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Orlando City vs. Inter Miami, Leagues Cup: Final Score 3-1 as Lions Exit the Tournament

A tie score from halftime was broken by yet another soft penalty given to an Orlando opponent and the Lions are done with Leagues Cup.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Anyone who wants to see what the Lionel Messi era in MLS is going to be like had only to watch the way the game was officiated when Inter Miami defeated Orlando City 3-1 at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale tonight. Offside calls that weren’t, downy soft penalty calls, an ignored blatant foul right in front of the referee by the league’s new star man, and free kicks that should never have been given were the rule of the night.

But the Lions are not only out of Leagues Cup because of that. Orlando City also neglected to capitalize on chances in the loss, getting just one goal through Cesar Araujo — who had a second waved off for offside in the buildup. That wasn’t enough to overcome Messi’s brace and a Josef Martinez penalty that should never have been awarded. The latter broke a 1-1 deadlock just after halftime and was an obvious source of frustration for the team.

“I think we have to be clear. The game was disputed by the two teams and then analyzed tactically and analyze what could happen here and there. But we have to start with the reality of the call of the PK and other calls that were ridiculous,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “I don’t want to say that the attention that we’re getting here with all that is happening, it becomes a circus. Today was a circus. The PK is unbelievable. It’s unbelievable. I don’t know if the VAR came today. So, if the VAR came today and we have the referee there, then we have to be on it and go see it (at the replay monitor), because the game deserved it.”

Pareja boldly made no changes whatsoever to the team that played four nights ago at home against Santos Laguna. Pedro Gallese took his customary spot in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. Wilder Cartagena and Araujo manned the central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres, with Duncan McGuire up top.

A lengthy delay for severe weather threw a damper on the proceedings, causing kickoff to push back from its 8 p.m. scheduled start time to 9:35 p.m.

Orlando City started with a good press and controlled play for the opening few minutes but Miami settled in and Martinez smashed a shot from outside the box that Gallese parried away in the fifth minute.

Two minutes later, Messi opened the scoring when Araujo got caught ball watching. The Argentine waited until Araujo’s attention waned and made a run into the box with no one on him. Robert Taylor lofted in a ball for him and it was an easy finish from point-blank range to make it 1-0.

The Lions responded well, sending in some crosses over the next few minutes but couldn’t get on the end of them.

Martinez fired over the bar in the 14th minute and then McGuire was sent down the left side of the box a minute later but his shot was always going left. Just after that, Araujo won a foul on the right and Sergio Busquets knocked it behind for a corner.

The Lions scored on the ensuing set piece. Orlando City played a corner short and Angulo darted toward the end line and sent the ball in front of goal. Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender knocked it away but it went straight to Araujo, who smashed it on goal. Callender got a piece of it but couldn’t keep it out as the Lions leveled the game in the 17th minute.

The next 15 minutes were back and forth and the Lions started to get to Messi as he was booked in the 21st minute for fouling Cartagena from behind. The next decent look fell to Orlando when McGuire sent a shot too close to Callender in the 22nd minute. Pereyra then got an opportunity a few minutes later but couldn’t dig the pass out of his feet.

Messi nearly restored Miami’s lead when he fired off the outside of the left post in the 32nd minute. That was followed by a good Orlando attack that should have resulted in a corner but the offside flag wrongfully came up. McGuire managed to hold his run but the assistant referee made an assumption on the play and the replay showed that assumption was clearly wrong.

Taylor fired just wide of the right post in the 41st minute after being given too much space outside the box. Gallese followed with a huge save to deny a Messi free kick in the 45th minute on a soft foul about 25 yards out just seconds after Pereyra seemed to be fouled from behind further up the pitch.

In stoppage time, Messi blatantly fouled Araujo and perhaps should have gotten a second yellow card, but the ref let it go and then booked Kyle Smith afterwards instead with both teams pushing and shoving.

Busquets put his hand to Smith’s throat in the scrum after the play but was not cautioned or penalized for it in any way. Miami was then allowed to take the free kick and play 30 seconds beyond the two minutes of stoppage time, with Benjamin Cremaschi firing just wide on the last kick of the half.

Miami dominated possession in the first half (71.9%-28.1%), fired more shots (7-5), and passed more accurately (90.5%-78.8%). The Lions won more corners (4-1), and both teams got three shots on target.

Referee Ivan Barton tilted the field in Miami’s favor just after the break. A through ball that Martinez had no shot at getting to was collected by Gallese as the former Atlanta forward fell in the box. A penalty was awarded immediately despite there being only the slightest contact. It was extremely soft and Barton did not go to the monitor to look at it himself. The VAR did not overturn it so the penalty stood and Martinez scored to make it 2-1.

“It’s not clear,” Pareja said. “The PK…the game doesn’t deserve that. (The match officials) don’t need to be protagonists. Just go and see it. The people want to see soccer and things have to be fair, and today was not the case.”

Chasing the game, Pareja sent Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Ramiro Enrique on for Smith and McGuire. Orlando won a couple of set pieces but did nothing with them and then Pereyra fired a shot off a teammate and out for a goal kick in the 64th minute. That was the captain’s last involvement in the game as he was subbed out a minute later for Martin Ojeda, who was less than effective in his roughly half hour of work. He fired a shot in the 68th minute that was nowhere near the goal frame.

Moments later, Messi put the game to bed on the counter. A bad giveaway in the attacking third caught the Lions with numbers forward. The Lions tried to get back but a good quick layoff from Martinez to Messi confused Cartagena and Jansson, who both ended up on Martinez, only to see it get sent to Messi for the insurance goal.

To add insult to injury, Barton did go to the monitor late in the game after Araujo scored his second goal off a wicked cross by Santos. The ball bypassed Enrique, who had a shoulder offside but Callender was already hugging his near post and the ball passed out in front of everyone to Araujo at the back post for the finish. There’s no way that Enrique’s presence was an issue for Callender, given his positioning on the play but Barton ruled the Lions offside. It’s funny how going to the monitor can change one’s perspective and funnier still how selective referees in Orlando City games are about doing it.

“It doesn’t make sense at all,” Pareja said of the inconsistency in the referee going to the monitor or not. “I’d rather just be talking about the soccer tactics. We’re confused. We don’t know why he didn’t go see (the penalty review). Because he has the chance to see it, because that’s what the VAR is for. And then in the second one, there is a body (part) that was offside. It was not intervening that much, but he was offside and then he went (to the monitor) and that’s what he should have done. He has to be more consistent for sure, because the players get frustrated with those things.”

The final whistle on the charade blew moments later and the Lions were out of Leagues Cup.

Miami finished with more possession (63.8%-36.2%), shots (12-11), shots on target (5-3), and passing accuracy (89.1%-83.6%). The Lions won more corners (5-1).

In the end, Orlando City’s finishing wasn’t good enough and once the penalty changed the game, it was a difficult rest of the match.

“We were not sharp up front. We probably could have been more aggressive when we had the ball,” Pareja said. “And we’re going to take as well the blame on our team, that we couldn’t score. And then they opened the scoring in the first half and the second half very early. We could have avoided that. But honestly we are very disappointed in the game because of those two plays. This is not what we need.”


Orlando City will have a long rest now, as the next match isn’t until a visit to the Chicago Fire on Aug. 20. Inter Miami will take its sideshow to FC Dallas in the Round of 16.

Lion Links

Lion Links: 10/29/24

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

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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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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 vs. Charlotte FC: Five Takeaways

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

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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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