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Orlando City at New York Red Bulls: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 3-0 victory over the Red Bulls?

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City went back on the road with a trip to Harrison, NJ, to take on the New York Red Bulls. The Lions were able to take advantage of their chances to secure all three points on the road with a 3-0 win over their Eastern Conference foes. Here is how each Lion performed as Orlando City swept the Red Bulls in the regular season.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 6.5  — Despite some sketchy moments, Gallese was able to keep his fourth clean sheet of the season, and his second against the Red Bulls. The scary moments started early, when Gallese came out for a 50/50 ball in the 12th minute but was beaten to it and caught out of goal. Fortunately, his defense was able to help him recover. He also nearly gave away the ball in the 85th minute, when he was slow to pass and was closed down by Elias Manoel. The New York forward blocked the pass, but it went out for a goal kick. Gallese took an awkward foul from Dylan Nealis in the 82nd minute, but was able to carry on. His distribution wasn’t as good as usual, with a 68.8 % passing rate on 32 passes. He was accurate on seven of his 16 long balls. He also won one aerial and made one clearance. It wasn’t a bad night for El Pulpo, but I hold him to a higher standard, despite the clean sheet.

D, Rafael Santos, 6 — With Halliday on international duty and Kyle Smith starting on the right, Santos got his third straight start of the season. I don’t know that he’s had enough time to properly settle in, but he didn’t play poorly. Santos passed at a 59.5% on 42 passes, which isn’t good enough, but it was his first real taste of the Red Bulls’ pressure. He was only successful on two of his eight long balls. Defensively, he was a bit better, with three tackles, three interceptions, and two clearances. He committed two fouls, one of which earned him a yellow card.

D, Robin Jansson, 7  — Jansson was good if not perfect on defense. The bad was a foul on Luquinhas just inches outside of the box in the 32nd minute, resulting in a dangerous free kick. Fortunately, the resulting free kick went into the wall and was recycled until it went out for a goal kick. It was one of two fouls committed by the Beefy Swede, with the other being unnecessary contact with the goalkeeper on a set piece, for which he was booked. Defensively, he made one interception, two clearances, and blocked three shots, including one from Lewis Morgan that probably would have gone in without his intervention. He had an 80% passing rate on 50 passes, but only completed one of his seven long balls. Offensively, he had one dribble, and suffered three fouls, including one in which he was pulled down by Sean Nealis in the 49th minute, earning the penalty for Orlando City that Facundo Torres buried in the back of the net.

D, Antonio Carlos, 6.5 — Carlos seemed slightly off on the night, though it never came back to hurt Orlando City. He was beaten in the 14th minute trying to play out of the back, resulting in a corner for the Red Bulls. However, he cleared the ensuing corner kick. He made a bad pass in the 26th minute that simply went out of bounds rather than to a teammate, and he had a poorly taken free kick in the 37th minute to the opposition. However, defensively he had one interception, two clearances, and one blocked shot. Fortunately, he did not commit any fouls or receive a yellow card, because if he had, he would miss the next match due to accumulation. Offensively, he had one dribble, and suffered one foul. He passed at an 84.6% rate on 52 passes and was successful on six of 12 long balls.

D, Kyle Smith, 6 — Smith had a difficult assignment in dealing with John Tolkin on his side of the field. He managed one tackle, two clearances, and one blocked shot, while committing two fouls. Unlike last week, he wasn’t able to score on a goal from the right despite being put in a good position by Facundo Torres in the 42nd minute. He should have done better with a shot that went wide left. He had an 84.2% passing rate on 38 passes and was successful on three of his four long balls before coming off for Dagur Dan Thorhallsson in the 83rd minute.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 5.5 — Like Carlos, Pereyra wasn’t his usual sharp self, passing at just a 57.1% rate on 21 passes and completing no long balls. His pass to Kara in the box in the 16th minute could have sent the striker in on goal, but it was behind the Austrian. His free kick at the end of first-half stoppage time was too long and led to Jansson’s yellow as the defender tripped the keeper. Offensively, the captain completed one dribble, suffered one foul, and was dispossessed once. He was subbed off in the 62nd minute for Martin Ojeda.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6.5 — Araujo seemed to have gotten the message that he won’t get the foul if he drops at the slightest touch. He did successfully earn one foul, but it was deserved. Defensively, he made one tackle, one clearance, and had one blocked shot. He passed at an 82.8% rate on 29 passes and completed five of his six long balls. Unfortunately he was subbed off in the 56th minute due to an injury for Felipe Martins.

