Lion Links: 5/15/23

Merry Monday morning, Mane Landers. What a weekend it was. Come-from-behind draws, devastating losses, and Pride. Things don’t slow down this week with all three teams back in action, including Orlando City’s match against New York City FC on Wednesday. In fact, I’m coming down to join everyone in Exploria Stadium for that one. Let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Looking for Consistency

It was a tale of two halves for Orlando City against the Columbus Crew. In the first half, the Lions lacked the finishing quality, much like they have during previous matches this season. The second half was a different story, with the Lions coming from behind to secure a point on the road. Now, Orlando City is looking to be more consistent on scoring going forward.

Orlando Pride Draw Gotham FC

The Pride traveled to New Jersey to take on NJ/NY Gotham FC and came away with a point on the road, thanks to a 0-0 draw. After the initial pressure from Gotham, the Pride worked their way into the match and had the better of the chances. The Pride dominated both shots and shots on target while limiting Gotham’s attack. The Pride’s defense did well to keep Lynn Williams and Kristie Mewis contained. The Pride are back in action this Saturday against the Washington Spirit at Exploria Stadium.

OCB Thrashed by Crew 2

The Young Lions were not as fortunate as the senior team in Columbus as OCB lost 4-0 to Columbus Crew 2 on Sunday. The home team scored four goals in the second half, and the young Lions were unable to answer with even one. The loss drops OCB to third place in the Eastern Conference of MLS NEXTPro. The team returns home to face Atlanta United II this Friday. Sean Rollins has your match recap.

Chelsea FC Women Win FA Cup

Sam Kerr scored the one and only goal in the final of the Women’s FA Cup to defeat Manchester United Women, 1-0. The victory is Chelsea’s third FA Cup title in a row, and the club did it in front of a record-breaking crowd of 77,390 people. Former Orlando Pride skipper Marc Skinner said he thinks his Manchester United club will overtake Chelsea in the coming years. It’s been quite a week for Kerr as she won the Player of the Year award from the Football Writers’ Association.

Free Kicks

• Cameron Carter-Vickers is making progress following his knee surgery for an injury sustained with with Scottish Premier League club Celtic.
• Barcelona clinched its first La Liga title since Lionel Messi departed. Having Robert Lewandowski certainly helps with the scoring, and he contributed a brace to help secure the win.
• Malik Tillman was named Young Player of the Year in the Scottish Premiership. The youngster had a stellar year for Rangers while on loan from Bayern Munich.
• Alyssa Thompson may get a call up to the USWNT for the World Cup, and she is getting advice from the veteran players on Angel City about the intricacies of international play.
• The Central Florida Crusaders are the NISL 2023 Men’s Division Champions with a 13-2 record.
• Arsenal’s slim English Premier League title hopes took a hit thanks to a 3-0 loss to Brighton on Sunday.
• Both the United States and Mexico have secured Beach Soccer World Cup berths. The 2023 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup will take place in the United Arab Emirates this November.
• My hometown NPSL club, Tallahassee Soccer Club, mirrored Orlando City’s result with a 2-2 draw on the road against Pensacola FC.

• It is said that twice is a coincidence and three times is a pattern. Hopefully, Orlando City won’t need to find out the next time the club travels to Columbus.

That will do it for today. If you see me Wednesday at the match, please say hello. I’ll be wearing my “I love the Mailbagbox” t-shirt. Vamos Orlando!