Two-Week Break Can Work in Orlando City’s Favor

Orlando City did not want to exit Leagues Cup. It definitely didn’t want to exit it to Inter Miami, and it especially didn’t want the loss to come hand in hand with some…interesting officiating decisions. What’s done is done though, and now that the Lions are out of the running, their exit from the competition doesn’t have to be a bad thing. OCSC won’t play another game of competitive soccer for a little over two weeks, when the team travels to the Midwest to take on the Chicago Fire. In my opinion, though it stings to be out of Leagues Cup courtesy of the pink team to the south, a two-week layoff could hardly come at a better time for the Lions.

For one thing, although the injury list isn’t a mile long, Orlando doesn’t have a clean bill of health either. Gaston Gonzalez and Mikey Halliday were both listed as out on the availability report for the Inter Miami match, and while Junior Urso was listed as questionable with a right lower leg issue, he did not make the matchday roster, and has yet to do so since his re-signing. Halliday has been a starter when fit, Gonzalez was beginning to look more impactful coming off the bench before going down injured, and Urso will almost certainly slot in as the first defensive midfielder off the bench once he’s healthy. Having some extra time to get those guys fit, and potentially even reintegrated into training with the squad, is never going to be a bad thing.

Then, there’s the issue of rest for the guys who are currently healthy. The season is a long one, and Oscar Pareja has a tendency to eschew rotation once he finds a formation and starting XI that he really likes. Papi has deployed the same lineup in three of the Lions’ last four games, with the only change coming against the Houston Dynamo when Martin Ojeda got the start instead of Mauricio Pereyra. Those minutes add up during the hot, grueling slog of summer and these two weeks are valuable time for guys with a lot of minutes on their legs to rest and recover.

The Lions did a startlingly good job of navigating the summer months that are typically absolutely brutal for them. OCSC finds itself sitting fifth in a crowded Eastern Conference table with 11 games left to play in the season. The tricky thing is that six of those 11 games are against teams currently above the playoff line, and two of those are road matches against Supporters Shield leaders FC Cincinnati and a Nashville SC team that Orlando always has a tough time against. It isn’t the worst possible finish to the season, but it’s a long way from being a cake walk. That means that having extra time to rest, get healthy, and work on any areas of concern on the training ground could prove to be invaluable.

It sucks to be out of the running for a trophy, but I think a lot of fans and people involved with the club dearly want to improve on OCSC’s record in the playoffs. It isn’t enough to just make the playoffs and bow out after a game. This team and its fans want to see a deep run in the postseason. If the chips fall the right way, having a breather before entering the home stretch of the season might be exactly what this team needs to make that happen.