MF, Wilder Cartagena, 7.5 — The Peruvian midfielder had himself a night, earning an assist on Ivan Angulo’s goal to open the scoring for the Lions. His perfectly weighted through ball put Angulo in on goal in the 18th minute. He passed at an 84.1% rate on 44 passes, was successful on four of seven long balls, and had the key pass mentioned above. He committed three fouls, including one on Cory Burke in the 20th minute to give New York a free kick, but it didn’t matter. He also made nine tackles and one clearance. Overall, a very good night from Cartagena, who does a lot of the unsung work to break up the opposition’s attack.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 8 (MotM) — There have been times when Angulo tries to do too much when taking on an opposing player. That wasn’t the case in the 18th minute, when he took the through ball from Cartagena, juked Dylan Nealis and sent the ball past Carlos Coronel to give Orlando City the early leave. That was one of his two shots — both of which were on target. The other shot was deflected for a corner in the 65th minute. It was his breakaway run up the left side of the pitch in the 73rd minute that gave him his assist on Facundo Torres’ second goal. Out-running Frankie Amaya, the speedy Angulo drew defenders to him before passing the ball over to Torres for the third goal of the match. It was a good finish by Torres, but Angulo did most of the work to make it happen. He passed at an 85.7% rate on 21 passes with the obvious key pass and completed three successful dribbles. He also suffered two fouls, committed three fouls, made two tackles, and recorded one interception. With a goal and an assist, Angulo gets Man of the Match.

MF, Facundo Torres, 7.5 — Might this be the match that lights Torres up for the remainder of the season? I’m certain that is what was going through the minds of many as he stepped up to take the penalty kick in the 52nd minute. Torres converted the penalty kick with a perfectly placed shot into the upper right corner past Coronel, despite the keeper guessing correctly. He then made the run with Angulo in the 72nd minute and was perfectly positioned to get his second goal of the match, giving the Lions a certain victory. He wasn’t done yet, as he had another chance in the 77th minute, but it was blocked out for a corner. Torres passed at an 84.6% rate on 26 passes. He had three crosses, one key pass, and was successful on his only long ball. One of his underrated contributions was a nice move to push the ball past Andres Reyes in first-half stoppage time. Torres would have been in position to start a dangerous counter but Reyes fouled him hard. The play was reviewed as a possible red card, and even though Victor Rivas did not change the initial ruling of a yellow card, the play contributed to Reyes being sent off just after halftime.

F, Ercan Kara, 5.5 — The Austrian wasn’t able to have as much impact on this game as he has in recent weeks against one of the league’s best defenses, but his positioning was good. His best scoring chance went wanting when Pereyra played the final pass behind him. His biggest contribution was when he showed a good combination of skill and strength to bring down an aerial ball and fend off Reyes, who committed a tactical foul for a second yellow card and was sent off. Reyes has been New York’s biggest surprise this season with his aerial presence on both ends of the pitch and the Red Bulls missed him for the final 43 minutes, plus stoppage time. Kara didn’t record a shot or a key pass, passing at a 64.3% rate. He led all Lions with three aerials won and drew two fouls. However, he was dispossessed once and had four unstable touches trying to hold up play against New York’s swarming defense. On the defensive end, Kara contributed one clearance. He also committed one foul. He came off for Duncan McGuire in the 63rd minute.

Substitutes

MF, Felipe (57’), 6.5 — The Brazilian came on for the injured Araujo against his former team and proceeded to be his usual disruptive self, making one interception, blocking a shot, and committing one foul. He was impressive in the passing game, with a 95.7% rate on 23 passes, including a successful long ball. He committed one foul that earned him a yellow card.

MF, Martin Ojeda (62′), 6 — Ojeda came on for Pereyra to bring some more energy to the midfield. He did that. He attempted one shot, but hit it into the ground and it bounced high. To be fair, it was a difficult attempt as the ball was bouncing when he took the shot. He also put in two crosses (one successful) and passed at a 90.9% rate on his 11 passes, including one key pass, playing a ball into space for Angulo to run onto, leading to the third Orlando goal. As a result, he got a secondary assist on the play. Defensively, he contributed one tackle, one interception, and one clearance.

