Lions Stayed Quiet in Secondary Transfer Window

Orlando City will officially be in the homestretch of the regular season next week when it takes the field in Chicago on Aug. 20. And while it seems like it has been forever and a day since the Lions were roaring on the field, having played their last regular-season match back on July 15, the world of soccer news never stops turning…that is unless you are a Orlando City fan in hopes of secondary transfer window news.

While it seems like numerous MLS teams made either titanic-sized moves to overhaul their rosters or strategic additions to shore up weaknesses prior to the push for the playoffs, the Lions transfer news was limited to the lone addition of former Orlando City box-to-box midfielder Junior Urso. Now don’t get me wrong, I love this addition as a veteran presence who can provide depth and aggression in the midfield, and I was truly saddened to see the abrupt departure of the Bear prior to the start of the year.

The problem that I have is that I simply hoped for more, especially given how aggressive the club had been in summer transfer windows of years prior. A season ago, names like Ivan Angulo, Wilder Cartagena and Nicholas Gioacchini were added to the squad and helped contribute to the run-up to the U.S. Open Cup and some are now regulars in the starting XI. A year before that, transfers of Jake Mulraney and Emmanuel Mas were announced. While some transfers have had better staying power and made more contributions on the field, what can’t be argued was the aggressiveness of the front office in searching out talent.

Now it might be that the coaching staff and front office feel that they have a roster built to achieve their ultimate goals for the season already without the need for additions. After a busy off-season prior to the start of the year, that could certainly be the case. At the same time, there is always the possibility that there were swings and misses that we will never hear about or maybe potentially bigger things in the works for the future that just need more time to come to fruition. With 11 matches to go, for better or worse, this is the squad which will hopefully continue to climb the table as the team sits only three points from third place in the East.

What do you think City fans? Are you comfortable with the lack of flashy headlines from Orlando City’s summer transfer window? Would you have preferred a few more additions to bolster the team’s weaknesses or do you think once players return from injury those issues will sort themselves out? Let us know in the comments below, and as always, vamos Orlando!