotional penalty shootout win over Charlotte FC in their best-of-three, first-round series. Likewise, Atlanta United stunned everyone by taking out Inter Miami to advance in its own best-of-three matchup. Now, the rivals meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

What does Orlando City need to do to get past Atlanta United to advance to the Easter Conference final?

Beat Guzan

Brad Guzan made 16 saves over Atlanta’s three matches against Inter Miami, including seven in the 3-2 win on the road in Game 3. The 40-year-old former USMNT keeper is in excellent form and is a big reason why the Five Stripes are facing Orlando City. Converting chances against Guzan will be crucial to earning a result. There have been times this season when the Lions have struggled to convert their chances. Despite that, the team has done enough offensively to get to this point. Facundo Torres, Martin Ojeda, Duncan McGuire, Ramiro Enrique, and others have contributed and will need to do so this weekend.

Cartagena is Essential

Orlando City lost twice to Atlanta United during the regular season. What is interesting, and perhaps relevant, is that Wilder Cartagena was out for both of those matches. Cartagena was shown a straight red in the match against Minnesota United prior to the first match against Atlanta way back in March. He was shown a yellow card in the match against FC Cincinnati and then served a yellow card accumulation suspension for the final match of the season against Atlanta. Fortunately for Orlando City, Cartagena will be available for the match this weekend. I’ve mentioned before the importance of Cartagena to Orlando City’s success. When he and Cesar Araujo are on the field together, the defense is simply better. Cartagena is frankly one of the better defensive midfielders in MLS. Atlanta scored five goals in the series against Miami, and Orlando will need to keep the visitors from having that kind of offensive success.

Overcome the Past

That darn international break in the middle of the playoffs is something I don’t love. More precisely, I don’t like it because Orlando City often struggles after a break. It would have been nice if Orlando City could have ridden the momentum from the penalty kick victory into the Atlanta match, but that’s not to be. Now is the time for Orlando City to break some bad habits, including turning around its historical lack of success against Atlanta, and tendency to struggle in the first match after a break. Oscar Pareja needs to have the players in the right frame of mind, and the players need to execute the plan. A full house of supporters can also make a difference. Given it’s a Sunday afternoon match, there’s no reason not to pack the house.

That is what I will be looking for Sunday afternoon. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links: 11/21/24

Marta’s chance to shine in NWSL Championship, NWSL and MLS award winners announced, 2025 SheBelieves Cup details, and more.

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7 hours ago

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November 21, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I’ve been spending most of this week plotting out some holiday shopping to make things a little less stressful for myself over the next few weeks. A big weekend filled with Orlando soccer awaits us, so make sure to get any errands or obligations out of the way sooner rather than later. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Spotlight Falls On Marta in NWSL Championship

There are plenty of storylines heading into Saturday’s NWSL Championship between the Orlando Pride and Washington Spirit, including Marta’s opportunity to put an exclamation point on what has been an excellent season for the Pride. Orlando has been enjoying the fruits of its labor this season after a rebuild over the past few years that’s included plenty of change in the City Beautiful. Marta has been a constant, however, enduring some difficult seasons since joining the Pride and adapting her game She’s scored in both of the Pride’s playoff games so far and has a chance to author a storybook ending on Saturday.

Ann-Katrin Berger Named NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year

NJ/NY Gotham FC goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger was named 2024 NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year, beating out the Pride’s Anna Moorhouse and Utah Royals FC’s Mandy Haught for the honor. It was Berger’s first year in the NWSL and she’s the first European player to win the award. She only conceded 16 goals across her 22 matches for Gotham this season and was a key reason behind her team’s success. I’m not too surprised that Moorhouse did not win, considering how solid the Pride’s defense was as a whole, but this won’t take anything away from a record-breaking season for her.

Wilfried Nancy Named MLS Coach of the Year

Columbus Crew Head Coach Wilfried Nancy was voted 2024 MLS Coach of the Year after a historic season in which the Crew set club records in both points and goals. The Crew also won the Leagues Cup this summer and their 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup campaign included advancing past Tigres and Monterrey en route to the final. This is Nancy’s first time being named Coach of the Year and he has been a finalist for the award every year since 2021. The Frenchman received 40.02% of the vote, winning the award over Inter Miami’s Gerardo Martino and Colorado Rapids Head Coach Chris Armas.

2025 SheBelieves Cup Details Unveiled

The 10th annual SheBelieves Cup will take place next year and the tournament will return to its usual format where each of the four teams plays each other once. The United States Women’s National Team will host Japan, Colombia, and Australia in February in what should be an exciting tournament. The U.S. will take on Colombia on Feb. 20 in Houston before facing Australia in Arizona on Feb. 23 and finishing the tournament on Feb. 26 against Japan at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego. These games will also be the first domestic games of 2025 for the USWNT as it prepares to qualify for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.

Eric Quill Named FC Dallas Head Coach

FC Dallas announced that Eric Quill will become the team’s next head coach. Quill joins Dallas after a great year with New Mexico United that included trips to the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals and USL Championship Western Conference semifinals. It’s also a reunion of sorts for Quill, as he previously coached North Texas SC and was named USL League One Coach of the Year with the club in 2019. Dallas missed out on the playoffs this season, with Peter Luccin coaching the team on an interim basis after the firing of Nico Estevez in June.

Free Kicks

  • District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser challenged Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer to a bet involving this weekend’s NWSL Championship, with embarrassing lightshows on the line.

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

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