F, Duncan McGuire (63′), 6 — McGuire wasn’t able to get a goal contribution, though it wasn’t from lack of effort. The rookie took one shot, which was on target, had a key pass, and completed two dribbles, and his hold-up play was good. He did all of that while only touching the ball nine times. He passed at a 50% rate on four passes. It might not seem like much, but he helped Orlando see out the win.

D, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson (84′), N/A — Dagur Dan came on for Smith to play right back since he is the other Swiss Army Knife for Oscar Pareja. He wasn’t in long enough for a grade, but did manage six touches, and won an aerial.

MF, Ramiro Enrique  (84′), N/A  — Enrique came on for Cartegena but only managed 12 touches, committed one foul, and suffered one foul. Like McGuire, Enrique wasn’t in long enough to earn a grade.


That’s how I saw each performance from the Lions in their 3-0 win over the New York Red Bulls. This match was an example of what can happen when the Lions take advantage of limited chances. Who was your Man of the Match? Make sure to vote in our poll and let us know what you think in the comments.

Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/2/25

Orlando Pride players on International duty, NWSL power rankings, USWNT friendlies, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. There is plenty of Orlando Pride news today, which is good considering we’re heading into an international break. That means we can look forward to some women’s international matches in addition to Orlando City’s next bout against the Philadelphia Union. Before we jump into today’s news, please join us in wishing Orlando City midfielder Cesar Araujo a happy 24th birthday. Let’s get to the links.

International Duty, Pride Edition

Four players from the Orlando Pride have been called up for international duty. Anna Moorhouse (England), Angelina (Brazil), Emily Sams (U.S.), and Zara Chavoshi (U.S. U-23 training camp) will all head to their respective national teams. Moorhouse’s England will compete in the UEFA Women’s Nations League, while Angelina and Sams will face off in a pair of friendlies between the USWNT and the Brazil Women’s National Team.

Pride Still on Top

It seems that there are more outlets providing NWSL power rankings every week, but as long as they keep the Pride on top, I’ll keep letting you know about it. Given that the Pride are undefeated, with the most goals scored and the best goal differential, it isn’t surprising that the club is sitting atop the official standings along with these “highly scientific” power rankings. Goal.com, Sports Illustrated, and All For IX all rank the Pride in first place just above the Kansas City Current. I suppose even power rankings are occasionally correct.

Orlando’s Various World Cup Ties

You probably know that Orlando wasn’t selected to be one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. As disappointing as that was, there’s still a chance that the city, and Orlando City SC’s training grounds at Osceola Heritage Park will host team training during the event. The top notch facilities, plus the relatively close proximity to host cities Miami and Atlanta, make Orlando a good option.

On a more positive note, Orlando was chosen as a host city for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Camping World Stadium will see Club León vs. CR Flamengo, and Juventus vs. Manchester City. The Group H runner-up vs. Group G winner match and one of the quarterfinal round matches will also be in Orlando. There’s plenty to see and do in the City Beautiful, including some great soccer.

USWNT Youth Movement

Sams won’t be the only younger player in Emma Hayes’ lineup for the friendlies against Brazil. Hayes wants to deepen the player pool, which means bringing in players with an average age of just over 25 years old, and the average number of appearances is less than 35. Hayes also believes this is a chance for the younger players who appeared in the loss to Japan in the SheBelieves Cup. The first of the two matches is this Saturday at 5 p.m., with the second coming up Tuesday at 10:30 p.m.

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That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for the Orlando City and OCB matches this weekend. Hopefully, you have two screens since the match start times overlap. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/1/25

Barbra Banda’s continued importance, Americans in midweek action, USWNT announces friendly, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Good morning everyone! It was a great weekend for Orlando’s soccer teams as Orlando City and the Orlando Pride both won, meaning that we got treated to a six-point weekend (OCB was off). As always we have plenty to talk through this morning, so let’s get into today’s links.

Barbra Banda Keeps Rolling in 2025

After a wildly successful debut season with the Orlando Pride in 2024, Barbra Banda has showed no signs of slowing down this year. A brace in the season opener meant that she picked up right where she left off last year, and the team has continued to be successful too. The Pride have made it three wins from three to start the 2025 season, and while Banda hasn’t scored since the opener, her blend of pace, power, dribbling, passing, and movement have continuously helped open things up for her teammates, and she drew a penalty that led to the Pride’s game-winning goal Saturday. She isn’t the Pride’s only offensive weapon, but the team clicks into a different gear when she’s at her best.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans who will be playing in games during the working week, and there are some very important clashes on hand. Things get going later today when Antonee Robinson and Fulham visit Arsenal in Premier League play as the Cottagers are in hot pursuit of a coveted European place. Wednesday has Chris Richards, Matt Turner and Crystal Palace facing Southampton, while Tyler Adams and Bournemouth take on Manchester City. Also on Wednesday, Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan will face Inter Milan in a Coppa Italia semifinal. Things finish up on Friday as Aidan Morris and Middlesborough travel to Blackburn Rovers in the EFL Championship.

USWNT Announces Canada Match

The United States Women’s National Team has announced another friendly taking place this summer, as the team will face Canada on July 2 in Washington, D.C. The match will be the third that the USWNT will play during the window, following a pair of friendlies against Ireland in late June. The neighboring countries will meet at Audi Field with the match designated as the Allstate Continental Clasico, with this being the first time that the match will feature the USWNT. The U.S. faced Canada twice in 2024, with both matches ending in 2-2 draws and the USWNT emerging victorious in shootouts.

Concacaf Champions Cup Preview

The Concacaf Champions Cup returns this week, with the first legs of the four quarterfinal matches set to be played today and tomorrow. Things get started tonight with what should be an exciting match between Club America and Cruz Azul, with the crosstown rivals two of the winningest teams in the competition. Cruz Azul’s Angel Sepulveda leads the CCC’s golden boot race with four tallies. The late game sees the LA Galaxy taking on Tigres as the Galaxy will try to distract themselves from a difficult start to their MLS Cup title defense. Wednesday’s slate has the Vancouver Whitecaps taking on Pumas UNAM in Canada in what will be the second-ever meeting between the two teams. The late game will be an all-MLS affair as LAFC hosts Inter Miami in the first meeting between the two sides in CCC play.

Sporting Kansas City Fires Peter Vermes

The longest-tenured coach in Major League Soccer is out of work, as Sporting Kansas City announced the firing of Peter Vermes on Monday morning. It’s an end of an era in Kansas City, as Vermes was the head coach since 2009, back when the team was still called the Kansas City Wizards, and he had been named the club’s technical director three years earlier in 2006. He guided the team to an MLS Cup win in 2013; claimed U.S. Open Cup titles in 2012, 2015, and 2017; and helped the team be consistently competitive for a majority of his tenure. Despite all of that, SKC missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons and was mired in the midst of a 13-game winless streak in all competitions that stretched back to Sept. 18 of last year. After being an assistant on Vermes’ staff, Kerry Zavagnin will take over as interim head coach.

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

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. LA Galaxy: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 2-1 victory over the LA Galaxy?

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City capped off its March slate of matches with a cross-country bout against the 2024 MLS Cup champions, the LA Galaxy. In what was the longest commute that the Lions will register in the 2025 season, Orlando looked out of sync for much of the match, especially when contrasted with the squad that stomped D.C. United at home last week. Miraculously for the fans that stayed up past their bedtimes back on the East Coast, the Lions shocked the reigning champions and stole all three points with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the final quarter hour of the match.

Let’s look at the Lions’ individual performances to see who made the grade and who can improve as the calendar turns to April.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 6.5 — Gallese returned for Orlando after missing time while representing Peru during World Cup qualifiers. For the most part, he did well against the pressure of an agressive attack from the Galaxy. In the end, he was credited with just one save, which was a massive righthanded block of a shot by Gabriel Pec that could have put the game away for the home side. It isn’t worth entertaining a discussion about Gallese “letting another one in,” as the goal that the Galaxy scored was off a point-blank redirection back against his momentum, and it should have at the bare minimum warranted a second look for a potential offside ruling. His distribution was mostly solid, and he had an 81.8% passing rate on his 11 attempts while completing three of his five long balls. He was booked in the waining moments of the match for time wasting — although it was Rodrigo Schlegel who kicked the ball away without being spotted, and Gallese was merely retrieving it.

D, Rafael Santos, 5.5 — Santos had a few bright moments throughout the match, with an emphasis on the word few. I did think that he was better at getting into the attack and sent several balls across the net that had the potential to be dangerous. On the defensive end, there were just too many mistakes for my liking, whether that be careless turnovers, poor positioning, or falling asleep on the back side of the play. He and Ivan Angulo were both at fault on LA’s goal, as neither picked up Miki Yamane’s run. Santos was also overpowered twice by Pec. The Brazilian touched the ball 48 times, provided two key passes, one successful cross (on five attempts), and a passing rate of 76.9%. Defensively, he provided two tackles and three clearances. Offensively, Santos recorded a shot that was not on target. The left back currently benefits from a lack of depth pushing him for his starting minutes but will need to improve if Orlando is to continue its winning ways. He was replaced by David Brekalo in the 66th minute.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 7 — Schlegel had a productive and technically sound evening for the Lions. Defensively, he contributed one interception, a team-high seven clearances, and two blocked shots. He passed at a 93.6% rate, while touching the ball a team-high 88 times, and completed five long balls (on eight attempts). He didn’t register an offensive statistic during the match, but he played well and I thought that he had solid positioning throughout the night when the Galaxy sent balls into the box.

D, Robin Jansson, 6 — Something just seems off right now with Jansson, as the output from the captain simply feels less than what we have come to expect. Nonetheless, Jansson went the full 90 and recorded 65 touches. He completed 94.8% of his passes which included a team-best seven accurate long balls on nine attempts. Defensively, he contributed one tackle, one interception, and three clearances. Christian Ramirez beat Jansson on the lone goal for the Galaxy.

D, Alex Freeman, 6.5 — Freeman continues to put in the work for Orlando City. While his first West Coast trip was not fruitful in terms of goal-scoring contributions, the young Lion still managed to affect the game in a myriad of ways. He recorded 69 touches and completed 93.3% of his passes, which included two key passes and one accurate cross. Defensively, he added a team-high four tackles and two clearances. Offensively, Freeman tied Martin Ojeda for the most shots taken on the night (three) but was only able to put one on target. Freeman continues to showcase a solid motor that is helping to drive the offense, and he has shown strong chemistry with Marco Pasalic as well, but the most impressive aspect of his game against the Galaxy for me was the job he did in space defensively against Joseph Paintsil when the speedster entered the match in the second half.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 6.5 — This felt like a classic Araujo performance and the Uruguayan was seemingly everywhere on the pitch. He logged 63 touches and completed 90% of his passes but was only successful on one of his five long-ball attempts. Defensively, he contirbuted two tackles, one interception, and two clearances. Offensively, Araujo did not record a stat but did suffer a team-high three fouls. Araujo was able to defend without being booked against the Galaxy, and he has shown signficant improvement this season so far in not picking up careless yellow cards.

MF, Eduard Atuesta, 7.5 (MotM) — The former member of LAFC became the catalyst for the late offensive turnaround against what used to be his crosstown rival by earning a penalty in the 77th minute. He recorded 75 touches and completed 89.8% of his passes, which inlcuded two key passes, four accurate long balls on five attempts, and two succesful crosses on two attempts. Offensively, he attempted two shots, one which nearly put Orlando City in the lead when it hit the right post. Defensively, he contributed one tackle and two clearances. Atuesta benefitted from the insertion of Brekalo and Duncan McGuire, pushing forward into the attack, and without his effort, Orlando City likely would not have earned all three points. He was replaced by Joran Gerbet in stoppage time as part of a time-wasting, like-for-like substitution to see out the match.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 5.5 — To put it bluntly, Angulo is not in great form right now. The speedy Colombian is failing to challenge opposing back lines in the attack and has become a liability on the defensive side of the ball. The pairing of Angulo with Santos on the left has become a favorite area for the opposition to attack, and he was partly culpable in letting Yamane sneak in toward the back post on LA’s goal. He recorded 37 touches and completed 90.5% of his passes, which included one key pass. Defensively, he chipped in one tackle and one interception. Offensively, Angulo was dispossessed a team-high four times, as the careless giveaways — often in Orlando’s defensive half — continue to pile up. Orlando clearly needs more from the left wing, who was replaced in the 66th minute by McGuire, with Oscar Pareja pushing Ojeda to the left and playing Luis Muriel as the No. 10.

MF, Martin Ojeda, 7 — Ojeda did not allow another Lion to even remotely consider taking the penalty as he quickly stood over the spot, ball in hand, and then calmly converted the PK to pull Orlando level. Ojeda has now tied his goals total (four) from the 2024 season in only the sixth game of the year. Ojeda touched the ball 56 times and passed at a 90.5% rate while providing one key pass and four accurate long balls out of five attempts. Ojeda could have stood to improve his crossing, as he was only accurate on one of his five attempts. Offensively, Ojeda took three shots (tied with Freeman for the most on the team) but put just one on target (the penalty that he converted). He badly scuffed his first shot and his second was just off target in the first half. Defensively, he didn’t contribute a meaningful statistic, which was surprising, and it kept him just a rung below Atuesta when it came to Man of the Match honors.

MF, Marco Pasalic, 6.5 — Pasalic showcased several individual moments of brillance in the first half when the game was moving quickly end to end. Unfortunately for the Croatian winger, those moments failed to result in a change to the scoreboard. He touched the ball 39 times and completed 81.5% of his passes, including all four of his long balls. Defensively, like Ojeda, Pasalic did not record a meaningful statistic. Despite not scoring against the Galaxy, Pasalic continues to flash his skill with the ball and has been one of the main driving forces behind the strong offensive start to the season. He was replaced by Dagur Dan Thorhallsson in the 82nd minute.

F, Luis Muriel, 7 — Did Muriel score or did John McCarthy botch the play? Both, but who cares? Muriel’s long-distance free kick in the 90th minute found the back of the net, and the placement of the shot contributed to McCarthy’s mistake, as the Colombian sealed the victory and three important road points for Orlando City. A play reminisent of when fellow Designated Player Ojeda hit the equalizer from practically midfield against Charlotte FC back in 2023, Muriel stepped up to a free kick well outside the box and sent a shot towards the top left corner of the net. The goal capped a well-rounded performance for Muriel, who continues to play his best soccer in an Orlando City kit. Muriel finished with 37 touches and completed 88% of his passes, including a key pass. Offensively, he registered two shots with the one that mattered being on target. His other shot was a laser through traffic that barely missed just outside the left post on a set piece. Defensively, the striker contributed a tackle. Kyle Smith replaced him in the third minute of stoppage time.

Substitutes

D, David Brekalo (66’), 7 — I thought Brekalo put in some of his best minutes of the year as he entered in the 66th minute for Santos. It was an unexpected substitution, as Brekalo is a central defender. Regardless, the Slovenian played strong and sound defense, snuffing out multiple attacking runs by Pec. He racked up three tackles and three clearances on defense and put in several eye-opening efforts in the attack as well, as Orlando looked to get back into the match. He completed 90.9% of his passes, and while he did not record a shot, he was quite active around the box and made multiple runs off of his attacking counterparts. Brekalo at left back might be something to keep an eye on, as Pareja has been looking for someone to play consistently well there early in the season. Time will tell.

F, Duncan McGuire (66’), 6.5 — McGuire secured his longest stint since his off-season shoulder surgery and looked agressive over the final moments of the match. He opens up the field in a way Muriel is physically not able to at this point in his career, as the American got in behind the back line multiple times and pulled it out of shape for his teammates to exploit. He recorded three shots, which were all off target, but it is only a matter of time before the forward finds the back of the net. He completed 80% of his five passes and was credited with a key pass.

MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson (82′), N/A — Thorhallsson came on in relief of Pasalic and did well over the final moments of the match. The insertion of Brekalo, McGuire, and then Thorhallsson allowed Orlando to be the more dangerous side over the last 20 plus minutes of game time. He completed 83.3% of his passes and was credited with two key passes. Defensively, the product of Iceland added two clearances, and he did well to track back and help Freeman keep Paintsil bottled up.

D, Kyle Smith (93′), N/A — Smith came in following the long-distance goal by Muriel to help see out the victory.

MF, Joran Gerbet (93′), N/A — Like Smith, Gerbet was inserted to help see out the road win in stoppage time but also came into the match for Atuesta who was on a yellow card.


That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s come-from-behind win over the Galaxy. Let us know how you saw the game in the comments below, and don’t forget to vote for your Man of the Match.

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